40 Days and 40 Nights of Beauty Brand Reviews

Day 25, MAC Cosmetics

Cavewoman: I've fallen in and out of love with MAC so many times over the years that I have come to accept my dysfunctional relationship with this very popular brand. Right now MAC and I are dating again, and although we haven't yet achieved a true commitment, we are having fun. New collections come to the MAC counters with lightning speed, creating lots of buzz on the beauty boards and sending hundreds of MAC addicts to the stores on the launch days. I'm not immune to launch day and Annie and I try to hit the local Macy's MAC counter for testing, sampling, hunting and gathering. The day that our store finally opened its MAC counter was a banner day for Y-town MAC lovers! No more driving to Cleveland to see the latest and greatest that MAC has to offer!
Narrowing down my favorite items from MAC was not an easy task. And many of the things I love best from MAC are no longer available, they come from limited edition collections that come and go from the counters and are never seen again. To fall in love with one of these items means scouring swap lists or ebay to obtain seconds (or thirds) of a favorite product or color, or making a trip to the Lauder outlet store to hope for that elusive lipstick or shadow. That being said, I present one of my favorite MAC items, the group of lipsticks known as Amplified Cremes. At the present time, the MAC website shows over 135 lipstick colors, but only 18 of them are Amplified. MAC, if you are reading this, I'll shamelessly beg for more of the Amplified formula.


Creamy, comfortable, and saturated with color, the Amplified lipsticks have a glossy finish that lasts on the lips and doesn't chip off or cause the lips to peel. They feel like a balm when applied either straight from the tube or with a lip brush, and the color does not settle into lip lines nor does it have the gritty drag of some of the other MAC lipstick formulas. Sadly, my two favorites are long discontinued, but I hope for new Amplified with each new collection. Don't look to the names to give you any hint of the color inside the tube. What color is Deliciously Rich? Or Birds Of A Feather? No matter. I love them both.

Perfumistas would probably not head to the MAC counter in search of great fragrances. But I must mention the MAC scents as another group of MAC products that are favorites of mine. Creations: Hue connect color and scent in unusual combinations, sometimes odd and unsettling, and sometimes amazingly balanced and beautiful. My first Creations: Hue scent was Violetrix, an unusual sweet and rich blend of violet leaves, blackcurrant, patchouli, orris, incense, myrrh and amber. Violetrix starts out totally synthetic and modern, and slowly moves into its base notes that become more of a traditional oriental style. I was astonished that I had found such a sophisticated and sultry fragrance at the MAC counter, so I tried a few more Creations: Hue scents. My three other favorites are Emeraldaire, a wet, green scent with white florals and woods; Turquatic, a crisp blend of water flowers and cedar; and Tarnished Love, an enigmatic blend of fruits, florals, gourmand notes anchored in amber, vetiver and patchouli.




I do not know anything at all about who MAC's perfumers are, or how these scents are created. It's part of the MAC intrigue, and I don't mind the mystery. Most of the Creations: Hue that I list here are limited editions, so hunt and gather for a sample if you are looking for something different, something edgy and current for your fragrance collection. Be prepared to be very pleasantly surprised! You might find a new love at the MAC counter. Grab a lipstick while you are there.


Annieytown: I adore MAC eyeshadows. I am always in a state of lemming over a new shade or pining over a discontinued color. I love the thrill of locating a rare gem at my local CCO or Saks store. I managed to get my Jasmine shadow from the Saks store in Cleveland. It was buried in the back of the shelf. I had no idea what I had scored until Cavewoman started going nuts.
MAC shadows have great pigment and wear very well. I never have any issues with fading or smudges. The variety of shades is what makes MAC highly sought after. My personal favorites range from Parrot(a gift from Cavewoman), Greensmoke and Sumptuous Olive, Swan Lake,Moth Brown, Iris Print, Sketch and my beloved Metamorph.
Metamorph was from my all time favorite MAC color story, Madame B.


What are your favorite MAC products? List your favorites in the comments.

Above photo:Amplified lipsticks left to right: Powerhouse, High Bred Red, Girl About Town, Birds Of A Feather, Deliciously Rich.

Photos: Cavewoman and Blogdorf Goodman
Disclosure: The products were purchased by the reviewers.