MAC released their much talked about Wonder Woman collection, and the first thing you’ll notice (if you’re a MAC fan) is that the prices and product size have gone way up but just for this collection. The MSF’s ($35 ea.), blushes ($24 ea.), and lipglasses ($20 ea.) are all notably larger, and combined with licensing, you’re paying a bit more for everything. Same deal with Venomous Villains sans larger size. The lipstick’s in this collection ($15 ea.) are regular size.

I didn’t even attempt to buy the eyeshadow quads, despite having my eye on Valiant. When I saw swatches of these shadows on various blogs who received the collection early, I was less than thrilled. The pigmentation wasn’t worth $40 in my opinion, and I already have similar colors of pretty much every eyeshadow they’re selling in this collection. I didn’t buy any of the pigments or glitters, liners, or mascaras…I just stuck with the following:

• Amazon Princess blush duo – bright yellow pink/deep blue pink with gold pearl
• Mighty Aphrodite blush duo – warm peach coral with gold pearl/bright coral pink with gold pearl
• Golden Lariat MSF – Left: True coral with fine gold shimmer/Center: Soft suntanned bronze/Right: Soft gold with fine shimmer.
• Pink Power MSF – Left: Peachy rose with pink shimmer/Center: Soft rosy bronze/Right: Soft shell pink with fine shimmer.
• Wonder Woman lipglass – bright red with soft pearl
• Athena’s Kiss lipglass – bright blue fuchsia
• Secret Identity lipglass – midtone copper with soft pearl
• Marquise d’ lipstick – sandy cream peach (lustre)
• Spitfire lipstick – bright creamy magenta (satin)
• Heroine lipstick – brown bronze (frost)

MAC Wonder Woman collection

MAC Wonder Woman collection

MAC Wonder Woman collection

MAC Wonder Woman collection

MAC Wonder Woman MSF
Golden Lariat

MAC Wonder Woman MSF
Pink Power

MAC Wonder Woman blush duo
Amazon Princess

MAC Wonder Woman blush duo
Mighty Aphrodite

MAC Wonder Woman lipglasses

MAC Wonder Woman lipglass
Athena’s Kiss

MAC Wonder Woman lipglass
Secret Identity

MAC Wonder Woman lipglass
Wonder Woman

MAC Wonder Woman lipsticks
l-r: Marquise d’, Heroine, Spitfire

MAC Wonder Woman lipsticks
l-r: Marquise d’, Heroine, Spitfire

MAC Wonder Woman lipglass
l-r: Athena’s Kiss, Secret Identity, Wonder Woman

MAC Wonder Woman lipstick swatches
l-r: Marquise d’, Heroine, Spitfire

MAC Wonder Woman lipstick swatches
l-r: Heroine, Spitfire, Russian Red

MAC Wonder Woman collection
Golden Lariat MSF swatch

MAC Wonder Woman collection
Pink Power MSF swatch

MAC Wonder Woman collection
Mighty Aphrodite

MAC Wonder Woman collection
Amazon Princess blush duo

**I will post swatches of all lip products worn on actual lips soon. I wanted to hurry and get this up for you. I’ll edit later!

OVERALL THOUGHTS

To be honest, nothing in this collection (product-wise) is a must-have, in my humble opinion. I think that if you’re a serious collector or a die-hard Wonder Woman fan, you’ll wanna grab a few items if not all. Or, if you don’t have any colors like these, you may wanna pick up a few things. The colors are nice, but they’re so similar to shades you may already own — I know I may not have 100% exact dupes, but I have a few “close enough’s”. I’m on the fence because I really like the collection, but at the same time I don’t feel many of the products are even worth pouring out your hard-earned money. I also have an issue with the way the new mega-size lipglasses are packaged. You literally have to yank the wand out because it gets super tight when pulling thru the stopper — causing you to actually fling a nice amount of gloss somewhere other than your lips. I’ve lost a few traces of lipglass on my desk when doing swatches. You have to pull the wand very slowly and firmly so that it doesn’t splash around, in order to preserve your product that you paid $6 extra for.

I did notice that the new blushes have a much silkier formula, and aren’t nearly as chalky as some MAC blushes can be. They both leave a very subtle yet beautiful sheen on the cheeks. Mighty Aphrodite is really gorgeous, probably my favorite item from the entire collection. I can’t wait to rock that in the summer. The lipglass formula’s feel smoother to me, but this could be because of how they’re applied — creating a smoother line across your lips. Golden Lariat is beautiful in theory, but it didn’t give me a ton of color. It’s still very pretty though, I got a nice glow from it. Pink Power would look great on lighter skin-tones, or as a simple highlight on darker, cooler skin-tones. I didn’t get much color from that one either. I already had Russian Red (who doesn’t??), so I wasn’t gonna spend $15 just for comic book packaging lol.

I like the stuff, but I definitely don’t love it. I think this is a collection everyone should try out in person first if they can. A lot of things I was excited for, only turned out to be “just okay” for me. I wouldn’t personally rush out to get anything from this collection unless I just wanted to spend some money or was a huge Wonder Woman fan. MAC accidentally sent me an extra Athena’s Kiss lipglass, so I’ll be giving it away here soon

-Stay beautiful

Availability: MAC Cosmetics

MAC Style Curve lipstick (cremesheen)

MAC Style Curve lipstick (cremesheen)

MAC Style Curve lipstick (cremesheen)

MAC Style Curve cremesheen worn on lips
-taken with flash

MAC Style Curve cremesheen worn on lips

MAC Style Curve cremesheen worn on lips
-taken with low flash

l-r: MAC Violetta, MAC Style Curve

l-r: MAC Violetta, MAC Style Curve

l-r: MAC Violetta, MAC Style Curve

MAC Violetta lipstick (amplified) vs. MAC Style Curve lipstick (cremesheen)

old FOTD wearing MAC Violetta lipstick

Dupe city, huh? They pretty much look alike, but I would say that Style Curve is more subtle than Violetta. Style Curve is a slightly plummier shade of violet, and Violetta is more purple and vibrant. Style Curve is also less opaque than Violetta, but buildable. They both have a pearlescent sheen, but Violetta’s fierceness has a slight edge only because it’s an amplified finish — making the pearlescence aspect of it last a bit longer. Because Style Curve is creamier, it will tend to lose a bit of its pearl-bang quicker than Violetta. You may find that Style Curve is more day-time friendly. If you have Violetta, you may not need to rush out and buy Style Curve…but if you’re looking for a more subtle version of Violetta, you have a winner in Style Curve. I really like them both and think that once you wear either one, you may not even care about their slight differences because no matter which shade you choose, you’ll look amazing.

You be the judge

-Stay beautiful

Availability: MAC Cosmetics

You know the drill, each MAC pigment is $19.50 with 4.5g/0.15oz of product.

Pigment is a highly concentrated loose colour powder that contains ingredients to help it adhere to the skin. Create a subtle wash of colour or an intense effect. Does not streak or cake. Easy to blend and long-lasting. Please note: Pigments are sold by weight not volume. Containers can appear to be less than full due to settling of the product.

• Follow Your Fancy – bright coral with small pearl particle
• Madly Personal -bright pink
• New Fixation – bright fuchsia red with soft pearl
• Violet – vivid bright violet purple (frost)

On to the photos and swatches…

MAC Stylishly Yours pigments
l-r: Follow Your Fancy, Madly Personal, New Fixation

MAC Stylishly Yours pigments
l-r: Follow Your Fancy, Madly Personal, New Fixation

MAC Stylishly Yours pigments
Follow Your Fancy

MAC Stylishly Yours pigments
Madly Personal

MAC Stylishly Yours pigments
New Fixation

MAC Stylishly Yours pigments
l-r: Follow Your Fancy, Madly Personal, New Fixation

MAC Stylishly Yours pigments
Violet

MAC Stylishly Yours pigment swatches
l-r: New Fixaction, Follow Your Fancy, Madly Personal, Violet

MAC Stylishly Yours pigment swatches
l-r: New Fixaction, Follow Your Fancy, Madly Personal, Violet

MAC Stylishly Yours pigments
Violet

MAC Stylishly Yours pigment
l-r: Follow Your Fancy, New Fixation, Madly Personal

I really love these new colors, and from first glance I thought they’d be similar to pigments I already had but they aren’t at all really. They’re all very subtle shades as far as glitter chunks and sparkle goes, except for Violet — which has a frost finish. You can use these in different ways, I bet they’d be beautiful as blushes

I’m going to keep buying pigments because I love them dearly, but I cannot lie — I absolutely hate the new packaging as far as functionality goes. I think it looks cute, but it’s so much easier to knock them over and spill everything because it’s a skinnier, yet taller jar than before. The older jars were pretty solid on your table and wouldn’t easily knock over. That packaging wasn’t perfect, but it wasn’t as clumsy-prone as the newer jars. I’ve almost knocked over these skinny little jars so many times it’s not even funny.

So yea…just a quick post for anyone curious. I’ll post that Style Curve lipstick the second I get it and try it on for you

-Stay beautiful

Availability: MAC Cosmetics

Here’s what I picked up..

• Torrid – beautiful shimmery coral
• Amour – peachy pink
• Lovejoy – shimmering bronzed rose

NARS blushes – Lovejoy, Amour, Torrid

NARS blushes

NARS blushes – Lovejoy, Amour

NARS blushes – Amour, Torrid

NARS Torrid blush

NARS Amour blush

NARS Lovejoy blush

NARS blush swatches
l-r: Lovejoy, Amour, Torrid

NARS blush swatches
l-r: Lovejoy, Amour, Torrid

I looove these colors, but then again I don’t really have a NARS blush that I don’t like. Lovejoy is very natural looking on my face, though not easy to photograph when I’m actually wearing it. It’s very close to my skintone when blended out, but give a really nice bronzey-rose tint. It’s a great everyday blush for the NC40-NC45 range. Amour is a pinkier blush than Torrid, but both are really pretty when worn. If you’re into corals, try Torrid.

MAC LOVEJOY vs. NARS LOVEJOY

So both MAC and NARS have blushes called “Lovejoy”, and to be completely honest they are extremely similar. Both blushes run in the same family but there are very subtle color differences.

MAC Lovejoy vs. NARS Lovejoy

MAC Lovejoy vs. NARS Lovejoy swatches

MAC Lovejoy vs. NARS Lovejoy swatches

MAC Lovejoy vs. NARS Lovejoy swatches

MAC Lovejoy vs. NARS Lovejoy swatches

As you can see, they are very similar but just a tad different color-wise — NARS is rosier than MAC, which is more bronze. The MAC blush will run you $21 for 0.11oz of product, and the NARS will run you $26 for 0.16oz of product.

• MAC Lovejoy – bronzier, more pigmented, softer, has a bit more shimmer, will show up better on darker skintones versus NARS Lovejoy — yet it works for all skintones.
• NARS Lovejoy – rosier, finer in texture, more subtle than MAC Lovejoy, will show up better for lighter to medium-dark skin tones.

WELL DANG, WHICH ONE SHOULD I BUY?

While I can’t answer that for you, because everyone’s tastes are different…I personally like the MAC version of Lovejoy more than the NARS. I have to really get the NARS Lovejoy to show up on me, while the MAC one requires very little effort. If you’re lighter than me, either one will show up on you. If you’re darker than me, I’d say try the MAC version over the NARS.

Hope that helps you lovely little boogers <3

-Stay beautiful

Availability: Sephora, MAC

EYES

• NYX “Skin Tone” Eyeshadow Base
• MAC She Who Dares mineralize eyeshadow — the darker blue side used wet on lower 2/3 of lid, the green side used wet in the crease on top of Humid
• MAC Humid eyeshadow on outer 1/3 of crease
• MAC White Gold pigment on brow-bone as highlight
• MAC Vex eyeshadow on inner corner of eye
• MAC Feline eye kohl on upper and lower waterline – smudged slightly
• MAC Blacktrack fluidline on upper lashline
• MAC Haute & Naughty Lash mascara on upper and lower lashes

FACE

• MAC Dark MSF all over face
• MAC Magically Cool Liquid Powder in Cajun on cheeks
• MAC Briar Rose beauty powder on apples of cheeks, blended up towards temples

LIPS

*moisturize with your favorite balm, I used Rosebud Salve

• NYX Espresso lip-liner
• MAC Devilishly Stylish lipglass

More drama for yo mama These shadows are a dream to blend, even when wet — I’m very impressed with the improving quality of MAC’s mineralize eyeshadows. I sprayed MAC Fix + onto my 217 brush just to get it slightly moist and pick up the sparkles of each part of the shadow and it worked very nicely. The more you work with these shadows you uncover more and more marbleized veining and that’s what truly makes these shadows unique — everyone’s veining will be different.

Oh, and I used a makeup-remover wipe to clean up the edges…just in case you’re wondering Check out the “My Dark Magic” FOTD in case you missed it.

-Stay beautiful

MAC describes their Haute & Naughty Lash as follows…

A two-in-one mascara that lets you choose if you want lashes to be naturally defined, or instantly combed and loaded for full-on drama. Easy to use dual-wiper system allows this lightweight formula to go on either way. One wiper refines the application for a clean sweep, while the other loads the lashes for greater impact.

I’m gonna give you guys a warning, my right eyelashes are being VERY disobedient and wonky right now (a few of them are about to fall out, so they’re growing in weird directions). Therefore, you may look at the mascara results like “WTF?” but I promise it’s my lashes and not the mascara. I posted a pic of me wearing it on my left eye also, since my right one is on some other ish…

MAC Haute & Naughty Lash

MAC Haute & Naughty Lash

MAC Haute & Naughty Lash

MAC Haute & Naughty Lash

MAC Haute & Naughty Lash

MAC Haute & Naughty Lash

this is what the wand looks like when you first pull it out, the end of it sticks out of the wiper

for the “daytime” wand, when you pull it out all of the excess formula is left on the end

the “daytime” wand looks like this once pulled out, with excess formula wiped off

MAC Haute & Naughty Lash mascara wand

this is the wand for the “evening” look, when you want a bit more drama — both the pink and glittery purple handle connect together

MAC Haute & Naughty Lash mascara “evening” wand for a more dramatic effect

this is the tip of the dramatic end of the “evening” wand, all of the formula you’d normally have wiped off for the “daytime” look is now packed on

my bare lashes – not curled

1 coat using the “daytime” wand

1 coat using the “daytime” wand

1 coat using the “daytime” wand

2nd coat using the “evening” wand — a few of my lashes are being so disrespectful right now

2nd coat using the “evening” wand

MAC Haute & Naughty Lash on right eye – bare lashes on left eye

MAC Haute & Naughty Lash on right eye – bare lashes on left eye

I put the “drama” on my left eye since my right eye is being wonky lol

PROS

• The packaging is genius and gives you options on how you want your lashes to look
• The daytime/natural look really makes your lashes LOOK natural
• The evening/dramatic wand really makes your lashes LOOK dramatic
• The packaging I feel is kinda cute
• Lot of product in the tube
• Bullet-shaped wand allows you to get the inner lashes easily
• Long-wearing…after seven hours, no flaking!
• You can control how much product ends up on the wand with the wiper inside if you choose to

CONS

• Has a bit of a smell to it
• The size of the wand may be difficult for someone with short lashes to use
• The “dramatic” end of the wand tends to holds way too much product, lashes can get clumpy if you’re not careful
• Don’t you dare cry with this stuff on…it’ll run like Jackie Joyner-Kersee!

OVERALL

Again, I know ya’ll are probably looking at my right eyelashes and shaking your head…and you should. I PROMISE it’s because my lashes are being very wonky and disrespectful growing in weird positions right now, I can’t really do anything about it. My lashes do this “party over heeeere, wave your hands from side-to-side” thing when they’re about to fall out, so they start growing like this –> /\\///))//))\//))(//

The actual mascara is great and really delivers for me. I’ve been cleaning all day, haven’t had any makeup on except this mascara for the past 7 hours and I walked by my mirror and it totally caught my attention! My lashes are so big and noticeable even behind my glasses. I was like “Dang, this is pretty good stuff”. I love like the natural effect, I get great separation and it doesn’t really look like I’m even wearing mascara. The “dramatic” effect takes things to different heights and I’m pleased with the actual formula. It lengthens, holds my natural curl, and really makes my eyes pop. I really like this mascara you guys, it’s one of the best I’ve used this year — and I can’t believe it’s a MAC mascara.

*Here’s a ‘common-sense’ truth about mascara shelf life: Most companies will tell you to toss it after 3 months. In most cases, you should — however, that really only applies if you use it every single day for 3 months. One, you’ll probably run out and two, because you’re using it every single day for 3 months — more and more air is getting to it, drying it out. If you have a million mascaras (okay…maybe 5-8), you’ll probably rotate their usage and find that 3 months later, one is still pretty full and smells just fine. If your mascara has passed the 3 month mark, and it smells fine and the formula isn’t gross and clumpy, it’s probably fine. I’ve had a mascara for over 6 months that was JUST FINE. Bottom line, some mascaras only last a month, some can last 6 months and more…it all depends on the formula and how fast it goes bad. Throw away any mascara that smells like battery acid and looks like paste.

*Tip: if you use this and find that your lashes get too stuck together using the “dramatic” end of the wand, comb thru them with the “daytime” wand with all of the excess product wiped off, it really helps with separation.

RATING

Availability: MAC

NOW WITH A DIFFERENT LIP…

EYES

• MAC Slick Black greasepaint stick — as a base, blended out with 217 brush
• MAC My Dark Magic mineralize eyeshadow — the darker purple side all over the lid / also on outer 2/3 lower lashline; the hot fuchsia side in the crease
• MAC Helium pigment — brow highlight
• MAC Brash & Bold pigment — inner 1/3 lower lash line
• Urban Decay 24/7 Zero liner on upper and lower waterline
• Lancome Hypnose mascara on upper and lower lashes

FACE

• MAC Dark MSF all over face
• MAC Bite of an Apple blush – just on apples of cheeks
• MAC Briar Rose beauty powder on top of Bite of an Apple, blended up towards temples

LIPS

*moisturize with your favorite balm, I used Rosebud Salve

• MAC Violetta lipstick
• MAC Revenge is Sweet lipglass

for the second lip look:

• MAC Currant lip liner
• MAC Toxic Tale lipstick
• MAC Revenge is Sweet lipglass

This look is pretty dark and dramatic, but very sultry. Perfect for a night out — or a night in, hehe The greasepaint stick is such a nice base for pretty much any eyeshadow you put on top, and most of the colors are beautiful when worn alone. I used a MAC 217 brush to blend the edges so that it wasn’t such a harsh line, then with a 239 brush I patted the shadow on top — which also helps the *sparkles* show up better in person. Briar Rose is beautifully pigmented, but I had to tone it down because it was waaay too much initially so you may not even see it that well in the pictures due to the flash, but it’s there!

For the second lip look, there’s an example of how you can tone down the super loud being that is known as Toxic Tale. Currant and any other wine colored lip liner really tone it down and make it more wearable. It’s still beautiful alone but I wanted to give you an option in case you’re too chicken to wear it by itself LOL

I’m gonna go work on some more blog posts, I’ve got a few things to review and swatch for you all but until then, have an awesome Saturday!

-Stay beautiful

MAC teamed up with Disney to create a bunch of mini collections within one huge collection, inspired by four of the most sinister and evil villains they’ve ever had — Maleficent (Sleeping Beauty), The Evil Queen (Snow White), Dr. Facilier (The Princess & The Frog), and last but not least Cruella De Vil (101 Dalmations). These are the villains (minus Dr. Facilier — I admit I still haven’t seen this movie lol) who scared the living crap out of me as a child and still give me the creeps to this day — especially Maleficent. Each one has a different look, and you can see all of the inspiration drawn from their evil attitudes, outfits, etc. in each collection. I am a HUGE kid when it comes to Disney movies. I still watch them to this day, curled up in bed with my dog. These are the movies that jump-started my imagination and have kept me youthful and kinda silly thru the years. So, I had to splurge. This was kind of a sentimental collection for me, I’ll admit.

This is my second (and last) huge MAC haul for the year. I allow myself two per year, otherwise I’d be eating ramen every single day…and that would be sad at my age lol. Also keep in mind that most of the items are priced around a dollar higher than normal because of licensing. Here’s what I purchased from each “villain”, if you see ** in front of it, that means I already owned it prior to this collection.

MALEFICENT

• She Who Dares mineralize eyeshadow – deep navy with blue pearl/deep forest green with lime green pearl
• My Dark Magic mineralize eyeshadow – Deep pink with pink pearl/deep plum with purple pearl
• Dark Deed lipstick – burgundy plum
• **Violetta lipstick – bright clean violet purple
• Wrong Spell lipglass – deep plum with pink purple
• Revenge is Sweet lipglass – light yellow purple
• Briar Rose beauty powder – soft violet pink with pearl
• Bad Fairy nail laquer – red with red multi-changing pearl
• Formidable! nail laquer – teal green with pink multi-changing pearl
• Mean & Green nail laquer – purple with teal multi-changing pearl

THE EVIL QUEEN

• Toxic Tale lipstick – bright coral
• Sinister lipstick – soft brown plum
• Strange Potion lipglass – soft coral pink
• **Hot House lipglass – deep raspberry with pink pearl
• Bite of an Apple blush – soft coral pink

CRUELLA DE VIL

• Heartless lipstick – cherry red
• Devilishly Stylish lipglass – light nude with gold pearl
• Wicked Ways lipglass – deep fuchsia with pink pearl
• Darkly My Dear blush – dirty brown plum

DR. FACILIER

• French Quarter greasepaint stick – dirty black green with multi colour pearl
• Slick Black greasepaint stick – true carbon black
• Cajun magically cool liquid powder – sheer bronze shimmer that reflects gold
• **Melon pigment – soft bright golden peach
• **Brash & Bold pigment – bright magenta
• **Push the Edge pigment – deep bright purple with pearl
• **Resort Life lip gelee – off white with pink pearl
• I’m So Vain mirror

I also own the Penultimate Eye Liner, and I would’ve taken pics and swatched it, but I honestly got tired at this point lol.

I’m not too crazy about the product packing, its okay — not that exciting (but the product is awesome). The packaging is much sleeker than the normal MAC packaging, as in its shinier (think Bobbi Brown), and the illustrations from each character is stamped on each piece — no stickers! The boxes each piece came in is actually more fabulous than the product packaging lol. Each type of product has a different angle or view of the villains directly from the movie. Check out my photos below to see how for example, Maleficent is in a different capture on the mineralize eyeshadows, the lipstick and the gloss, making each item special.

Enough rambling, let’s get on with the photos and swatches, shall we?

OOooo my box!!

the packaging

Briar Rose

Briar Rose

My Dark Magic, She Who Dares

My Dark Magic, She Who Dares

My Dark Magic, She Who Dares

My Dark Magic

She Who Dares

My Dark Magic, She Who Dares

Bite of an Apple

Bite of an Apple

Bite of an Apple

Darkly My Dear

Darkly My Dear

Darkly My Dear

Dark Deed, Sinister, Toxic Tale, Heartless

Dark Deed, Sinister, Toxic Tale, Heartless

Dark Deed, Sinister, Toxic Tale, Heartless

Strange Potion, Devilishly Stylish, Revenge is Sweet, Wicked Ways, Wrong Spell

Strange Potion, Devilishly Stylish, Revenge is Sweet, Wicked Ways, Wrong Spell

Strange Potion, Devilishly Stylish, Revenge is Sweet, Wicked Ways, Wrong Spell

Hot House

Resort Life

Resort Life

Formidable!, Bad Fairy, Mean & Green

Formidable!, Bad Fairy

Bad Fairy, Mean & Green

Cajun

Melon, Brash & Bold, Push the Edge

Slick Black, French Quarter

French Quarter, Slick Black

I’m So Vain mirror

I’m So Vain mirror

Oh, hi!

SWATCHES!!

Venomous Villain’s lipstick swatches l-r: Violetta, Dark Deed, Heartless, Sinister, Toxic Tale

Venomous Villain’s lipglass swatches l-r: Wrong Spell, Hot House, Revenge is Sweet, Wicked Ways, Strange Potion, Devilishly Stylish

MAC Venomous Villains pigment swatches l-r: Melon, Brash & Bold (typo on the pic), Push the Edge

Maleficent mineralize eyeshadow swatches l-r: She Who dares, My Dark Magic

Dr. Facilier’s “Cajun” Magically Cool Liquid Powder swatch (barely — this stuff is hard to photograph!)

Resort Life lip gelee swatch

Venomous Villain’s beauty powder and blush swatches l-r: Briar Rose, Darkly My Dear, Bite of an Apple

Dr. Facilier Greasepaint swatches l-r: Slick Black, French Quarter

Whew!!

So, I’m just gonna tell you right now that I love this collection — didn’t think I would, but I do. It’s adorable, it’s fierce, it’s sentimental, and everything is usable (for me at least).

MY FAVORITE ITEMS

• The magically cool liquid powder in Cajun is the coolest cosmetic product I’ve ever purchased. It literally feels like cold water on your skin, and I can’t stop playing with it. It gives you a beautiful soft finish with a very subtle sheen — looks amazing on the cheeks. I absolutely love it, do not sleep on this product you guys. I bought two of them because I know I’m gonna go thru that first jar quick!
• Wicked Ways lipglass is one of the most gorgeous colors I’ve seen in a very long time. I just wanna eat it. It’s beautiful. It literally looks like passion in a tube. If you put Wicked Ways over Heartless lipstick, your lips are gonna look like pure sex. Hot house is also gorgeous so if you didn’t get that one from the Strange Hybrid collection, get it now.
• Toxic Tale lipstick is scary as heck, but I truly love it. It’s super fierce with MAC’s Currant lip liner
• All three nail laquers are gorgeous. I know there are Orly dupes for two of them, but I don’t own any Orly so these are fine with me. Formidable! is my favorite color of the three. It’s beautiful!
• Both She Who Dares and My Dark Magic mineralize eyeshadows are so intense and so so pretty. I can’t wait to do a look with them. The blue area from She Who Dares does remind me of Blue Flame that came out with the Style Black collection, but I find it to run a tad darker.

I didn’t buy any of the single eyeshadows because I already have colors way too similar to them anyway. I’m contemplating buying a backup of Wicked Ways. I know me, and I know that I run thru shades like that quickly so it might be in my best interest to make a second trip to the MAC counter. I found the mineralize eyeshadows from the Maleficent collection to be very pigmented and smooth. I didn’t use a base for those swatches and they show up so well. Bite of an Apple blush is really pretty on the face, but if you have a coral blush already (ie. MAC Marine Life, Rock & Republic Immoral) then you aren’t going to die without it. It’s a bit more red than Marine Life, but at the end of the day the difference isn’t incredibly huge.

A bulk of this stuff arrived yesterday, but I was very unhappy with the swatches — and they’re still not great but they’re much better than the first ones I took. Sorry I’m posting this so late

Most of the good stuff is sold out online, but check your local MAC stores and counters to see if they have anything left if you missed out. You never know!

Did you guys buy anything?

-Stay beautiful

Availability: MAC, Macy’s (click ‘Beauty & Fragrance’ and you’ll see it!)

*This post contains an affiliate link — for more information, please read our disclosure & policy page.

A VERY IMPORTANT NOTE!!

• Regular full-size MAC brushes are hand-made.
• Special edition brushes made by MAC that come in those cute lil travel cases are machine made.
• MAC uses a sequence of 1, 2 and 3 to name their brushes. Face brushes begin with #1, eye brushes with #2, and lip brushes #3.

The special edition brushes are awesome for travel so that you don’t have to lug around your full-size brushes, but there is a very distinct difference in quality. I think the SE MAC brushes are a great deal and I do plan on buying a set just for travel. I’m not saying they’re terrible brushes because they’re not at all, but let me put it this way…full-size MAC brushes are Beyonce and the special edition MAC brushes are Michelle Williams. Both are in the same boat, but there’s clearly one star here folks lol.

HOW LONG DO THEY LAST?

With proper care, full-size MAC brushes are known to hold up for 15+ years! So when you consider the cost of a single MAC brush, you should really take this into account. These products are investments. They’re not some fly-by-night fad that will slowly dissipate into nothingness like Ashanti’s career, but something classic you can enjoy twenty years down the road like a soulful Aretha Franklin album.

ARE THEY THE BEST BRUSHES IN THE MARKET?

That depends on your personal opinion of quality. Many people feel they are, many do not. I’m somewhat floating in the middle of that soup. I absolutely love them but I know there are better brushes out there — however, I’m very content with my MAC brushes for now, so I’m not about to go searching anytime soon. It’s just that MAC brushes seem to be the most consistent and for me they’re easier to get a hold of.

So now that you know these brushes are worth the money, let’s do a quick overview of some of them, shall we?

I don’t own every MAC brush ever made, and I probably never will. There are a few popular brushes that I don’t have, and that’s because I either have one from another brand that I feel gives me the same exact result OR to be honest, it wasn’t that special to me personally.

Today I’m gonna focus on the eye brushes that I own. Remember, this is just for people who are curious about MAC brushes or interested in buying and wondering which brush does what.

MAC 214 brush

MAC 214 brush

MAC 214 brush

MAC 217 brush

MAC 217 brush

MAC 217 brush

MAC 219 brush

MAC 222 brush

MAC 222 brush

MAC 224 brush

MAC 224 brush

MAC 226 brush

MAC 224 (top), MAC 226 brush (bottom)

MAC 227 brush

MAC 227 brush

MAC 228 brush

MAC 231 brush

MAC 231 brush

MAC 239 brush

MAC 239 brush

MAC 239 brush

MAC 242 brush

MAC 242 brush

MAC 242 (top), MAC 239 (bottom)

MAC 252 brush

MAC 252 brush

MAC 252 brush

MAC 252 (top), MAC 242 (bottom)

MAC 272 brush

MAC 272 brush

MAC 209 (left), MAC 210 (right)

MAC 209 (top), MAC 210 (bottom)

MAC 266 brush

**263 and 249 not yet pictured

Here’s a list of all of the MAC eye brushes I own. The descriptions come straight from the MAC website, while my personal notes are in blue.

I know what you’re probably thinking…

I’M OVERWHELMED..WHAT 5 BRUSHES SHOULD I START WITH?

I understand not everyone can afford these brushes, but keep in mind they are pricey for a reason. They work and they last! They’re investments. Your $18 lip gloss will last you about a year, but your $24.50 brush will last you upwards of 15 years — if you take proper care of it. So with that said, if you’re new to MAC brushes, here are the ones I recommend you start with first. You don’t have to run out and buy all of these at once, do what I did and get one or two every time you get paid.

• 1. 239 or 242 (both are shader brushes, both do the same stuff)
• 2. 217 (this brush does all the dirty work, it’s amazing)
• 3. 263 or 266 (the 263 is a tad thicker than the 266 and both brushes are great for lining or eyebrow grooming.)
• 4. 224 (perfect for airbrushed blending)
• 5. 219 (great for smudging and inner-corner work)

After you get those, feel free to slowly collect the others if you wish. You will be content with those five for a while and may not feel the need to rush out and buy the others, but the more you dabble in your makeup, you may find you need brushes for specific uses. I have several 239′s and 217′s because when I’m blending I need a few clean options so I don’t possibly darken up a light color or just make a big mess. This is the reason why a lot of people have several of the same brush.

The 272 and 226 are no longer available, but keep an eye out because MAC sometimes re-releases the 226 and when they do, stock up! It’s an awesome brush for people with smaller lids who may find the 224 to be too large. Check your local CCO’s for these brushes, they may be there.

No matter what brush you get, please take care of it. Don’t handle it too roughly, don’t choke it, and deep-clean it at least once a week. With tender loving care, your MAC brushes will last you a very very long time.

Stay tuned for the face brush overview coming soon

-Stay beautiful

Availability: MAC (and MAC counters)

I LOVE this mascara!!

I truly lack the sense God gave me *smh*

EYES

• MAC Girl Friendly paint pot
• MAC Nocturnelle eyeshadow on entire lid, stopping at crease — also on outer 2/3 of lower lash-line
• MAC Paradisco eyeshadow on inner corner of eyelid, and on 1/3 of lower lash-line. Also used for brow highlight
• MAC Fertile eyeshadow (lightly) on outer corner of the lid
• MAC Carbon smudged on upper lash-line
• Stila “Little Black Dress” smudge pot lined on upper lash-line
• MAC Feline eye kohl on upper and lower waterline
• Maybelline Falsies mascara on upper and lower lashes

FACE

• MAC Dark MSF all over face
• Facefront Half Baked bronzer
• Rock & Republic Bedroom blush on cheeks

LIPS

*moisturize with your favorite balm, I used Rosebud Salve

• MAC Magnetique lipglass

I should totally give my purples more love because I just adore them. After green, and teals — purple is my favorite color for eye looks. In other news, I cannot believe tomorrow is Monday. The weekends are just too damn short!! I need to do my nails because I was testing different colors on five fingers and now my hand looks a hot ridiculous mess. I guess I better get off the computer and go wash some clothes

By the way! I have a new facebook page Feel free to stab the crap outta that “like” button if you like my blog (look for the widget in the sidebar). My goal for that page is to build up a nice community of makeup (and shoe) lovers all around the globe. Feel free to post your own youtube videos, any pictures or links from your own blog. Make the page yours!

Hope you guys have a great week! I leave you with my boo XD and his gay Window Seat parody LMAO! I love him to pieces!!

www.youtube.com/watch?v=rLMYFqT8Bdc