MAC A Fantasy of Flowers - Lipstick and Blush - Swatches and Review

A Fantasy of Flowers -  What a perfect name for the spring collection! It simply makes me want the weather to get warmer and go outside to smell the flowers.

I received the email of the release of this collection and I figured I would take a sneak peek at work. Obviously it ended up being me purchasing a couple things afterwards. 

There were several repromoted products which I have a few so I wasn't so thrilled about those. (MAC seems to be doing it quite often lately) I got a lipstick - Snapdragon and a blush - Azalea in the Afternoon. The Snapdragon seems to be the unique color in this collection and I fall in love with the name of the blush when I came across it...

MAC Snapdragon Lipstick: It was described as a mid tone blue pink - Correct. But note it is a lustre finish with a bit of a shimmer to it. I usually hate (okay, that's a strong word, dislike then) lipsticks with shimmer in it. But this one I liked, it was subtle. The lustre finish tends to be very light but this one you can actually build it up! It's quite perfect for the winter/spring months! Also, it's quite long lasting - 5 hours, surprisingly and it fades very nicely!

  

(SnapDragon on my lips <3)

MAC Azalea in the Afternoon Mineralize Blush: Ah.. How should I start with this blush! It's quite a long story... I ordered the blush based on the name (you might not think that's a good idea?) and the description of the color. I was very excited about the arrival of the package until I saw Temptalia's review of it. She described it as a very light frosty pink and gave it a B (or maybe a B-). I almost wanted to just have MAC retrieve the shipment. Nevertheless, the package arrived and I immediately opened it and swatched the blush, oh man, I was so glad that I ordered it!! The pigmentation is great and the color is gorgeous! It does have a tiny bit of gold shimmer to it but not as much as the Petal Power. It's a cool pink toned blush that's so flattering on cheeks. It is powdery which is similar to the other mineralize blushes. 

(MAC Azalea in the Afternoon Mineralize Blush swatch on my hand - weird angle, hmm)

I will probably go to a MAC store/counter to check out more products in this collection. For now, I'm happy with the products. I like the subtle shimmer and color payoff of these two. Oh and I made a little heart with these two products (Snapdragon filled with Azalea in the Afternoon) <3

x

Mimi

Rimmel Show Off Lip Lacquer Review + Swatches (Celestial, Nova, Galaxy, Stellar)

Ever since there was the hype on Rimmel's Apocalips, I've been wanting to get hold of them! However, it took a while for us in the US to get them. Finally, I found them in Walgreens on one random visit. 

Now, I will start off with the packaging. They look pretty much the same as the UK version Apocalips. Average drug store product packaging, note the color on the packaging is similar or say a representative of the color inside but don't rely on them! I got four of them at once, as shown below. 

Color: From top to bottom in all three pictures are Celestial, Nova, Galaxy, and Stellar.

The swatches look nice, don't they?! They are extremely pigmented! All of the swatches above are just one stroke of each. 

Application: Easy. The sponge tip is great for application. It's super smooth and silky. It settles into a semi-matte finish which is very nice.

BUT, let's talk about the wear. The wear of these lip lacquers are so disappointing!! They are definitely not long lasting. The amazing pigmentation only lasts for less than an hour and starts to wear off. The part that's very frustrating is that it settles all on the boarders of my lips and that's not an attractive look. I'm not someone who checks in the mirror all the time so I really can't deal with this. Due to this reason, I've only worn the color Stellar once even though it's such a bright and beautiful color. My favorite color would be Celestial - lightest of all and it doesn't cause any embarrassment even if the color faded quickly because it faded "quietly" too.. The way I use to reduce the fading effect is apply some similar color lipstick underneath, blot lips, and use Rimmel Show Off Lip Lacquer as a lip-gloss. Even that, it doesn't prevent it from fading, just a better fading effect...

x

Mimi

Sephora Favorites 2013 - Give Me Some Lip - Draw The Line - Review

I was very excited to see Sephora's new favorites sets for 2013. They usually have a good selection of stuff in those sets and I tend to grab them before there are gone. This year, two of the sets really caught my eyes. They are the Give Me Some Lip lipstick/lip-gloss set and Draw The Line eyeliner set. 

I ordered online last week and I received the package yesterday. Don't be fooled by the picture on Sephora's website, those sets are mini! Here is a picture I took showing you the packaging and comparing them to the small packets of sample serums I received with the order. So they certainly don't look very big...

Now, moving on to the inside. You can't judge a book by its cover, right?

Give Me Some Lip ($25) has six products inside:

- 0.10 oz Laura Mercier Lip Glacé in Bare Pink (2/3 size)

- 0.07 oz Buxom Full-On Lip Polish in Dolly (half size)

- 0.14 oz NARS Lip Gloss in Turkish Delight (half size)

- 0.08 oz Fresh Sugar Rosé Tinted Lip Treatment (half size)

- 0.05 oz Bite Beauty High Pigment Pencil in Rhubarb (half size) 

- 0.10 oz Tarte LipSurgence Lip Luster in Glitzy (full size)

I'm happy with the amount of the products in this set. The full size Tarte lip luster was certainly a good bonus because it's worth $24 by itself. $25 for the whole set, you totally get your money back! I've always loved Fresh Sugar lip treatment although the mini size one tends to break easily half way because it's thinner than the regular size one. Buxom lip polish is always good as a lip plumper and NARS never disappoints me with its color and pigmentation. I'm quite satisfied with this set!

Draw The Line eyeliner set ($30) also has six products inside:

- 0.025 oz Make Up Forever Aqua Eyes Eyeliner in Black 

- 0.082 oz Sephora Collection Long-Lasting 12HR Wear Eye Liner in Black 

- 0.01 oz Stila Stay All Day Waterproof Liquid Eye Liner in Black 

- 0.04 oz Eyeko Skinny Liquid Eyeliner in Black 

- 0.01 oz Stila Smudge Stick Waterproof Eye Liner in Stingray 

- 0.01 oz Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-On Double Ended Eye Pencil in Perversion and Demolition

I love Urban Decay 24/7 eye pencils. It's great for Sephora to include a double-sided one into this set. Black and Brown are always good colors for everyday use. Make Up Forever Aqua Eyes Eyeliner is another of my favorite eyeliner. I've tried Eyeco this morning and I'd say so far so good. It has a very thin tip and it's really easy to use to do a winged eyeliner look. I'm excited to try Stila eyeliners and I hope they won't disappoint. 

I think both sets are very good value, but if I had to choose one, I would probably be more inclined to buy the lip set just because it has more different variety and higher end brands. Also, the lip set is $90 in value but costs $25 and the eyeliner set is $79 in value but cost $30, so you do the math ;)

x

Mimi