Category Archives: MAC

My Favorite “MLBB,” Neutral, & Natural Lipsticks & Glosses

Good morning! Today I have quick reviews & swatches of five of my favorite mlbb (my lips but better) / neutral / natural lipsticks & glosses. These aren’t what I’d call nude lipsticks – I think of those as paler than my natural lip tone – but rather rosy, natural colors. I tend to wear this type of lip color to work, and all five of these are frequently used.

MAC Out For Passion // Tarina Tarantino Queen Alice // Revlon Pink Truffle // Maybelline Intoxicating Spice // Essence Choose Me!

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MAC Rusty & Out For Passion Huggable Lipstick Review & Swatches

Purchased – No Affiliate Links

Rusty // Out For Passion

I recently posted about MAC’s limited edition (and no longer available) Huggable Lipsticks in my Weekly Loves post. As that post states, I I try to stay away from the MAC limited-edition hype, but I was very intrigued by the sound of the Huggable lipsticks. I first bought Out For Passion, and I loved it so much that I also bought Rusty. Continue reading →

Weekly Loves #2

Purchased – Affiliate Links

In this weekly series, I’ll be talking about some of my favorites / loves for the week.

A newly purchased product I am loving

MAC Huggable Lipstick – Rusty & Out For Passion

I try to stay away from the MAC limited-edition hype, but I was very intrigued by the sound of the huggable lipsticks. I first bought Out For Passion, and I loved it so much that I also bought Rusty. My favorite thing about these lipsticks is that they do really “hug” the lips – they’re not slippery and they transfer less than other lipsticks with similar pigmentation levels and a glossy finish.

I wasn’t planning to review these – they’re sold out now – but let me know in the comments if you’re still interested in reviews/swatches of items that are not available.

A long-time or rediscovered favorite I am loving

Rouge Bunny Rouge & MAC eyeshadow (plus UD Smog)

I first wrote about Rouge Bunny Rouge eyeshadow back in 2012, and I still love it. Currently, my favorite shades are Solstice Halcyon (that’s the one with the big dip in the upper left corner), Olive Violetear (middle row, right side), and Blackpepper Jay (not pictured; I have a single rather than a pan).

You can buy Rouge Bunny Rouge eyeshadows at beautyhabit.com & -->rougebunnyrouge.com -->.

My most-wanted wishlist item

Nars Laos Matte Multiple

I spent some time playing with several new items at Sephora last weekend, and I love the color of the new NARS Matte Multiple in Laos ($39 at Sephora). The formula seems nice as well, though it’s hard to say since I just swatched it on the back of my hand. Here’s a quick in-store swatch; Laos is the top one. .

(Note: I started writing this post earlier in the week – and then purchased the Laos at The Makeup Show LA yesterday. So this isn’t on my wishlist now, but I’m going to leave the post as-is. Review coming soon!)

A blog post I especially enjoyed reading.

This is not from the last week, but worth posting – -->Jennifae.com --> has posted three “Swatchfest Sunday” posts with drugstore lipstick swatches, which I now have bookmarked for reference. Check them out:

– -->Maybelline Color Sensational Vivid swatches --> (20 shades)
– -->Maybelline Color Whisper swatches --> (24 shades)
– -->Revlon Lip Butter swatches --> (24 shades)

*I purchased the product(s) featured in this post. This post contains affiliate links. Please see my disclosure policy for more information.

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MAC Archie’s Girls Boyfriend Stealer Lipstick Swatches

Boyfriend Stealer & Feelin’ So Good

I had initially planned to only purchase one item from the MAC Archie’s Girls collection, the Feelin’ So Good Lipglass (swatched here). However, after seeing Temptalia’s swatches of another Veronica lip product, Boyfriend Stealer lipstick, I decided that had to be mine as well! I ordered it from Nordstrom and it was supposed to arrive last Thursday, the day the collection arrived at counters – however, it didn’t arrive until today. Had I known it would be so delayed, I would have just bought it at a counter Thursday morning in order to swatch Thursday afternoon. (I was also irritated that it was shipped in a small envelope with little padding, and the box was slightly crushed. Luckily I’m not a collector of boxes or limited edition boxes, but Nordstrom didn’t know that. Still, it was not a good ordering experience.)

So – all of that is to say that the lipstick is now sold out pretty much everywhere, and I wasn’t sure swatches would be useful, but since the lipstick looks very different on me (more purple, less berry) than other bloggers, I thought I’d post them anyway.

Multiple swipes / one swipe

Boyfriend Stealer is a sheer, but buildable, purple. It is a cremesheen formula – I find the formula neither drying nor moisturizing.

Boyfriend Stealer

On me, Boyfriend Stealer is definitely purple. It’s a sheer, wearable purple – and I rather like it – but it’s not the berry I was expecting from seeing other bloggers’ lip swatches. Perhaps their lips have a different undertone than mine.

Boyfriend Stealer + Feelin’ So Good

And finally, here is Feelin’ so Good layered over Boyfriend Stealer. It’s actually not this patchy; it is patchy, but looks significantly better in person. This was a too-quickly applied swatch after my first set of swatches didn’t turn out (I had a smudge I didn’t notice til I was editing).

If you purchased Boyfriend Stealer, does it look more berry or more purple on you?

Vampy Lipgloss Swatches & Comparison

Lately, I’ve really been loving berry lips and vampy lips, and I’ve bought a few lipglosses to layer with my lipsticks to amp up the vamp factor! Today, I have swatches of Rimmel Black Diva, MAC Feelin’ So Good (reviewed here), and Becca Berry Twist.

Rimmel Black Diva // MAC Feelin’ So Good // Becca Berry Twist

As you can see, the Rimmel gloss is a true black. The MAC gloss is a very deep plum brown, and the Becca is a true berry. None of the three have any shimmer.

Rimmel Black Diva

Rimmel Black Diva is quite sheer when applied. I don’t see myself, or most, wearing it alone – it’s definitely a layering gloss.

MAC Feelin’ So Good

Feelin’ So Good is a color that is wearable alone, but it really gathers in lip lines. So, it’s also best for layering – but it is an incredibly layering shade, and I absolutely LOVE it.

Becca Berry Twist

Becca Berry Twist is definitely the best shade to wear on its own. My lips weren’t in very good condition when I swatched it – you can see a horizontal line on them, which means I need to exfoliate, but it’s not really the lipgloss’s fault. Note that the Becca gloss does have a rather strong sweet scent – I don’t really like it, but it does fade quickly.

I’ve also swatched all the glosses over a berry lipstick, Wet n Wild Ferguson Crest Cabernet. Here’s the lipstick alone:

Wet n Wild Ferguson Crest Cabernet

It’s a really lovely bright berry, and one that I’ve been wearing frequently! I have a review of it and all the other Wet n Wild Perfect Pout lipsticks here.

WnW + Rimmel Black Diva

Here is the same lipstick with the Rimmel lipgloss. It tones down the brightness, and somehow brings out the purple. I like this, but I don’t think I love it.

WnW + MAC Feelin’ So Good

Here is the lipstick with the MAC lipgloss (or lipglass). I love this, I love it SO much. It’s deeper, a bit more plum, but not too dark, and just a gorgeous shade overall!

If you’d like to see this lipgloss over several other shades (reds & a vamp), please see this post.

WnW + Becca Berry Twist

Adding the Becca gloss also deepens the Wet n Wild lipstick, but doesn’t change the color as much as the other two. It does tone down the brightness, and is a really lovely color – a great combination. I’ll be wearing this combination in the future for sure!

As a final note, due to reader feedback, I’m experimenting with zoomed-out lip swatches that show more of my face. Do you like them, hate them, are you indifferent to them? I’d love to hear your thoughts!

MAC Archie’s Girls Feelin’ So Good Lipglass Swatches & Photos

I get frustrated with the way MAC’s limited edition collections sell out before I have a chance to see swatches, so I often just skip them entirely – but one item from the new Archie’s Girls collection caught my eye. I purchased the Feelin’ So Good Lipglass, a very deep, vampy purple-brown lip gloss, based off of just one swatch – and I’m so glad that I did!

I haven’t tested it out thoroughly (but if you’re familiar with MAC’s lipglass formula, this is the same), so this post will be mainly swatches & pictures. It’s actually still available online at Maccosmetics.com; and once it sells out there, it will still be obtainable for a while – it seems that this isn’t going to be a shade that sells out immediately, so you will be able to find it at MAC stores, counters, and other online retailers – I prefer to buy MAC at Nordstrom due to their free shipping / free returns policy.

heavy swatch // light swatch – natural light

heavy swatch // light swatch – with flash

I don’t usually do heavy and light swatches for lip products, but it seemed useful since this gloss is very different when worn as a sheer layer vs. a when worn more heavily. Note that although there is a tiny bit of sparkle in the swatch, it doesn’t show up on my lips.

I have lip swatches several ways. You’ll notice that in the first three photos, it gathers in my lip lines – this was somewhat visible in person, but not nearly as visible as it in close up photography.

Thin layer of Feelin’ So Good

Thicker layer of Feelin’ So Good

After trying Feelin’ So Good alone, I also tried it over two very different red lipsticks (both swatched alone in this post). Rouge d’Armani 400 is a bright red with a slightly glossy finish; NARS Cruella is a darker red with a matte finish.

Feelin’ So Good over Rouge d’Armani 400

Feelin’ So Good over NARS Cruella

Feelin’ So Good over WnW Cherry Bomb

~~My favorite look that I tried is definitely over NARS Cruella – I love how it deepens the color.~~ I tried this over Wet n Wild Cherry Bomb, and loved it so much I had to update this post with a photo! I also adore it over Wet n Wild Ferguson Crest Cabernet – you can see a photo of that combination here. I’ll definitely be layering this gloss over lots of other lipsticks as well; I think it will work well with most cool shades. Any suggestions for what I should try it over?

Did you buy anything from the Archie’s Girls collections? What are your thoughts on limited-edition MAC generally?

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