MAC's To the Beach: Haul and Review

I never thought I would say this... but I am a bit disappointed with this collection. It's mainly because of one product not living up to my high expectations: Marine Life highlight powder.

Here are the three powders that I got. I photographed the swatches in different lighting to give a better idea of the colours. Hipness is quite a bright pink blush with only a hint of shimmer (even though it's a Frost). It's pretty, it's girly. I was surprised with Get-Away Bronze blush; it also has a frost finish (but it's more visible) and I immediately adored the colour. I applied these over MAC's NC30 Studio Sculpt foundation.

L to R: Hipness, Get-Away Bronze, Marine Life

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Marine Life is really quite pink. I've tested it as a blush, this on one cheek and Hipness on the other. At first I couldn't tell much of a difference - they're similar - but when I took my mirror outside and looked again, I noticed that Marine Life is more pink and more pigmented. Hipness is smoother, more of a coral tone and suits my skintone better. I don't think you will need to get both. Also, if you're looking for a pink blush, there are better ones out there.

Here are more swatches (of Marine Life only): I dipped my brush in the light pink (left in picture), then the darker pink (middle), and finally all together (right). These swatches are not as golden-shimmery as the first one above, do you see? It's because...

... the gold on the seahorse is only on the surface! It disappears very quickly, leaving only the two pink tones. I find that it loses all its charm and I am so disappointed (sigh). I got a back-up of Marine Life because it looked so gorgeous untouched; I can tell you now that I will never touch it - it must stay perfect! (what for? don't ask - I'm a bit of a collector.)

Before and after

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The nail lacquer in Scorcher is probably my favourite product (of the haul). I'm not sure how to describe the colour - sort of light red/orange meets pink?? Does that make coral? Anyway, it's cheerful. I applied two coats and it's more pink than it looks in the photo.

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To conclude... I thought this was going to be a fabulous collection (I do like the green packaging) and I had high hopes for Marine Life... but I'm disappointed. Pret-a-Papier turned out to be so much better - maybe because I wasn't expecting it to be that great?

Will you still get Marine Life?

P.S. If you haven't voted on my Mini yet, please do so - every opinion counts! I'm still undecided!

The great big MAC Pret-a-Papier haul and review

This is one of those times when I think, "It's a good thing my husband doesn't read my blog!"... because I ended up getting quite a few things from MAC (and not just what's in the photo!). Here is the Pret-a-Papier collection.

Let's start.
I adore blush. Especially in pink, coral and sometimes also bronze (but not plum, for example). So no surprise here that I had to get both Instant Chic (a pink coral sheertone) and Light over Dark, which is a two-toned mineralize blush. Light over Dark could be used as eyeshadow, too, by the way.

In the swatch, Instant Chic is on the left. It swatched nicely but it's quite sheer when applied to the cheeks with a brush (as you will see in a different swatch). It's a pretty colour. Quite matte.

Then we have Light over Dark. In the middle, the light colour on top, the darker colour on the bottom, and swirled together is the colour on the right. You need to apply this with a light hand because it is well pigmented. I like the colour - perfect for those sunny summer days - and the shimmer that you always get with the mineralize blushes.

Here is another swatch, this time applied with a brush (131) over Studio Sculpt foundation in NC30. In the photo below, Instant Chic looks plum. The colour in the photo above is more accurate.

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I got two (lustre) lipsticks, both perfect for spring/summer. Dressmaker, Dressmaker is a beautiful, soft pink coral that blends in nicely with the rest of the face and make-up (if you know what I mean); I love it. Made to Order is a deeper coral. It's absolutely wearable. They're both incredibly pretty.

Made to Order (L) and Dressmaker, Dressmaker (R)

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I only got one eyeshadow, Tissueweight (frost). It is a... pink beige, perhaps? It would make a good highlighter, depending on your skintone. It is not as pink as it looks in this photo.

I swatched Tissueweight with some like colours (all from MAC). It's like a pinkier version of Shroom.

L to R: Tissueweight, Jest, Naked Lunch, Shroom

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I also got the Paint Pot in coral crepe. This is brighter than I thought. I tried sheering it out but this is about as sheer as it will get (without using anything to dilute it or anything).

Here it is again (referring to the swatches below). The lighting is different.

Top picture: swatched on its own again. It actually makes a pretty blush!

Middle: combined with Tissueweight eyeshadow. Not really a combination I like.

Bottom: combined with Mythology eyeshadow. Now this is pretty! First I swatched Mythology on its own. It's hardly visible but to be fair, it's without a base. Below it, I applied it over coral crepe and look how nice that is. It goes well with Smut, for example.

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I decided to get the chromagraphic pencil after I read it was safe for the waterline. It's very soft and easy to blend. I tried NW15/NW20 but for me it was too light on the waterline and obvious - just like those white pencils that have always been on the market. I got NW25/NC30 and it looks more natural.

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The nail lacquer, Originality, is a frosty gold. When I first saw it, I got excited because I thought it was similar to Mercenary (Style Warriors collection). But Mercenary is a deeper bronze, which - to be honest - I prefer to the much more golden Originality.

I did not get the other nail lacquer from this collection - I thought it was just a blah brown, rather ugly.

Top row: Originality.
Bottom row: Originality and Mercenary. (Thumb: Mercenary)

And that's it!

Sorry this was such a long post but I hope that was useful. Do let me know what you plan on getting and then how you like them when you get them!

Second review (4 weeks): Detox and de-stress with Maya Fiennes DVD

Roughly four weeks since I started this: I'm thinking this DVD is not as easy as I first thought. Strange!

Maybe I've just improved my 'technique' somewhat and I'm doing the exercises properly?

What I like most about this DVD is the warm-up. There are five sets of exercises - to do sitting down - that take about 20 minutes. It's gentle but the stretching is quite effective. It eases the tension in my lower back and I can feel some of the pain in my shoulder muscles go away.

 

I have to admit that I'm not as keen on the rest of the exercises, especially the heavy breathing bits (breath of fire, canon breath etc) that make my throat go all dry. But if you manage to get through this, the meditation - or is it just called relaxation? - at the end is great. I usually find myself drifting off and don't want to get up.

There isn't too much chanting, which is a relief for me because it still makes me feel rather awkward. (It's not so bad if you're alone but I definitely can't get through the chants without giggling if I think my family can hear). There's a bit at the beginning of the warm-up (Ong namo) and another bit (Sat nam) at the end.

Fab news: Maya Fiennes mentions in her book (see related post) that the warm-up exercises are "a simple but effective daily exercise set". So it's better to do just the 20-minute warm-up every day than nothing at all... This keeps the whole integrating-yoga-into-daily-life thing realistic and it's especially handy for weekends (family time, in my case) and holidays.

First review: Detox and de-stress with Maya Fiennes DVD

This is my first ever yoga DVD!

It's Kundalini Yoga to detox and de-stress with Maya Fiennes.

What a relief that she wears a loose white outfit and not a horrid neck-to-ankle leotard that accentuates all the most unattractive curves. The background is also white: so simple, so pure. 

My very first thoughts: it's easy! No funny poses. The chants are not too silly. And I like the music - it's her own. It is soothing and you also get a CD with the DVD, which is an added bonus.

What I like most about this DVD so far:

1. I can do this in whatever clothes I am wearing that day. I've even done it in jeans, although I admit it wasn't that comfortable.

2. My body warms up when I do this but I don't sweat so I don't need to shower afterwards.

3. Most of the exercises are done sitting down, which seems wonderfully lazy.

I will report back regularly on my progress...