MAC Art Supplies Haul

L-R, Black Line, Undercurrent, Dirty, Zinc Zone, Below Ground

I don't really know what happened here. Normally I am super on the ball at scoring MAC new releases on the day they come out, swatching them all and getting it online. I've been super looking forward to this collection since I scored my first Greasepaint Stick at Style Black, but something happened (well, real life really!), and I only got a chance to pick these up last Saturday, and then it was a whole week before I was able to sit down properly and play around with them. So sorry, and I feel bad myself.

Okay, into what I picked up. I could easily have all 8 of the Greasepaint Sticks, but even I know that that is unnecessary and there are only so many smudgy smoky eyes a girl needs. And it's not as if I have a mad crazy hectic social life that needs a smoky eye each night! So, I managed to restrain myself to just three:

(From top, Dirty, Zinc Zone, Below Ground)

• Dirty: This is a greyed taupe. It reminds me of Satin Taupe in a smudgeable form. I cannot wait to do a look with this. It's gorgeous, with a touch of silvery shimmer and yummy blendability
• Below Ground: A light-mid tone brown with a shimmered finish. Soft and easy to use. Not super overwhelming in terms of color. I can see myself using this one a lot, although maybe not coming into summer. 
• Zinc Zone: Granite gray. Think Knight Divine in smudging form. Will work for a more sophisticated smudged eye. Love. 

 Mini Grease Paint Stick Sharpener

Greengrease and Uniformly Blue looked fun as well, but I can't have everything!

I also picked two Pearlglide Intense Liners. Pearlglide Liners are really nice and soft and are nearly as good as Urban Decay 24/7s (let's face it - is there a better liner than the 24/7s?). Out of the six colors available, I picked two:

• Black Line: Supersoft black with gold shimmer. This is like a thinner, darker version of NARS Aigle Noir that came out at Christmas last year. I have that, and I never use it :(
• Undercurrent: a darkened shimmery teal. I cannot control myself when it comes to teal eyeliners. They are my all time favorite liner color. I looked through my liner stash, and I have nothing like this. Score! :)

Although I am mad crazy for lipstains, something made me not love the MAC ones - the reports of dryness, and the fact that when I buy a Covergirl stain, they dry out in months, so I decided to pass these. Strength!!

Did anyone else pick up anything from the Art Supplies collection?

Pret A Papier comes out on Thursday, and I'm going to go to the new MAC at Times Square to take a look at it. Although I love my Flatiron store, and I feel like I'm cheating on them! 

The Oops I Slept in Approach to Make Up

I woke up late this morning, and while I was running around frantically getting myself together for work, I thought to myself – I should write a blog post about “the bare minimum” – that is, what do you throw on when you have slept through your alarm by an hour!

I should first say that this only really applies to “workday makeup”. I regularly go out without a scrap on my face on the weekend and it does not really bother me. In fact, as I write this, the only make up I have on is a bunch of swatches on my arm! However, I definitely have “a face” that I put on for work. Instead of going through my whole look today, I’m going to talk about what I use to make sure I’m presentable on just 4 minutes (maybe less!) in front of the mirror. In reviewing this post, it seems that my main goal is to use products that it is impossible to make a mistake with.

 

1.      Mascara. Not negotiable. Always wakes your eyes up. Right now I'm using Maybelline Colossal, which is okay but I don't love (flaking after a 8hrs)

2.      Instead of tinted brow gel, I use clear. Keeps my brows in place, but far more room for error and no chance of making a mistake with. 

3.      Concealer where you need it

4.      Tinted moisturizer as a quick base. 

5.      Benefit Posietint on the apples of your cheeks

6.      A very light dusting of ELF High Definition Powder

7.      Neutral, always suitable lipstick (for me it’s MAC Crème Cup at the moment for my default lip).

As you can see, in my eyes, full eyeshadow and gloss are skippable steps for me. I’ve also focused on products that are virtually impossible to make a mistake with, so most are quite subtle, but enough to make me look a little bit less like I rolled straight from bed to office. 

What is your slept-in late routine? Any recommendations for uber products that will rock mine?

This post contains affiliate links. Jolie Laide Girl represents only the author's opinions, and is in no way influenced by the use of affiliate links.

A Hint of What's To Come

Yep, that's a photo of my "unreviewed and unswatched" make up. I've got a lot of work to do over the coming couple of weeks! The blog will be busy busy busy - watch this space!

Nails of the Week: China Glaze Nude

I am continuing my love affair with all things China Glaze and all things nude and neutral. I am by far the youngest person in my working environment, and frequently feel that way in my typically scatterbrained approach to things. Sometimes its nice to look down at my nails and they look pretty and sophisticated. China Glaze Nude does that for me. It is quite sheer, so this was 3 coats (and I believe 1 or 2 days wear when I took this picture).

On other nail related thoughts, I received a couple of colors from the China Glaze Poolside Neon collection this week along with a bunch of other colors from Transdesign this week - yay!! So excited to try them out. But I was disappointed to see that Essie polishes have jumped from $4 to $8. I really don't want to pay $8 for an Essie polish!! Can anyone recommend any reputable ebay sellers that sell at around the $4 mark?

Everyone Loves a MAC Dupe: Hello Milani Liquid Liners

A couple of bloggers have recently pointed out the great drugstore find that is Milani Liquid Liner ($7). I have never tried anything from this brand. Get this for an example of my laziness: it is not carried in my Duane Reade (when I say my Duane Reade, I mean the one on the ground floor of my building. This Duane Reade is kind of sucky, with only L'Oreal, Maybelline, and other typical brands. There is a CVS two streets away, but I hardly ever go, because of, you know, the whole two streets thing. I just want to point out at this point that I do actually exercise and run and stuff, and walk my dog about a gazillion times a day, but for some reason do not make it to the exotic far away CVS.

Until last week. I managed to drag my sorry ass those extra 50 yards and headed in to score some Milani Infinite liners. I have MAC's Liquidlast liner in Aqualine, which is gorgeous and amazing and a complete disaster when it comes to actually trying to remove it. I've been meaning to pick up the Blue Horizon color for about a year, so when I hear of a real actual dupe, I get excited. I got Infinite (bright blue) and Eternal (olive green). The brush isn't great but it's not horrible. They come out a little thinner than the MAC ones, but it's not a huge difference. The colors are gorgeous - rich and vibrant, with a little bit of shimmer. They do dry quite matte (the pictures below are dry). Wear is good, though not as good as the MAC liner, and I did notice some fading after 6 hrs wear. However, I could actually remove these, unlike the MAC liners, which leave me with the same color for 48hrs! Some bloggers have complained that these take a long time to dry. They took about 2-3 mins to dry, but so do the MAC ones for me, so I didn't notice this as a major deal breaker. All in all, I think that these are pretty awesome liners, and I fully intend on picking up any other colors that come out.

Nails of the Week: Essie Tart Deco

This is an example of a nails disaster. I decided to do my nails before work one day last week, and picked out Essie Tart Deco from the recently launched Art of Spring collection. This looked like such a pretty coral pink. I had picked it up in the mini form (because come on, who ever finishes a nail varnish?), and this was the first time I had used a mini Essie before.

Man oh man, this was work. The polish was thick, the brush tiny, and it took three tedious and difficult coats to get a reasonably even coverage. So can you imagine my horror when I used China Glaze's Quick Dry Topcoat on top and it turns from a pretty pink coral to neon orange?! I could have screamed!! Instead I had to go to work with garish nails.

Has mixing brands topcoats ever had this impact on you?

Estee Lauder Bronze Goddess Lip Gloss

The last week in NYC has seen highs in the 90s and lows in the 50s - schizophrenic weather much? Still, there's nothing like a bit of summer gloss to put me in a better mood, and Estee Lauder's Bronze Goddess lip gloss in Wild Orchid is just the thing. It's a bright fushcia, but sheer enough to be pretty, not wild. It is slightly sticky, but not enough to be tacky, and has a sweet flavor. I love it.