MAC Sinfully Chic Face Kit

The Sinfully Chic face kit from MAC was part of their holiday collection for 2012 called Fabulousness. I was late in buying anything from this collection, trying to hold back a little on buying so much makeup but I eventually caved and bought this. I must admit that the packaging this year really did sway me, it's got to be the most beautiful holiday collection from them yet (in terms of packaging). I've never actually bought from their holiday collections before so I was interested to see what was on offer. As I don't own that many MAC items, I thought this would be a great way to try a range of their products. I do own a few lipsticks and lip glasses, both of which I love! So getting the blush and eyeliner was a plus. 

This set seems to big the biggest in terms of size, kind of like a clutch bag. And while I think it would be great just to pick up this set and take it with me, it can be a bit bulky so I've taken the items out and put them into my makeup bag to save space. You can also change out the products if you want which I think is a nice idea if you're going for a different look. The only other thing I'm worried about with the silk pattern would be getting it dirty, the texture seems like it would attract a lot of dirt so I haven't taken mine out. It sits on my shelf looking pretty instead.

Once you open the set, the two sides are divided by a mirror. There is a pouch with a travel size blush brush in (MAC 129) and you can always add your own brushes in with this. I already own the 129 travel brush when it came out with the wonder woman collection and I think it's great for when you are limited on space and it does the job. I have heard that the travel size brushes are nowhere near the same quality as full size but as I don't own the full size I can't compare. This brush is still better than a lot of other brands though.

The lip glass (be nice) included in this set is a pretty champagne colour, when on the skin it does come out clear and has quite a few glitter particles. The lipstick (Out to please) is a slightly orange toned nude, I think on my skin this would wash me out so if I were to use this I think I would put a more brighter gloss over the top. 

My favourite items in this set are the blush and eyeliner. The blush (pursue your passion) is much more orange than it looks on the site, it's a warm bronzey colour. I do like this a lot and don't use a bronzer when I wear this, I will sometimes put a more pink toned blush just on the apples of my cheeks to give my face a bit more colour. 

The eyeliner (technakhol liner in graphblack) is very soft and very pigmented, it glides on the skin so smoothly and doesn't budge all day. It's also really easy to take off at night. This is an eyeliner that doesn't need sharpening, you just twist the top whenever you need more. So an all around good product in my books! This is no longer available but if you are interested in the fabulousness collection, Debenhams still have a lot on their website.

What did you think of MAC's 2012 holiday collection? Did you purchase or receive any of these items? What would be your favourite product from MAC?

Lipstick Collection Part 1

I  love watching youtube videos of makeup collections and reading blog posts about what products each person has, so I thought I would share what I own. I was never really a big lipstick fan until recently, I still don't wear it very much but I've started to see what is out there and the type/colours I like. My lips get dry quite often so I'm always using a lip balm before I apply any lipstick, I'll usually go for something sheer and moisturising. Matte shades don't seem to look so good on my lips and I don't feel like I can pull off the bold coloured lips. I do own a few bolder colours but I sheer them out and will sometimes add lip gloss over the top.


I decided to do this in two parts because I don't want this post to go on and on. Plus this is a picture heavy post :)

I only own four MAC lipsticks
Viva Glam Nicki - I did a post on this a few months back here

Watch Me Simmer - This was from the Shop Mac Cook Mac Collection so is no longer available, it is an amplified finish. I don't know much about MAC lipstick finishes but this is a very bright bold and pigmented colour. This has more of a matte feeling and tends to dry my lips a little so I sheer it out and put gloss over the top. This is more longer lasting than the creamier formulas. 


Viva Glam Gaga - This is one of my favourite lipsticks because I think the colour suits my skin tone more than others, it is a lustre finish. This doesn't dry my lips out and blends really smoothly onto my lips.


Innocence Beware - from the Venomous Villains collection, this I picked up from a CCO. It's a nude colour with a very slight hint of pink. This is a creme sheen finish and has a creamy consistency and goes easily onto the lips. I mentioned earlier that I prefer wetter formulas rather than dry/matte ones and this is one of the finishes that I prefer as it feels nicer on the lips. You will need to reapply this through-out the day but that doesn't bother me as I expect to with lipstick.

Dior
I have two Dior lipsticks, these are part of the Rouge Dior range. I picked these up in Duty Free. I have the colours Rare Amber which is a burnt reddish shade with some orange, and Pink Songe, which is a medium pink colour. I love these lipsticks as the colours fit my lips and skin tone really well plus they are really easy to apply. These aren't matte shades but they are highly pigmented and have pretty good staying power.

Chanel
I only own one Chanel lipstick which I got at duty free with the Dior ones. I decided to try out one of the Rouge Coco Shine lipsticks as I prefer this type of formula. I really don't like the dry feeling on my lips that most lipsticks give so I purchased this to try. I really liked the colour selection but went for something safe with Rivage, a nude pink colour. The staying power isn't too good but then with something like this I wouldn't expect it to be. This is one of my favourite lipsticks to wear.

Check back for part 2 soon! 

Latest wish list

1/2/3/4/5

1: Too Faced Candlelight glow duo, I've tried the regular Candlelight glow which came in a holiday palette last year. I liked the highlighter but had to use it with a light hand as it is quite shimmery. The only problem with having it in a palette is that it's not easy to take travelling but I never bought the single as I found it wasn't worth it. I can't wait to try this new duo.

2: Too Faced Milk Chocolate Soleil Bronzer, I've tried the original of this also in the same palette as the Candlelight highlighter and although I liked it, I find most bronzers are too dark for me so I think it's great they've released a lighter version for paler girls like myself. I also love the smell!

3: MAC Hey Sailor! Fleet Fast Blush, I haven't tried that many MAC blushes (one to be specific lol) and have loved the look of this collection and am really into the nautical look. 

4: Yves Saint Laurent Rouge Volupte Perle, I've heard a lot about these and can't wait to try them. The packaging is so beautiful and love that you can see which colour is which without having to look at the name. I love all the nude colours too.

5: Lancome multicompactage 001: I saw this over on another blog and thought it was beautiful, I've never tried anything from Lancome before mostly because of the price. I love anything that's pretty like this bit find I never use it much because of ruining it. 

Force Of Love

I don't own many MAC lip glosses at all but the ones I do have I've really liked. I've only ever tried lip glasses from MAC and I love the formula of these. For a lip gloss they have a lot of colour which is something I've not found with a lot of other brands. They aren't too sticky either which I think is great because I often find that when other lip glosses wear off my lips they are still incredibly sticky. 

This lip gloss was part of the Chen Man collection and this is the kind of colour I always go for. Something not too "out there" that can be worn either sheered out or with the colour built up. I find that really bold colours don't fit my skin ton of face sometimes unless I'm wearing bronzer. I really like this colour as it's not a very bright or dark pink but somewhere in the middle. This lip gloss also has small shimmer particles in it but they aren't that noticeable when worn. I don't find the staying power great but then I haven't found that with any lip gloss as they are a gloss. I don't find myself re-applying often though.

I picked this up at duty free whilst I was at Heathrow airport last month so I got it at a discounted price. I think it was only about 10% off but I'd seen it sold out all online so took my chance! Mac lip glasses range from £13 upwards and are available from www.maccosmetics.co.uk www.debenhams.com and all MAC counters.

Her Nirvana

In January this year, Benefit Cosmetics launched their new boxed blush "Hervana". I managed to pick this up in Debenhams not long after it came out, with my beauty points I managed to get it for £13 so I was pretty happy with that. The word Hervana is a cross between Her & Nirvana. The four shades that make up Hervana are lucky shell, divine peach, heavenly rose and berry delight. Benefit describes this as "orchid blossom finish to cheeks with a low amount of pearl" The first thing I noticed about this blush was the smell, it has a very sweet kind of berry-like smell to it which I love! Although the smell doesn't really bare any purpose to the product itself it's little things like this which sets the Benefit Brand apart from others. When applied I noticed that this blush was quite a light subtle soft pink colour that is easily buildable. Included is an angled brush too which I don't use but is nice to have if you are out. I prefer to use my travel size MAC 129 brush as I find this is small enough to get into the corners but also big enough to not pick up any concentrated colour. These shades can be used individually if you have a brush small enough and find a way to apply them although I haven't tried this. I'd also recently found out that this blush is a multipurpose blush which can be used on both lips and eyes. Although I wouldn't use this product on my lips it is nice to know that you can use it anywhere on the face. What do you think of Benefit's new boxed blush?

MAC: Viva Glam Nicki

The first time I heard about Viva Glam and Aids fund was back in 2007 when I met Dita Von Teese at Selfridges when she was promoting the Viva Glam line. The MAC aids fund was set up to help people affected by HIV and AIDS. MAC donates 100% of the money through Viva Glam to it's organisation. On their website www.macaidsfund.org it shows you what buying one Viva Glam Lipstick can do for people affected By aids. So not only do we get to buy great products but we also get to support a great charity at the same time. MAC uses different celebrities to help promote the charity. The latest Celebrities being Nicki Minaj and Ricky Martin. A few days ago I was emailed a pre-sale code to purchase Viva Glam Nicki, and as I love Nicki Minaj I purchased it straight away. I've purchased previous Viva Glam products including Viva Glam Gaga.

I've never actually made an order from the MAC online store before, so this was my first time and I have to say I was really impressed with the service. Not only did I get free shipping but It also only took 2 days to arrive. 

  The lipstick itself is described as a "yellow pink" and is a satin finish. When swatched it is quite vibrant and pigmented. I really love the colour but when applied it washed me out, probably due to my pale complexion but I found that blotting my lips and sheering it out looked much better.

I think this would look great with a lip gloss applied over the top to tone down the vibrancy of it whilst still keeping the colour. It has quite a creamy texture but when blotted can dry out the lips I find that using a gloss helps keep my lips moisturised. As this is such a pigmented colour you may want to apply it with a lip brush to get a more accurate finish.

{swatched}

{Viva Glam Nicki}

{With lip gloss applied}

{sheered out}

The MAC Viva Glam Nicki lipstick will be available online 28th February and in stores March 1st. It retails for £13.50.

What do you think of Viva Glam Nicki? Will you be purchasing it? Have you purchased from the Viva Glam line before?