MAC CENTRIC BASE

Sorting through my make up collection on the weekend got me thinking about not only the products I use most regularly but also the brands. I've found that I have a lot of MAC stuff - particularly base products - I think it's because its not too expensive. Don't get me wrong I always have to justify splurging £20 on a foundation from MAC but it's nowhere near spending £30+ on one from brands such as Nars or Illamasqua. I thought I would just put together a little post to show you some of my fave face products from MAC.

As far as primers go it has to be Strobe Cream (£24.50), it packs a punch and will leave your face hydrated and glowy. I particularly like this in the winter months as I feel my skin gets a little drier so this nifty little product helps to instantly perk it up, no matter what foundation I put over the top. You can also mix this in with your foundation or use it post- foundation by dabbing it on the high points of your face. Another quite glowy product is the famous Face and Body Foundation (£22). This particular one took me a while to get used to as it has such an odd consistency! I've resorted to putting it on with a damp beauty sponge as I feel on my skin I get the best finish, but please do let me know how you guys apply it! I tend to use this foundation for events when I know there will be flash photography as it has no SPF so you won't get the dreaded flash back! A thing to watch out for with this foundation is that it is very dark - I have the lightests one yet I can only really pull it off after bathing in self tan. Pro Longwear Concealer (£17.50) is very much a cult product in the beauty world. It gives a great coverage and it is amazing for highlighting under the eyes if you get a few shades lighter. You also get tons of product with this one - always a bonus! Talking about highlighting under the eyes, I recently purchased the Shaping Powder in Emphasise (£16) which I use very sparingly under my eyes to brighten them. It's got a tiny bit of shimmer so you do sometimes have to use a light hand. It's also great for highlighting other areas of the face and as an eyeshadow. The Studio Fix Powder(£22) is hands down the best setting powder for your foundation!! I use it every day (I've even hit pan..) and can't imagine using anything else. I personally don't think it adds that much coverage but rather just helps to smooth everything over. Last but not least, Lightscapade Mineralise Skin Finish (£24) is one of the first high end products I ever bought! About 2 years on and I'm still loving it. I like to use it with Mary Loumanizer from The Balm to get my highlight poppin. However, it can be used on its own for a slight glow from within.

What are your favourite products from MAC?

 

Olivia

MAC Mineralise Skin Finish 'Lightscapade' Review & Swatches

MAC MINERALISE SKIN FINISH 'LIGHTSCAPADE' - £21.50
Ahhhhh I absolutely adore this highlighter. I mentioned it in my MAC Haul not too long ago and I have been loving it ever since. LIGHTSCAPADE is a lovely champagne colour with veins of blue and gold running through. It's not exactly shimmery or glittery, it just creates a glowy sheen on the skin - perfect for creating the faux glow in winter. I have really pale skin so finding highlighters that are quite cool toned and not orange is pretty hard, but LIGHTSCAPADE is perfect! You can lightly sweep this on your cheekbones for a subtle glow, or you can build it up to be quite bold highlight. This is a little pricey at £21.50 but you get 10g of product so I definitely think it's worth it as it is bound to last you ages! 

I've got my eye on the ever-so-famous Soft & Gentle - but is one of these bad boys enough?

Olivia

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MAC Haul

MAC MINERALISE SKIN FINISH IN LIGHTSCAPADE // MAC PAINT POT IN PAINTERLY // MAC EYESHADOW IN OMEGA // MAC FIX +

"Goodbye money, hello new make up" is something I say on a regular basis nowadays. I  absolutely love the products from MAC, but not their price tag, so I only really buy things I really want or when I've got a little extra money to spend, these products were a little birthday treat to myself, and I love all of them! I won't go into too much detail about them as there will most probably be some reviews coming shortly!

MAC Mineralise Skin Finishes are very popular in the blogging community, especially the shade 'Soft & Gentle'. I haven't seen much about the one I bought, 'Lightscapade' but it is gorgeous none the less. I went for this one as I thought 'Soft & Gentle' could have been a bit too bronzey for my skin tone.

The next thing I picked up was the MAC Paint Pot in 'Painterly'. I was originally going to get 'Bare Study' but when I asked on the #BBloggers chat which one was nicer as a base under shadows, many of the girls said 'Painterly' so I opted for that one. I actually haven't got round to using this that much, but so far it's been all good, and no creasing in sight!

MAC Eyeshadow in Omega is something I have been wanting for for such a long time. The perfect eyebrow shade for blonde gals. This is pretty similar to Naked 2 from the Urban Decay Naked Palette but I really like it all the same! There will be more on this in an upcoming post.

MAC Fix+ was actually a bit of an impulse purchase. I'd seen Chloe from Glitteralittle use it and she said it kept her make up in place for ages, so I had to buy it (darn you Chloe!). I think this will last me for bloody ages as the bottle is so big!

Do you like the look of any of these things?

Olivia

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eyebrow routine#1

hey lovelies!

hope you're all well and having a lovely start to the week! today i thought i'd do a post on my eyebrow routine! i often chop and change between products but i this is my go-to routine when i want to fill my eyebrows in, which is pretty much any day that i'm wearing make up.

products used: mac eyebrow pencil in lingering | mua clear mascara | maybelline eyebrow pencil - just for the spooly | 

1. i used the spooly end of my maybelline eyebrow pencil to brush through my brows, as i actually don't own an eyebrow comb. 

2. i lightly filled in my brows using little brush strokes to mimic hairs. i followed my natural eyebrow shape but added a bit more of an arch.

3. this is just what it looks like filled in, i think they look quite filled in here and you can stop here but i like to make them look a bit more natural, especially for school.

4.i then combed my eyebrows through again using the spooly end of my maybelline brow pencil. i think this helps them to look a little more natural.
5. then, to set my brows i use mua's clear mascara (which is embarrassingly grubby). this doesn't hold them in place as much as i wish it would. i think i may invest in the illamasqua brow gel as i have heard so many great things about it!
6. the finished eyebrow! 

So that is my finished eyebrow routine! i reviewed the mac eyebrow pencil in lingering if you want a more in depth review on it!

Thank you for reading, hope you enjoyed!

Olivia 

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mac eyebrow pencil in lingering

I recently went to MAC in my town center to pick up an eyebrow pencil. I had my sights set on the eyebrow pencil in Fling, as it states it a cool, ash blonde colour, just what I need (Well I thought I did anyway.)
The woman at mac was so helpful, and advised me to get lingering, instead of fling, as fling probably wouldn't show up on my eyebrows, as they are pretty dark for someone with blonde hair. She said lingering wouldn't make my eyebrows any darker than they already were, they would just make them look fuller and more defined! That is exactly what I wanted, and that is exactly what lingering does!
Here are a couple of pictures so you can see what it looks like..

top photo with out mac lingering
bottom photo with mac lingering

I really recommend MAC eyebrow pencil in the shade lingering, if you have brows like mine. It's long wearing, not too orange-y and doesn't look like you've just drawn your eyebrows on!
Well done MAC!
Thank you for reading and I hope you have a wonderful evening! X
AND A MERRY, MERRY CHRISTMAS!