Sunday, June 19, 2016

What's New - M.A.C. Bangin' Brilliant Lipstick

M.A.C. is one of those companies that promotes creativity and innovation with their looks, formulation, collaboration and programs. So it has been a surprise that other than their pro products, M.A.C. has not had a permanent collection of funky lipstick colours i.e., black, white, navy, light blue etc. However, the Bangin' Brilliant lipstick collection, inspires and provides ample shades to satisfy those cravings.

M.A.C. recently introduced 18 new shades to their permanent lipstick collection; varying from Dew - a periwinkle blue to In the Spirit - pure black. The finishes remain true to the core M.A.C collection which include mattes, satins, frosts and lusters, with mattes making up the majority.

My thoughts 

I added seven to my stash, with all but one being matte. They glide on smoothly and feel creamy; they do not feel like a typical matte lippie. However, Dreampot, was unable to reach full opacity and was streaky and Dew was similar, but slightly more opaque.  Additionally, other than Really Me, the other colours have this fragrance reminiscent to Colour Pop's lippie stix - playdoh vanilla; however, it isn't as strong. I feel these do not have the lasting power of  a typical M.A.C  matte. These have lots of slip and seem to feather. A lip liner is a must.

http://www.maccosmetics.ca/collections-bangin-brilliant-lipstick

Cdn $21/ US $17.

Not all the colours are currently in stores. International release is slated for Fall.

In the Spirit- black matte - took a few layers to achieve the desired opacity

In My Fashion - deep chocolate brown matte

Deep Rooted - taupe grey brown- matte

Lightly Charred - light grey matte

Dew - light purple/blue -satin

Dreampot- light turquoise blue- matte - streaky, hard to get fully opaque

Really Me- pale, muted pink nude -matte




Friday, June 17, 2016

Brand Focus: Makeup Geek

Makeup Geek


When it comes to makeup, YouTube and Instagram are great places to find new trends and indie companies. Makeup Geek (MUG), is a Social Media Brand that became hugely popular due to Marlena and her YouTube makeup channel, Makeup Geek. 
 From the beginning, Marlena's bubbly personality, provided educational tutorials, whilst developing her online store, which then progressed into producing beautiful shadows. She used her successful platform and built in customers to expand her fledgling beauty company . With quality shadows and a fantastic price point ($6 US per eye shadow), MUG has exploded and continues to expand its customer base and product line. Some believe that M.A.C actually lowered their eye shadow prices due to MUG's rise in popularity. 

Her product line includes 
Shadows: mattes, satins, shimmers, duochromes $6 US  1.8g
                Foil eye shadow $10 US  1.8g

Blushes $10 US  4.25g
Contour powder $10 US 4.25g
Eye liner Pencil $9 1.2 g
Gel eyeliners $9.99 US 3g
Pigments $8.99 US 2g
Sparklers (glitter) $10 US 4g
brushes $8.50-18 US are synthetic

Shipping to Canada - $5.99

Talc and Paraben Free, Cruelty Free and many colours are Vegan. Made in the USA







barcelona beach- great transition,crease and all over colour



beaches and cream - all over colour and transition
brownie points -crease,outer v colour


cherry cola -crease,outer v and smokey eye
cosmopolitan - movable lid, spotlight colour

dirty martini - smokey, outer v colour

creme brulee - transition colour


enchanted forest - outer v and smokey colour
mirage- all over lid, highlight

moondust - outer v, spotlight colour

peach smoothie- all over lid, crease,and transition colour


preppy -transition, all over lid, crease colour

pretentious- outer v, spotlight colour, smokey bronze 
secret garden- outer v, all over smokey colour

shimma shimma - highlight and spotlight colour


shore thing- all over lid, spotlight colour, inner corner highlight

steampunk- smokey eye, outer v

vanilla bean- all over lid, highlight and spotlight colour
bada bing- outer v, smokey, and crease colour
Okay, now for my review. Let me preface this with that MUG has spoiled us with such good quality shadows, that when other colours are not at the same standard, they stick out. That isn't to say they are not good, they just do not measure up to the others. Even though, I had the most trouble with her mattes, I feel they are one of the best formulations out there. While, the majority of the colours I purchased are creamy,  they easily blend and are highly pigmented, there are a few that need some work.


Dirty Martini- olive green matte. It a little stiff and harder to blend. It can be a little patchy.
Enchanted Forest - dark blackened forest green matte - stiff, hard to blend and you need use a few layer to get the rich dark colour.
Peach Smoothie - light peach beige matte - I found this a little chalky and I needed to build up the colour.
Cherry Cola - deep cherry brown matte - need to build and slightly hard to blend.
Shore Thing - mint aqua matte - chalky, need to build. 

Sunday, June 5, 2016

Review: MAC Pro Beyond Twisted Mascara

When I find something that works for me, I generally do not waiver, especially when it comes to mascara. My love for M.A.C's Opulash and Extended Play Gigablack, is well documented. So, when I ventured to the M.A.C. store and saw they had a new mascara displayed, I was tentative to try it. However, me being me, had to see what made this one special.

Wand -check, brush- check. However, on further inspection, M.A.C decided to be innovative and make the neck of the wand flexible. Yes, it bends up to 90 degree. It is comprised of a flexible metal-like neck with a fairly long brush head with very short bristles. The bristles are not plastic and remind me of Maybelline's Lash discovery.  Never really thought I needed a malleable mascara wand, but obviously it is an issue we face with mascara application. Who knew?!

So, I took it home, and gave my little genius friend a try. Here are my thoughts:

The formula is wet and very black. However, I have to scrape the majority off the bristles. Have I mentioned I am not a fan of the clumpy lash look? Not scraping this, will give you that if  you desire it. Pour moi, no thanks. It definitely defines the lashes and lengthens them a bit. According to M.A.C it is also suppose to lift and curl the lashes. Nope, cannot agree with that and in fact, it doesn't hold the curl I have. However, because of the spiffy new wand, I am able to apply product to the base of my lashes.

Price: $27 Cdn.