Beauty Is in the Eye of the Beholder

Feeling devious? Or perhaps you’re feeling a little bit more innocent. However you’re feeling, MAC’s newest collection caters to all kinds of personalities, offering the chance to go from sweet girl next door to vivacious diva in the sweep of a brush and the swipe of a wand.

“MAC is Beauty” is one of the latest collections from the cosmetic giant and contains pretty much everything you need to get glammed up in no time. The collections vary from region to region, but here you can expect to find: four small eye shadows, two shades of kohl, two studio Chromagraphic pencils, one Penultimate Eye Liner, four shades of Cremesheen Glass, two beauty powders, three nail lacquers, three brushes, 12 lipsticks, and 16 shades of Pro Longwear Fluidline.

We recently tested some of the new products and here is what we think.

Eye Shadow

Photo: Wow Factor gives eyes a pop of light color

The four shades of eye shadow on offer are:

• Yogurt (a matte chalky pale pink) • Preening Pale (a satin mint-green shimmer) • Wow Factor (a satin medium lavender) • Bouffant (a veluxe pearl pale peach shimmer)

Wow Factor is subtle, adding the merest hint of purple but at the same time keeping eye lids fresh. It is perfect for spring, particularly during the day as a light dusting will accent the eyes adding an understated dash of color that is prefect for around town.

Cremesheen Glass

Photo: On the Scene is an instant favorite

The four shades in the new collection are made up of three pales and one bright pink shade:

• On the Scene (pale peach) • Fashion Scoop (pale pink) • Japanese Spring (pale lilac) • Star Quality (bright pink)

Japanese Spring gives a good dose of pink and pairs very nicely with the Real Doll lipstick (see below), giving a girl innocent look. On the Scene was an instant hit and has already taken up permanent residence in our purses. The peach hue works nicely with most complexions and gives a lovely glow to the lips while making them look luscious but not too sticky or shiny.

Beauty Powder

Photo: Alpha Girl gives a peachy gold kiss of color

Alpha Girl is a soft peachy-pink with gold while Pearl Blossom is light pink with silver pearl. Alpha Girl is quite faint, giving the skin more of a shimmer than actual color, which is great if you want to avoid looking like you’ve overdone it. We like to give our décolletage a few sweeps to take the edge off pale skin, at least until our next beach vacation.

Lipstick

Photo: There are twelve shades offered in the new MAC is Beauty collection

The two shades of lipstick we tested were Real Doll (a lustrous light pink-lilac) and Real Redhead (a lustrous mauve nude). We have already said that we love applying a sweep of Japanese Spring over Real Doll, but the lipstick is perfectly fine by itself. Real Redhead is less of a spring pastel, but it is a nice shade for a more toned-down look. Other shades in the line are:

• Silly (bright white-pink matte) • Reel Sexy (bright coral amplified) • Diva-ish (intense fuchsia amplified) • Make Me Gorgeous (intense coral pink amplified) • French Twist (light pink nude lustre) • Call the Hairdresser! (rosy mauve lustre) • Catty (light creamy pink lustre) • Notice Me (pale lilac lustre) • Pure Vanity (pale peach nude lustre) • Highlights (pale creamy peach lustre) Pro Longwear Fluidline

Photo: Silverstroke, Brassy, Copperthorn, Deliciously Rich, Blue Peep, Ivy, Macroviolet, Looking Good, Siahi, Waveline, Midnight Snack, Our Secret, Lowlights, Shade, Blitz & Glitz and Blacktrack.

The impressive line-up of 16 Pro Longwear Fluidline shades ranges from bright and playful to dark and sultry:

• Silverstroke (silver) • Brassy (brassy gold) • Copperthorn (copper bronze) • Deliciously Rich (shimmering dirty taupe with gold pearl) • Blue Peep (turquoise blue) • Ivy (fresh leaf green) • Macroviolet (sparkly purple) • Looking Good (sparkly burgundy) • Siahi (deep-ocean blue) • Waveline (navy blue with low level gold pearl) • Midnight Snack (deep metal grey) • Our Secret (milk-chocolate brown) • Lowlights (deep deep brown) • Shade (deep green)Blacktrack (solid flat black) • Blitz & Glitz (intense black with gold pearl) • Blacktrack (solid flat black)

Shade, with its deep green hue, was among our favorites. The liner goes on effortlessly and it isn’t hard to keep it straight, which is always a bonus. Other favorites from the range are Copperthorn, Ivy, Macroviolet, and Siahi.

Pro Longwear Foundation

Photo: 16 shades are offered in the new Pro Longwear Nourishing Waterproof Foundation

Another new product that has been launched just in time for the sweltering heat is MAC Pro Longwear Nourishing Waterproof Foundation, an oil-free formula that actually repels moisture from the surface of the face. There are 16 shades, but remember that if you spend any length of time outside your skin tone will likely darken a little in the coming weeks and months.

We put the foundation to the test on a few separate occasions and were thrilled with the results. Claiming to last up to 16 hours, we can attest that it does, all the way from our Sunday Champagne brunch to late-night birthday drinks in fact. It stood up to the sticky heat well leaving our complexion satiny for the whole day with no pesky oily patches in sight. The foundation doubles as a concealer and give medium to full coverage.

MAC’s newest collection “MAC is Beauty” hits shelves on May 1. Can’t wait? Head to MAC FACES & LAB Concept in Hong Kong where the collection was pre-launched on April 27. MAC’s Pro Longwear Nourishing Waterproof Foundation will be available on May 4th.

The collection is available for a limited time in various locations across Hong Kong and New Yaohan in Macau.

www.maccosmetics.com.hk

#glamour #beauty