Bare End/Earthnut

MAC Bare End/Earthnut Studio QuikTrik Stick ($32.00 for 0.42 oz.) has a light-medium, pearly gold on one end and then a medium, warm brown on the other end. The gold seems ideal for highlighting, while the darker shade could be used to bronze or contour (on warmer skin tones). This one applied a bit better and lasted a touch longer than some of the other duos, but it’s still faster to wear away than most powder blushes on me.

The QuikTrik Stick is a double-ended, cream-based stick that’s supposed to work for highlighting, contouring, bronzing, or blushing. It is supposed to have buildable, blendable color and can be worn over bare skin or foundation. One side is more shimmery, while the other is darker and more natural (but still has a sheen from the creamier consistency) in finish. In general, the formula applies well to bare skin or over liquid foundation, as it is very emollient, blendable, and easy to spread across the skin, but I notice that it seemed to break up my foundation a bit after six hours of wear.

Get a shade-by-shade breakdown of this duo, along with individual photos and swatches…

Bare End

Bare End is a light-medium gold with warm, yellow undertones and a pearly sheen. The texture was thin, moderately emollient, and just a touch tacky to the touch. It had sheer, buildable coverage–up to semi-opaque–and a noticeable luminosity to it when applied to the skin. It also layered well over other products as a highlighter. This shade seemed to dry down a little more than others in the lineup, though it was never fully dry. It wore well for six and a half hours on me.

Earthnut

Earthnut is a medium brown with warm, reddish undertones and a natural sheen. It had semi-sheer to mostly opaque, buildable pigmentation that was easily applied and blended out the skin, and then layered for greater coverage. The texture was light-to-moderate in slip with a touch of tackiness, as it never quite dried down on me. It started to break apart after six and a half hours of wear.

MAC Bare End/Earthnut QuikTrik Stick Duo

MAC Bare End/Earthnut QuikTrik Stick Duo

MAC Bare End/Earthnut QuikTrik Stick Duo

MAC Bare End/Earthnut QuikTrik Stick Duo

MAC Bare End QuikTrik Stick

MAC Bare End QuikTrik Stick

MAC Bare End QuikTrik Stick

MAC Earthnut QuikTrik Stick

MAC Earthnut QuikTrik Stick

MAC Earthnut QuikTrik Stick

MAC Bare End/Earthnut QuikTrik Stick Duo

MAC Bare End/Earthnut QuikTrik Stick Duo

MAC Bare End/Earthnut QuikTrik Stick Duo

MAC Bare End/Earthnut QuikTrik Stick Duo

MAC Bare End QuikTrik Stick

MAC Bare End QuikTrik Stick

MAC Bare End QuikTrik Stick

MAC Earthnut QuikTrik Stick

MAC Earthnut QuikTrik Stick

MAC Earthnut QuikTrik Stick