Review: MAC Sable (& Some Shadow Comparisons!)

The husband and I enjoyed a leisurely stroll down Newbury St. last night. Naturally I just had to stop into MAC and check out the goodies. I always try my best to get in and out of that place without spending a fortune on products I don't need, and for the most part I'm pretty successful at this. But last night I found myself swatching shadows and, well, I just couldn't resist bringing this beauty home.

MAC Sable is a gorgeous plum-golden brown shadow. It looks like a basic brown in the pan, but once you swatch it it takes on a totally different color; there are rosy-bronze undertones in this shadow that you don't see until you put it on. I love warm brown shadows, especially when they have hints of purple or pink in them, so this shadow feels right at home in my MAC palette.

At first I thought it might be pretty similar in color to Satin Taupe, one of my all-time fav MAC eyeshadows. I swatched them next to each other and was surprised to see that, while the tones should be the time, the colors take on two very different personalities.

You can really see the warm bronze tone of Sable, whereas Satin Taupe is a much cooler color. The formulas are exactly the same, however. Both are satin finishes. They're smooth and blend really well. These two colors are definitely related, but they're certainly not twins.

I was also very pleasantly surprised to see how close Sable and Satin Taupe are to the deeper brown shade in the NARS Kalahari duo. Both are close matches, and if you don't want to spend the $32 for the NARS shadow, you can use one of the MAC alternatives (which are much cheaper!).

But wait, there's more!

MAC Sable and Patina = a dupe for the NARS Kalahari duo?

EOTD using Sable, Woodwinked, and Shroom

Do you enjoy finding similar shadow colors? Share your fun color match finds! :)

An Overdue Collection of Some FOTDs

In trying to make up for lost time, I've got a bunch of FOTDs I've been meaning to post over the last month. With apologies again for the massive amount of slacking, here are some Face of The Days for your perusal!

                              

Eyes: MAC Woodwinked, Clinique Pink Chocolates Quad (The browns), L'Oreal Voluminous mascara in Carbon Black

Cheeks: Mary Kay Mineral blush in Sparkling Cider. E.L.F. Studio Blush/Bronzer duo

Lips: Victoria's Secret lipgloss in Mischief

Eyes: MAC Haux & Satin Taupe, L'Oreal Lavender Smokes Quad, Elizabeth Arden Velvet Plumtones Quad, Maybelline Define-a-Line Eyeliner in Rich Raisin, L'Oreal Voluminous mascara in Carbon black

Cheeks: Milani Lumious blush, Bare Escentuals in Warmth

Lips: Mary Kay lipgloss in Berry Sparkle, Rimmel lipgloss in Rose Cocoon

Eyes: Elizabeth Arden Velvet Plumtones Quad, MAC Scene & Shale, L'Oreal Telescopic Mascara in Carbon Black

Cheeks: Physician's Formula Happy Booster Blush in Rose

Lips: Rimmel lipgloss in Rose Cocoon

Eyes: MAC Shroom, Revlon Sterling Rose Quad, Revlon CS eyeliner in Black, L'Oreal Telescopic mascara in Carbon Black

Cheeks: E.L.F. Studio Blusher/Bronzer Duo, E.L.F. All Over Color Stick in Lilac

Lips: N.Y.C. lipgloss in Sungold Pink

Today's EOTD: Stila Sunset, L'Oreal Lavender Smokes Quad, L'Oreal Telescopic mascara in Carbon Black. Look how this shadow combo turned my green eyes blue! Amazing!

I admit I am a full-fledged lover of L'Oreal Telescopic mascara at this point. The above pictures show my lashes with two coats of Telescopic. My lashes look super long, defined, and full. I mean it when I say this just may be the only mascara I'll buy for a good long time.

A close up of the Estee Lauder lipgloss I reviewed in my last post (Honey #03). It looks a bit like a soft peony pink color in this picture, but in actuality it's a soft honey gold. The formula is super thick and should be a bit warm when applied to the lips, otherwise the color is milky and streaky. Once it warms up though it spread beautifully and is pretty true to the color in the tube.

I'm dying to pick this palette up at Bobbi Brown sometime in the near future. The colors are very much in my comfy zone, and it's pretty cheap for Bobbi Brown, too, which I admit is a bit appealing when you consider one eye shadow pan is close to $25! I've been dying to pick Rockstar up, too, so the price point and the gorgeous shadow selections makes it extremely appealing!

FOTD With MAC Club Eyeshadow

I love, love, love this eyeshadow. Maybe a bit obsessively, if I'm being honest. I had so much fun doing my makeup this morning because every time I swept the shadow brush across my lid, the color of the shadow changed so much. A quick swipe got me a lovely rust color, but a few more applications gave me a gorgeous emerald green near the lashes, and a warm bronze glow as the shadow was blended up and out.

I lined my eyes with Stila Ebony eyeshadow and used a liner brush to sweep the black shadow up. It blended into Club and gave the appearance of more defined lashes. I finished the look off with a quick tight lining using Revlon CS eyeliner in Black and two coats of L'Oreal Voluminous Carbon Black mascara.

How emo is the following shot, lol? What is this, MySpace 2004? Whatevs. It shows the look in natural light (even if I do look like a moody, attention-starved teenager).

Can you see the red, green, and brown pigments in this shadow? This color is holy Grail material, people. I think I may have finally found my one true eyeshadow love.

Ok, so maybe this look is a little bold for a Saturday afternoon, but hell if I don't feel just the tiniest bit like Victoria Beckham right now (just, you know, minus the whole mismatched face and neck bit...).

Image Source

Do you have a favorite eyeshadow? 

Two Reasons Why I have No Willpower

Woodwinked

....and Club.

Just two little MAC shadows, and a whole lot of self-realization: it would appear that I simply cannot control myself when MAC is involved.

I found myself at the mall today, helping my sister-in-law Emily find a new purse. Somehow (and I swear I have no recollection of this happening!) I found myself in the MAC Pro store swatching shadows and snapping up two pan shadows. I know I swore off any new makeup purchases until I achieved my Project 10 Pan goal, but as soon as I swatched these two, I knew I couldn't walk out without purchasing them.

Woodwinked is described as a warm antiqued gold, and it's definitely a bold color.

It's supposed to be very flattering on green and blue eyes, so I'm excited to put this color to work and see how it works on my eyes.

Club is described as a red-brown with green pearl, and honestly, I've never seen an eyeshadow like this before. You really see each color in this shadow, but instead of coming off as muddy, this trio works fantastically together!

Now I will admit that I enjoy looking for dupes and getting a similar (and great) product for a much cheaper price, but I really don't think this is a color that can be easily duped. It's so complex and the color changes so much depending on the lighting and the amount of product you use. I know a lot of people in the beauty community claim Wet n'Wild's Comfort Zone Palette contains a dupe for MAC Club, but I haven't personally tried the CZ palette, so I can't say for sure if it is or not (you can read a review of the CZ palette here).

Both of these shadows are extremely well pigmented and both have a very creamy consistency. A little goes a VERY long way and the blend beautifully. Club in particular is a very workable shade; you can apply just a tiny bit to the lid for a sheer wash of color or deepen the color by applying it a bit heavier.

(Without flash)

(With flash)

So of course now I have to impose a ban on myself. I really can't buy anymore eyeshadows. Like, ever.

Well, ok, maybe not *EVER*. But certainly for a good long while at least!

P.S.
This was yesterday's hair style: a cute little ponytail with a hair wrap. Unfortunately, it's glaringly obvious I've spent too much time in the pool this summer. The chlorine has completely brought out the red in my hair and now my ends are scarlett!

Looks like a box of L'Oreal Feria hair color is in my future! /:

Things I'm Currently Loving & Reworking My MAC Pro Palette!

I didn't get around to posting my July favorites, but I did want to give a few props to some products I'm loving at the moment.

Nivea Touch of Smoothness Moisturizing Body Wash: This stuff is body wash gold. My skin has been feeling a little sun-beaten for the past few weeks and I wanted a body wash that had a lotion consistency. This stuff really hydrates my skin and leaves it feeling silky. It also smells like tea roses; it's a softly romantic smell that reminds me of late summer gardens.

Victoria's Secret Very Sexy For Her: This perfume is one of my favorites for late summer because its spicy and bold. It's a floral Oriental scent that features scents of pepper, white orchid, and musk (among others). I like wearing this on date nights (the husband likes when I wear this, too ;) ) because the smell makes me feel sexy and a just little bit dangerous. Sadly my little bottle is almost empty. It looks like a new bottle is going on my Christmas list this year!

Stila In The Light Palette: I can't rave enough about this palette. So many gorgeous and useable colors in one place. I've been reaching for this almost everyday since I bought it. I especially love combining Sunset and Gilded Gold for a really bold bronze-burgundy smokey eye.

L'Oreal Color Riche Lipstick in Gilded Gold: In general I'm much more a lipgloss kind of girl, but this soft nude with rose and gold undertones really wakes up a simple face. It's not so overpowering that I feel like my lips are jutting out of my face when I wear it, but I do feel a bit more polished with just a quick slick of this and a winged eye.

Essence of Beauty Smokey Wide Dual-Ended Brush: I saw this brush in one of Lollipop26's tutorials (BTW, be sure to check out her new blog. Materialistic love!) and debated purchasing it for so long. It just looks really wide and frightening for those of us with hooded eyes and little visible eyelid. Eventually I bit the bullet and picked it up and it's been love ever since. It's really easy to use, fantastic at blending shadows, and the smaller brush is really great for lining and smudging. Highly recommended if you're in the market for a new brush :)

Big, bold beaded jewelry:

Admittedly I'm a bit of a snot when it comes to jewelry. I usually like fine jewelry (read: expensive), but lately I've been wearing a lot of cheap earrings. Maybe it's just my way of embracing the summer season but honestly, the bigger, cheaper,  and tackier the earrings, the more I love them!

Project 10 Pan Update: So far two bottles have been emptied and trashed. I finished off my John Frieda Root Awakening shampoo and used up the last of a Neutrogena face wash/mask. Next up is the previously mentioned Victoria's Secret Beauty Rush lipgloss. That thing's got a shelf life of about a week before it finally meets its end.

I've also been trying to wheedle down the contents of my makeup bag. Sometime ago I switched my MAC shadows from the 15-Pan Pro Palette to the smaller 4-Pan palettes. I thought I'd enjoy the smaller containers and it would make it easier on me to have smaller palettes instead of one big one. I finally got annoyed by having to switch between palettes when doing my makeup and I decided to transfer them all back to the 15-pan palette. The pan, however, underwent a little tweaking.

I know the palettes can be manipulated to hold more than 15 shadows, and so I decided to pop the tray out of the container to allow for more room. If this is something you're also interested in doing, the super-easy how-to steps are below!

1. Lift the tray so that you can see the clips that hold it to the palette body.

2. Using a butter knife, slide along the edges of the tray, gently twisting the butter knife to "pop" the clips out of place. This is really easy to do so don't worry about breaking the tabs or palette body.

3. Lift the tray out and set aside (not sure if the tray component will count for MAC's "Back To MAC" program, but it doesn't hurt to ask, right?)

4. The magnetic bottom will hold the shadow pans, and voila! Now you have more room for shadows. Rumor is you can fit about 22 MAC shadow pans if you go this route. (Even better: MAC shadow pans are only $11, as opposed to the $14.50 you pay for the shadow compact!)

What are your current favorites? Leave some recommendations in the comments so I can check out the products you're loving!

Duping the Duchess!

Well, her makeup anyways.

(Please forgive me if I sneak one more post in before my trip :) ).

Last night the Duchess of Cambridge (who we all know I love) attended some swanky to-do in London. Besides drooling over her ridiculously beautiful Jenny Packham dress and LK Bennett shoes, I thought she wore simple but very flattering makeup.

(all images are from the Daily Mail)

What I loved most about her look is that it wasn't very complicated at all. She kept everything neutral and no one feature stood out from the others; the eyes, cheeks, and lips were all in harmony. It's normally considered a bit of a risk to wear such understated makeup to a red carpet event, because the whole point of the red carpet is to be oogled and stick out. But Kate is famous for always looking natural, and one should never mess with what looks best on them, a rule she seems to have embraced. She looks amazing, and I knew it would be so easy to copy this look with only a handful of products:

• Two eyeshadows
• Eyeliner
• Mascara
• Blush
• Lipgloss

The eyes are very simple: it's nothing more than a mauve-pink eyeshadow blended up above the crease, where it's blended with a frosty baby pink highlighter immediately beneath the brows. There are obviously lots of different shadows you could use to recreate this look, but I thought of five shadows right off the bat that perfectly match the warm, plummy undertones tones of Kate's look.

L to R: MAC Satin Taupe, MAC Haux, MAC Shale, Revlon CS Sterling Rose (the frosty pink shade), and L'Oreal Lavender Smokes shadow #2.

I decided to use the L'Oreal's Lavender Smokes quad (specifically shadow #2), a beautiful but very subtle mauve shadow. I chose it because it's a warm pinky-purple that looks amazing on green eyes (something I have in common with the duchess, and a feature I love to play up as much as I can). This shadow looks like suede once applied to the lid. It's a very soft, matte color, which is in line with Kate's makeup in that there is hardly any shimmer on the lid. Keepin' it simple, people.

I blended the mauve shadow out with my Sephora Professionnel rounded crease brush, bringing it right up to my brow bone. Because I have hooded eyes, I like to bring the color up as high as possible, because color tends to disappear when my eyes are open. Then I blended the frosted pink shadow from the Revlon CS Sterling Rose quad beneath my brown bone and into the inner corners of my eyes (pro-tip: this makes the eye look more open and awake).

I know Kate loves her eyeliner, and so do I, so of course I gave myself a healthy outline on the top and bottom lashes using Revlon's CS black liner before applying two coats of L'Oreal Voluminous Mascara in Carbon Black.

The goods:

For my cheeks I just applied a warm peachy pink blush from the E.L.F. bronzer and blush duo, and for my lips I used a Victoria's Secret brilliant shine lipgloss called "Mischief."

And this was the finished look:

Simple, flattering, and best of all, it only took five minutes from start to finish. I'm sure Kate's makeup took a bit longer than that, but five minutes works for me!

Do you ever admire someone else's makeup?

Top 5 drugstore products and 1 splurge!

1. Revlon ColorStay foundation in 110 Ivory:

This is, hands down, the nicest drugstore foundation I have ever purchased. I've used MAC Pro Longwear foundations before, and this is hands down the best drugstore dupe out there (it's half the price, too!). 

It's branded as a lightweight coverage foundation, despite having a rather thicker consistency. Don't let that scare you off though, because this is a very buildable, very natural looking foundation. I tend to have uneven skin tone but this stuff gives great coverages and evens me out really well. It also has Soft-Flex SPF 15 in the formula, which is great, because you want to make sure you're wearing makeup that protects your skin (duh), especially in the summer. This foundation wears well for hours and through cold or hot weather, so it gets a thumbs up for looking fresh all day; there's no creases, no streaking, no caking. Once it sets on the skin, it has a matte finish with the tiniest hint of shimmer in direct light. I like mixing this with Physician's Formula tinted moisturizer to give my skin a nice, dewey finish.

2. Milani Mineral blush in Luminous and Physician's Formula Happy Booster blush in Rose (it's a tie!):

If you're up on the current makeup dupe list, then you already know why I'm including Luminous in this list. This is an exact duplicate of Nars Orgasm, the best selling blush in the world (and for good reason). Orgasm is a gorgeous pinky-peach, with tons of golden shimmer. It is the quintessential summer cheek color. However, if you're like me and can't just dump $27 on a blush, Milani's Luminous is your next best bet at only $7. 

Read a great review comparing the two (with swatches) here.

The colors between the two blushes are exactly the same, though Luminous lacks the intense golden shimmer that Orgasm is known for. Luminous has sheen, but it's subtle, which I personally find more wearable for the daytime hours. I find Luminous to be slightly less pigmented than Orgasm, so it requires a gradual buildup, depending on skin color. I'm fair, so I find I don't need much. A quick sweep across the apples of my cheeks, and I look like I just got back from the beach. However, if my skin were darker, I'd imagine the best color payoff would come with several applications of Luminous.

I've already documented my love for PF Happy Booster here. Click the link for my review.

3. Cover Girl Lash Blast Fusion in Very Black:

Despite being a teacher, and loving my cardigans and pearls, I really consider myself a punk at heart; I love my rock music, I've rocked a mohawk AND a mullet (no pictures; sorry), and I love a good black eye. No, not that kind of a black eye! I mean black eyeliner and mascara.

Prior to discovering Lash Blast Fusion, my go to mascaras L'Oreal Voluminous and Clinique's High Impact. However, this stuff is so good, I don't know that I'll ever go back to the others. It combines what I love most about lashes (length and definition) into one stellar product.

The bristles are small and really great at working in between and individually coating each lash. You get an even application of product and holy smokes does it make eyes pop! The formula is thick but workable; you're not going to get spider eyes with this mascara unless you deliberately want them (which I usually do, so hurrah!). It's my holy grail mascara (and at $10 a pop, who can complain?).

This is without a doubt CG's best product!

4. Revlon ColorStay eyeliner in Black:

This is were I get snooty and swear that MAC's Technakohl liner is the best eye liner out there (it totally is). But in a pinch, this stuff is a pretty good substitution. You'd be hard pressed to tell the difference, actually. But like I said, I'm snooty with my liners ;)

That said, it's a member of the ColorStay product line, and in reading this list you'll see I tend to favor that line pretty heavily. I find that with a lot of Revlon's eye products, the 'oomph' just isn't there. But the ColorStay line is actually quite good. The formulas are nice, the colors are really pretty, and the pigmentation is pro-quality. This liner lasts forever and it doesn't smudge, meaning I can tightline my eyes and not worry about reapplying every half hour. It also comes with a handy-dandy little pencil sharpener, which, for a crayon freak like myself, is pretty convenient. I wish MAC would follow suit in that regard, so one up for Revlon in that department.

5. Revlon ColorStay 12 Hour Eyeshadow Quad in Sterling Rose:

The ColorStay line of shadows is straight up GORGEOUS. The quads are available in a wide range of colors, and make the perfect travel shadow kit when you're on the go. This quad in particular, is fantastic for an on-the-go smokey eye palette. You can guarantee this baby is going to be in my makeup bag when I go to Vegas next month! I intend to review this palette in an upcoming blog post, so for now I'll just say that there are many reasons why this palette belongs on this list.

6. Honorable mention: Rimmel Moisture Renew and N.Y.C. lipglosses.

These two glosses are the perfect washes of peach and pink. The N.Y.C. liquid lip shine is thick and creamy and gives a delicate hint of golden peach, which I think tends to really warm skin tone up. The Rimmel product is very sheer, though it's a high shine gloss that's pretty pigmented, in my opinion. 

I tend to keep both of these in my handbag at any given time, because I don't have to worry about these glosses overpowering any other makeup I'm wearing, unlike a lipstick.

And finally, the splurge:

Man, do I love MAC shadows. I will happily spend any amount of money on a quality eyeshadow, because I think my eyes are my best feature, and when you're making up a feature you love, you really want to do a bag up job, am I right? For me, that means using great products and having fun!

Top row (left to right): Idol Eyes, Crystal, Shroom, Rice Paper, Banshee, Honey Lust

bottom row (left to right): Shale, Scene, Patina, Satin Taupe, Quarry, Haux

Of all these shadows, I think Patina is the best shade. It's an antique, browny gold with a satin finish. I find it brings out the blue undertones of my green eyes, which I love!

Now, when you buy a MAC shadow, you're going to pay approximately $15, which I don't think is terrible for the amount of product you get, and for how little you actually need to use when applying your makeup. One of these pots can last you a long, long time. 

However, MAC makes it really easy to depot these shadows and build your own quad palette (bigger palettes are also available), meaning you can mix and match which shades you group together. These little quad palettes are $4 apiece, and the great thing about going to route of the quad, is that the eyeshadows instantly become cheaper. Instead of buying the potted shadow, you just buy the shadow pan. This way, the shadow goes from $15 to $11, or even $7 if you go on one of MAC's promotional sales days.

Also, once you depot your shadows, MAC offers a great recycling program called 'Back to MAC.' Just bring in six of your empty packages and MAC will give you your choice of shadow or lipgloss as a thank you. Not a bad deal, if you ask me!