MAC Shop MAC, Cook MAC Nail Lacquers Review, Photos, Swatches
MAC Al Fredo Nail Lacquer
MAC Shop MAC, Cook MAC: Nail Lacquers
The collection features three limited edition shades of MAC Nail Lacquer ($16.00 for 0.34 fl. oz.). These include: Al Fredo (bright acid green), Kid Orange (coral), and Salad Dressed (mid-tone dirty aqua).
- Al Fredo is semi-sheer dirty yellow. Honestly, it looks a lot like Deborah Lippmann Yellow Brick Road on me, with the same sheerness, but with a less jelly-like finish. The bottle looks a bit green-tinged, but the polish just looks yellow against my skin tone. It is a bit difficult to work with some streaking, and the consistency was a little thick. I did two coats for swatches, and it was clear that there was going to be visible nail line even with three coats.
- Kid Orange is a orange-coral with a cream finish. It was opaque in two coats, and it had the best formula of the three shades. It wasn’t too thick or too thin, so it applied evenly and easily without bubbling or streaking. MAC Oriele is a bit lighter. Essie Meet Me at Sunset is a bit redder. Essie Braziliant is pretty close. China Glaze Life Preserver is redder.
- Salad Dressed is a medium teal-blue with a cream finish. It was mostly opaque in two coats, but I did have some issues with it being streaky. It had a longer drying time, and it would benefit from patience–you really need to let each coat dry. The consistency is on the thicker side as well. MAC Ocean Dip is greener and darker. Essie Turquoise & Caicos is greener. China Glaze For Audrey and Chanel Nouveau Vague would be the closest dupes, though they seem perhaps lighter.
The formula on Al Fredo and Salad Dressed left something to be desired, and MAC did not indicate that Al Fredo was going to be as sheer as it turned out to be. It wasn’t just slightly under-pigmented; it was the type of sheerness that I would expect to be called out explicitly. Kid Orange applied beautifully and had good color payoff, though. Salad Dressed had better pigmentation but still had some streaking and formula issues. At this price point, MAC really needs to fine-tune their lacquer formula so it’s consistently good. Keep in mind, the rating is an average of the three shades, so while Kid Orange is higher than a C+, Al Fredo is lower.
MAC Shop MAC, Cook MAC Nail Lacquers Review, Photos, Swatches
MAC Al Fredo Nail Lacquer
MAC Al Fredo Nail Lacquer
MAC Al Fredo Nail Lacquer
MAC Al Fredo Nail Lacquer
MAC Al Fredo Nail Lacquer
MAC Kid Orange Nail Lacquer
MAC Kid Orange Nail Lacquer
MAC Kid Orange Nail Lacquer
MAC Kid Orange Nail Lacquer
MAC Kid Orange Nail Lacquer
MAC Salad Dressed Nail Lacquer
MAC Salad Dressed Nail Lacquer
MAC Salad Dressed Nail Lacquer
MAC Salad Dressed Nail Lacquer
MAC Salad Dressed Nail Lacquer
Kid Orange and Salad Dressed are really pretty!! Not a fan of the name “Salad Dressed” though.
Thanks for the review! Good to know I won’t be needing any of these. Kid Orange looks nice, but too dupeable in my collection. It looks like they were going for Tangerine Tango?
The colours of these nail lacquers are so rich and vibrant! They look really nice:)
Kid Orange and Salad Dressed look quite good. Al Fredo looks like an F: it’s all shiny and stuff, but a sheer yellow lacquer? Ugh…
Oh man, that Al Fredo polish looks SO GROSS on! It looks like a fungal infection 🙁
Lol, I was just going to post the same thing! Yellow polishes really need to be opaque to work.
you have very healthy nails.
Yellows are notorious for being sheer and streaky, which is why I wish companies like MAC, or anyone who makes nail polish wouldn’t bother to put another one on the market. There has to be a way to make them more pigmented so that you can get opacity in two to three coats.
Or hey, at least just say it’s a sheer yellow or sheer color – then we won’t be expecting more!
I love polish and I love to try many different brands but there is no way I would pay sixteen dollars for a shoddy, inconsistent formula and just so-so colours. MAC must be supremely confident in their customers’ dedication to their name, alone to have the nerve to release such poor quality polishes and expect people to just snap them up.
To be honest, I’m not wowed by these shades. We’ve seen similar shades before, for less money.
I love these colors but they look pretty dupable. I’ve bought a couple of MAC polishes and no matter what I do, they chip within 24 hours!! Instead of wasting $16 on a poor quality polish, I’ve been using $2 polishes that are pigmented, chip resistant and easy on my wallet! BTW when did MAC raise its price on the polishes?? Sheezus!!
That yellow is truly awful. Looks like egg yolk.
MAC nail polishes are WAYYY overpriced :/
Oh man! I’m so glad they brought back Kid Orange after they discontinued it from the permanent line. Although, it does look more orange in the swatches. The one I have leans more red. I’m definitely stocking up!!!
So they are $16, unoriginal and underperforming. Well ButterLondon is officially cheaper and DEFinately performs , do I will be giving them my money.
I won’t buy but am I really the only one who thinks Al Fredo looks good that way?!
Salad Dressed is a really lovely colour but unfortunately I don’t like the formula of MAC nailpolishes at all. They’re too pricy compare to their quality
These colors certainly aren’t unique but I still think they’re pretty. It’s a shame about the formula though. I hear so much negative about their polish…doubt I’ll ever own one!
Salad Dressed looks similar to China Glaze Flyin’ High? Like cousins maybe?
I could see that!
Salad Dressed looks a lot like Fly from OPI. Do you have it to compare? :o)
Sorry, I don’t!
For anyone interested, I think the green colour might be similar to China Glaze Aquadelic from their new Electro Pop collection. For orange, you could for example check / compare Essie’s orange colours in “A Spring To Invest In (2012) or “Braziliant” (2011) collection. Both are less expensive and probably of better quality (and easier to get).
Yellow might be in some of Color Clubs recent collections (they had some neons).
Looks like MAC is modeling nail colors after OPI’s Nicki Minaj Collection
Salad Dressed looks like the new Estee color Teal Topaz. Pretty, but not that special.
Al Fredo is a hot, hot mess.
As always, thank you for your honest and thorough review!