MAC Retro Matte Lip Collection-SWATCHES!

Hi guys! I posted about this collection last week, you can check out my previous post here.  The collection is out in stores, and the sales persons/make up artists still weren't able to tell me which of the new shades will be permanent.  I hear that most of them will be, if not all.  Anywho, I swatched the collection below.  Check out the shades, these are def some beauties!!

Lipstick, left to right: 

Steady Going, Dangerous, Runway Hit, Flat out Fabulous, Relentlessly Red, All Fired Up and Fixed on Drama.

Steady Going, Dangerous, Runway Hit,
 Flat out Fabulous, Relentlessly Red, All Fired Up and Fixed on Drama.

Pro Long Wear Pencil, left to right:
**For whatever reason, my MAC only had five of the pencils, so that's all I could swatch...perhaps the other colors are already part of MAC's permanent range**.

Dynamo, Trust In Red, Shock Value, Fashion Boost, and High Energy.

Urban Decay's Holiday Lineup (Fall 2013)

Urban Decay announced it's Holiday lineup today! The collection is available online now, but it looks like a couple of items are not yet available (the highlight powder and the anarchy palette).  The collection will be sold in stores in the next few weeks or so, but for now you can only purchase online.  I have not actually seen the collection yet, but once I do I will update with more details on each item as well as swatches. For now, my info was compiled from Urban Decay.  If you want a full scoop of all the details plus amazing swatches, check out Christine's amazing post at Temptalia.  Also, check out the pics below. 

The set includes two eyeliner pencil sets (Black Market and Ocho Loco 2), a Vice 2 eyeshadow palette, two face palettes (Anarchy and Shattered), Heavy Metal eyeliner glitters, and a Naked Illuminated Shimmering Powder.

Photo Credit: Temptalia

Photo: Urban Decay

Photo: Urban Decay

Photo: Urban Decay

Photo: Urban Decay

Photo Credit: Temptalia

Photo Credit: Temptalia

Photo Credit: Temptalia

Mini-Sephora Haul (Last Week)

***I wrote this post last week or maybe the week before sometime.  Forgot to finish by attaching pics, but here it is...better late than never!***

 Sorry things have been so hectic I haven't posted in a while.  Not that I've been busy, but I've found a couple of new series on HBOgo and they've consumed all of my time lol.  Now that I've finished one series, I have more time :).  So here's a post of my Sephora haul from last week.  I was not shopping for anything, but lo-and-behold an email from Sephora pops up in my inbox and it has this cool looking lip collection for $25.  I decided to check it out, and since of course shipping isn't free until you spend $50 (the agony) I picked up a Make-Up Forever Aqua Shadow Essentials Set.  This retails for $23 and based on MUFE's pricing, it looks like a good value.  Also, this is my first ever MUFE purchase, and I know this is a well loved brand by many folks out there. The aqua shadow pencils retail for $20 I believe, and this comes with two full-sized pencils and a mini aqua eyes liner pencil.  You can't mix and match shades, but there are three options to choose from: Neutral (pearly taupe and pearly beige), Smoky (taupe grey and pinky beige), and Pop of Color (blue and taupe colors). I also picked up Urban Decay's eyeliner in Gunmetal (on sale for $6 at Sephora-old formula).  Check out the pics below! (*PS-this purchase pushed me up to VIB level!)

Sephora's Give Me Lip collection features a full-sized Tarte LipSurgence, and sample sizes of other products.  Specifically,

 *Laura Mercier Lip Glacé in Bare Pink
* Buxom® Full-On™ Lip Polish in Dolly
*NARS Lip Gloss in Turkish Delight
* Fresh Sugar Rosé Tinted Lip Treatment
* Bite Beauty High Pigment Pencil in Rhubarb
*Tarte LipSurgence™ Lip Luster in Glitzy(full sized)

RiRi Hearts MAC-Fall Release in October-UPDATED INFO!!

**UPDATE**

MAC tweeted last week that this collection will be available sooner than originally expected.  Instead, the collection will be available in MAC stores on September 26th and online September 30th.  The collection will then be available everywhere else on October 3rd.


Word on the street is that the Fall RiRi Hearts MAC collection will be released in early October (allegedly October 3rd).  This release is the largest of the RiRi Hearts MAC collection and will also feature "signature" packaging (which of course costs more).  The packaging is gorgeous! Pretty, gold, and covered with Rihanna's signature or "R" design.  The collages below are images borrowed from hausofrihanna.com!

The collection will feature:

• Lipsticks-$16.50
• RiRi Woo (retro matte blue red) (re-release) 
• Talk That Talk (retro matte deep plum)
• Who's That Chick (mid tone frosty orange)
• Nude Matte (nude cream)
• Lipglass-$16.50
• RiRi Woo will become a lipglass!!!!!!
• Blush
•  Bad Girl Gone Good (warm copper)
• Eyeshadow Palettes-Quad-$44.00
• Smoked Cocoa
• Grey/Champagne/Black w/silver/Charcoal
• Her Cocoa
• Bronze gold/Peach/Antique gold/Chocolate bronze
• Mascara $17.50
• Gigablack Extended Play
• Pro Longwear Lip Pencil-$21.50
• RiRi Woo
• Talk That Talk
• Blush/Bronzer Duo-$26.00
• Hibiscus Kiss (re-release)
• Veluxe Brow Liner-$21.50
• Deep Brunette
• Deep Dark Brunette
• Liquid Last Liner-$21.50
• Brushes 
• 187SE-$42.00
• 282SE-$32.00
• Lustre Drops-$20.00
• Barbados Girl (re-release)
• Eyelashes-$17.50
• #35
• #36
• Cream Color Base-$22.00
• Diamonds (soft pink beige w/gold)
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MAC's New Retro Matte Lip Collection

MAC released a new collection today, one that many lipstick lovers will find exciting! The Retro Matte collection is available online now, and in stores next Thursday, September 12th. The collection is said to be: "Inspired by Ruby Woo's overwhelming popularity and one-of-a-kind texture, M•A•C introduces new bold shades in its Retro Matte finish. Eye-catching colours like Dangerous and All Fired Up create a look that's fiercely feminine. M•A•C also premieres Pro Longwear Lip Pencils in a vibrant colour palette, giving this long-lasting and transfer-proof lip pencil an exhilarating makeover." (From MAC's website).

The collection features lipsticks and pro longwear lip pencils.  The lipsticks retail for $15 and the lip pencils $19.50. All of the lipsticks have a retro matte finish.  If you're not familiar with retro matte finish, it is essentially a less drying matte formula.  All of the lipsticks in the RiRi Hearts MAC collection had a retro matte finish. There is confusion on whether or not the items are limited edition or permanent (possibly in an attempt to drive up sales), but it appears that most of them will be permanent with only a couple limited edition colors.  So if you miss out on this release, chances are you won't be completely out of luck. I will post swatches next week when I hit the MAC store for an in person review.

Lipsticks:

*Steady Going (light pink matte)

*Runway Hit (light matte nude)

*Dangerous (orangey red matte)

*Relentlessly Red (bright pinkish coral matte)

*All Fired Up (bright fuschia matte)

*Flat Out Fabulous (bright plum matte)

*Ruby Woo (very matte vivid blue red)

*Fixed on Drama (rich wine matte)

Pro Longwear Lip Pencils:

*In Anticipation (soft yellow pink)

*Staunchly Stylish (pinky beige)
*Dynamo (intense pink cream)
*Shock Value (bright pink cream)
*High Energy (bright orange red cream)
*Trust in Red (bright cool red cream)
*More to Love (intense bluish pink)
*Fashion Boost (bright purple cream)
 

MAC Indulge Collection...Full Info and Swatches from Temptalia

Temptalia, probably one of the go to beauty bloggers, has done a review on all of the items from MAC's Indulge Collection.  Remember I told you guys this was a big one!  It's available online now (some items sold out) and will be in stores this Thursday.  Temptalia did posts on each item, but you can go here for the 'round-up' and click which particular items you'd like to see.  Love her!

I enjoy reading reviews and swatches of products.  They're super helpful, especially if you are ordering online (I'm not ordering anything! *keep repeating to myself lol*).  For example, the fluidelines were absolutely gorgeous in the pictures, wanted to buy them both! Read the review and swatches, and bam they're not like the pics.  Instead, they're glitter with sheer coloring, not the rich coloring I imagined.  

Smashbox Fall 2013 Collection: Fade to Black

Smashbox's Fall 2013 Collection, Fade to Black, features gorgeous warm colors, perfect for fall.  The collection has two lipsticks, two waterproof shadow liners, and two eyeshadow palettes.   You can view the collection here at Smashbox online.  The collection is also available at Sephora.  The entire collection is limited edition, so if interested, check it out sooner rather than later.

The collection: 

• Fade to Black Be Legendary Lipstick, retailing at $20: two shades: Cognac (warm raisin) and Black Cherry (deep cranberry). From Smashbox's website: Create any lip look from uptown to underground with these limited-edition shades of our best-selling Be Legendary Lipstick. Shades: Cognac, Black Cherry.
• Fade to Black Photo Op Eye Shadow Palette, retailing at $42: two shades:Fade In (warm) and Fade Out (cool).  Both of  these palettes also come with a brush, which is awesome! From Smashbox's website: Super versatile, seriously cool. This palette of neutrals starts with the most wearable nudes and ends with the fiercest blacks-all in a range of finishes, from matte to shimmer. Shades: Fade In, Fade Out.
• Fade to Black Waterproof Shadow Liner, retailing at $20: two shades: Black Gold (gold with a black undertone) and Blackest Black (matte black).  Per Smashbox's website, these are: Limited editions of our favorite stay-put shadow/long-wearing liner in fierce shades of black.

I stopped in Sephora today and swatched the lipsticks and shadow liners.  They are all pretty, but I have to say I'm most impressed with the shadow liners.  These babies DO NOT BUDGE.  I've been scrubbing my hands and cannot get them off lol...it takes a good amount of makeup remover and voila, gone.  The black is a matte black, and the black gold is unique, it is a gold color but because of its black undertone, it's grity and multi-dimensional.  I like it a lot, and am considering getting this one (when I have makeup budget money available lol). The black is nice as well, but for me, it is not unlike many of the other black pencils on the market.  The liners are thick pencils, so they give a pretty thick swatch on first application.  As for the lipsticks, they were both pretty, but they were not unlike many other shades already available on the market.  Neither of them screamed, YOU ABSOLUTELY HAVE TO BUY ME!  At least to me.

*Sidenote: the packaging for this collection is beautiful.  To go with the "Fade to Black" theme the package starts off a deep pink and darkens to black.  Super cute.* As far as the eyeshadow palettes, both were gorgeous.  I am impressed with the pigmentation of these, and was torn between which one I liked better.  At first it was Fade Out, because it has varying shades of purple, all of which were gorgeous.  The last color was a black color with cranberry glitter, that was so unique! But....after going back and forth between the palettes, Fade In is more 'wearable'.  The colors are all neutrals and again, super gorgeous and pigmented.  There is this one shade, that is absolutely stunning that makes the entire palette worth buying.  It's the fifth shade in the palette (there are seven overall).  It's a golden greenish color with a black undertone, similar to the Shadow Liner.  It's super pigmented and I can imagine a ton of looks with this one. 

From the website.

Picture not mine: from Google Images

Fade Out Palette

Fade In Palette

Left to Right: Cognac, Black Cherry, Black Gold and Blackest Black

NARS Fall Collection 2013

NARS Fall Collection 2013 is available now.  It's a nice collection, featuring warm pretty colors, but I'm not sure if it's cohesive (in my mind).  There are some standout items, but I'm not sure if the entire collection, for me personally, blends.  Or works together completely.  Sometimes collections seem random, or seem that not all the colors in a collection work well with each other.  And I kind of get that impression from this one.  Again, just my opinion.  Check out the details below.

This collection features:

• Pure Matte Lipstick-$26
• La Paz (Deep, orchid purple)
• Peloponnese (Ginger pink)
• Velvet Lip Pencil-$25
• Mysterious Red (Deep, crimson red)
• Paimpol (Pink Chiffon)
• Nail Polish (Opaque)-$19
• Fury (Regal Purple)
• Galathee' (Dove Grey)
• Larger Than Life Long-Wear Eyeliner-$24
• Las Rambas (Yellow Gold)
• Via De' Martelli (Chocolate)
• Eyeshadow-$24
• Bavaria (Shimmer-Deep sea blue)
• Yamal (Matte-Maple sugar)
• Namibia (Matte-Grey moon)
• Kamchatka (Matte-Navy smoke)

This collection is available now at Nars Cosmetics (online), and Nordstrom. These are some pics of the products from the website. Nothing fancy, just off my iPhone, sorry.

My Haul from MAC's So Supreme Collection

So I know I said I wasn't originally going to get anything from the So Supreme collection, but I lied.  Sorry.  I ONLY picked up three of the six lipsticks though.  These I picked out because the colors (prior to purchase) looked original, less dupable, and not quite like anything I have in my tiny lipstick collection.  The three I got are: Gotta Dash!, Candy Apple, and Pleasurefruit.  Check out the swatches below.  These lippies have a nice finish and are creamy and fully opaque upon swatching. Sheen supreme lipsticks combine the color quality of a lipstick with the sheen of a lipgloss.  These lippies were certainly very shiny/sheeny like a lipgloss, with good coverage.  The coverage is a bit slippery, so I'd recommend wearing with a liner of some sort.

My favorite out of the three I purchased is Candy Apple.  It reminds me of a lighter, shinier Heaux (from Rihanna's collection).  Gotta Dash! was a bit lighter than I expected, with not fully opaque coverage.  Pleasurefruit is a nice bright pink, but not "rare".  It reminds me of a darker Candy Yum Yum.  Or perhaps a Candy Yum Yum + Girl About Town concoction.

Time for Fall 2013 Makeup!!!!

I know it's July, almost August, but Fall 2013 collection information is being released left and right for all brands of makeup.  Some collections are even available for sale now, or will be available in August for sure.  I personally tend to love fall makeup, because it's warm and cozy and works for my skin.  I'm super excited, and will try and write a new post for a company's Fall 2013 makeup line.

Did I mention that my birthday is Friday? Woot Woot! The big 30 lol!!

MAC's So Supreme Lip Collection

MAC released, online a new collection last week, "So Supreme".  This collection is a lip only collection.  It's available now online at MAC and Nordstrom.  I'll have to check and see if it is going to be in stores or not. The collection features six lipsticks and eight lipglass tints.  Some of the colors are permanent and some are limited edition.  These lipsticks promise to give you the color of regular lipsticks, plus the shine sheen of lipglass.  The lipglass tints promise high shine with a creamy formula that leaves long lasting color and features pigments that work with the body's temperature for fresh, custom color. The lipsticks retail at $16 and the lipglass tints at $20, a bit different from MAC's regular pricing, but the packaging is a bit different, especially for the lipglass tints.

The Sheen Supreme Lipsticks are:

1. Candy Apple (midtonal warm plum-LE)
2. Gotta Dash! (pale clean coral-permanent)
3. Playtime (bright coral pink-LE)
4. Pleasurefruit (bright warm pink-LE)
5. Sweet Grenadine (bright orange-LE)
6. Pret-A-Pretty (soft warm pink-LE)

The Sheen Supreme Lipglass Tints are:

1. K-Wow (soft cool pink-LE)
2. Bubble Gum (soft warm pink-LE)
3. Simply Wow (midtonal cool mauve-LE)
4.  Heart & Soul (warm peach-LE)
5. Kiss, Kiss (cool peach cream-LE)
6. Gyi-Yo-Mi (midtonal raspberry-LE)
7. Blushing Berry (midtonal cool red-LE)
8. Glorious Intent (warm plum-LE)

MAC Nudes & Metallics Collection...Available Online NOW

MAC's latest collection is the Nudes & Metallics Collection, which is a limited edition, online (or pro store) only collection.  So if you're interested in any of these babies, you've got to go online and order them.  Unfortunately, this is a collection I wished they had in stores, because it contains a lot of items that I personally don't enjoy buying without swatching, because I'm not sure how I'll like the product.  Specifically, nude and metallic lipstick. For nudes, because of my skin tone, I prefer to swatch, because there aren't many that look good on me.  For metallics, I never really like the finish/feel of them, so I usually pass.  But I wouldn't pass if the color of one was absolutely to die for. The collection is broken down into two parts: nudes and metallics.  Both collections have four lipsticks, four eyeshadows, and one blush.  Everything is limited edition. 

Nudes:

• Angel's Kiss (amplified lipstick)
• Wholesome (amplified lipstick)
• Nearly Nude (amplified lipstick)
• Restrained (amplified lipstick)
• Bare Minimum (satin eyeshadow)
• Glimpse of Flesh (satin eyeshadow)
• Body Conscious (satin eyeshadow)
• Exposed (satin eyeshadow)
• Barefaced (satin blush)

Metallics:

• Dominate (frost metallic lipstick)-deep purple
• Pre-Raphaelite (frost metallic lipstick)-berry
• Subverted (frost metallic lipstick)-brown
• Show-All (frost metallic lipstick)-red
• Love's Lure (veluxe pearl eyeshadow)-deep red
• Brazenly (veluxe pearl eyeshadow)-deep purple
• Crimson Tryst (veluxe pearl eyeshadow)-berry red
• Deep Fixation (veluxe pearl eyeshadow)-deep brown
• Stylish Me (satin blush)-mauveish

Looking at the swatches, the eyeshadows look gorgeous and pigmented, which isn't exactly common for MAC eyeshadows (anymore).  I'm thinking of picking up some of the nude lipsticks and some of the metallic eyeshadows.  

MAC Tropical Taboo Collection

...Available online at MAC cosmetics now (and Nordstrom), and in stores Thursday, 6/27.  This collection features a combination of permanent and limited edition items.  The collection is divided into two parts (similar to Temperature Rising).  It's MAC Tropical Taboo Face and MAC Tropical Taboo Colour.  It's a pretty big collection, with a lot of items ranging from lipstick, lipgloss, skin finishes, brushes, and so forth. It seems, at first glance, like many of the items are "mineralize" items...like the lipsticks, eyeshadows, and blushes. I must mention, however, that MAC is repromoting the ABLAZE and HEROINE lip liner pencils.  If you missed out on these lipsticks, the lip pencils are equally gorgeous.  And can be used to line the entire lip, FYI.  

I personally haven't purchased anything from this collection...yet. Any excitedness (it's a word, for real lol) I had about collections kind of dimmed after the whole RiRi Hearts MAC and MAC's near weekly "launches".  I'm honestly not sure if I'll get anything either.  Nothing in the collection really jumps out to me, but i may go in store to swatch the items. 

Here are a couple of promo pics that were in the email I received:

MAC All About Orange Collection Summer 2013

MAC is releasing a new collection (of course, right?) this summer called All About Orange.  It actually has a release date of June 6, 2013 (same as the RiRi <3 MAC collection), but will be available in stores as well.  The fact that it is available in stores is great because with the range of orange/peach/coral shades, I'd prefer to swatch them in the store than buy them all...because orange isn't the greatest color for me personally. 

Anywho, it looks like a fun collection...and a big one.  There are lipsticks, cremesheen glosses, nail polish and blushes...some of which are permanent and some limited edition.  For a more detailed write-up of the collection, head over to Temptalia! She's got some great pictures and listing of all the deets.