Written Reviews

Like Christine, I consider the Pro Longwear Eyeliner disappointing. I used the `Rich Experience` color, which is a beautiful dark warm brown (matte from my point of view), that puts a nice emphasys on brown eyes, without being as harsh as a black eyeshadow. The pencil glides smoothly, since it's a creamier formula; it's still not very creamy (not the kind that you will put all over the lid), so I can get thinner or thicker lines as I wish. It's not opaque from the first layer on the eyelids, but the opacity can be build. On the waterline this pencil doesn't last more than 2-3 hours, than disappears. On the lid and under eye it starts fading during the day. This isn't long-lasting at all. I found this pencil much more easier to sharpen than other MAC eye pencils/liners.

MAC Fastplay is a neutral plum-pink lip color. I'm light-medium with yellow undertones (NC20), with slightly mauvish lips (I find that my natural lip color impacts the color of some lip products). Compared to Christine swatches, on my lips MAC Fastplay looks a little darker, more plum/mauve and less pink. It's a wonderful shade, a color that pops while being natural, complimenting lots of looks. While I do love the color, I'm not a fan of MAC Amplified formula. It's a creamy formula that migrates during the day and doesn't leave a stain behind (I have to re-apply it often), I much more prefer Satin and Matte formulas. The formula has it's advantages; since it's creamy, it's very hydrating and comfortable on the lips; it has a nice shine; it's quite opaque and buildable (I can dab a little on the lips for a slight natural flush of color, or build a full pigmented lip).

The Clinique Beyond Perfecting foundation does provide a somewhat lightweight (I can feel it a little on my face), moisturizing (for my combination skin), natural, but perfected look. It's more medium coverage, with the potential of looking too cakey when building up. It stays put all day, but it's not comparable to the staying power of Estee Lauder Double Wear or MAC Waterproof Foundation. My issue with this foundation is that color doesn't stay true; it oxidizes a shade darker. Not only this, Sesame is a medium shade than oxidizes slightly darker. I'm light-medium (NC20-25) and Sesame is a little too dark for me even as a summer shade. I hate the doe foot applicator, extremely unhygienic.

I love MAC Satin finish; comfortable, but long lasting, no smudging or feathering (I would never buy Creamsheens again). I also love how plums and berry toned lipsticks suit me. The issue is that Rebel on my lips looks like a darker toned bright pink rather than a dark purple; no plum, maybe a hint of berry. I would have loved for it to have the tone it has on Christine lips swatch. I already have some plum hues in my natural lips, I just don't know where the pinkness comes from. Although the color isn't what I expected, it's a great lipstick. It's comfortable (as mentioned before), stains the lips so it doesn't require a lot of reapplication (will last through coffee, drinks, snacks, a light meal) and shows no signs of patchiness. The stain my lips is even, but it's also very easy to remove at the end of the day. The color has a nice subtle shine, but somewhat still matte. It's quite buildable, I can dab my lips gently for a subtle natural tint or swipe it twice for full opacity.

This is an OK drugstore foundation, with light to medium coverage, very lightweight. Due to packaging, I compare it with MAC Waterweight foundation, which is in many ways a better foundation than the NYX one. I'm not a fan of dropper dispenser, but since the foundation is so liquid, it's the perfect way to dispense. The foundation is easy to blend, just do not put it over a silicon based primer (don't do this with any water based foundation); it will never mesh into skin and it will separate on skin. I don't find this foundation neither highly pigmented nor buildable. With fingers, brushes or sponges I always get a light to medium coverage; I still need concealer for spots and my undereyes. I tried building the coverage, the foundation ends up just staying of top of the face and smears badly throughout the day. The finish is natural, satin but dewy, very nice looking, but it shows every single dry patch I have. It lasts well throughout the first part of the day, but disappears from the skin towards the day, even set with powder. Still, no major transfer to clothes and phone. On me it creases around my smile lines. The range of shade is very great, I could find the perfect one for my yellow undertone.

This is the best eyeliner ever! With my low skills on eyeliner application I get very great looking results! It's easy to apply, easy to get thicker or thinner lines and stays on all day on my oily eyelids. The finish is black, slightly shinny, not fully opaque, but eye enhancing. I usually don't like soft brush tips for eyeliner (I work better with stiffer applicators like felt tip or separate eyeliner brushes), but this one has something unique that makes the application smooth and straight each time. It's smudge resistant and withstands a runny eye. It's also very cost efficient. Usually eyeliners dry out on me in 2-3 months (and I don't use eyeliner everyday); this one worked perfectly for almost 5 months.

Given how praised this foundation was on Youtube (Tati's reviews especially), I has very high expectations from this foundation. Overall, the coverage is medium, evening out the skin tone and covering some discoloration. It's not enough for my under eye circles or dark acne spots. I do have to follow-up with another concealer. The finish is dewy and looks very natural when first applied; I really like the finish in the first hours. But it gets more dewy as the day passes; I have combination skin and I end up looking shiny at the end of the day. The best application for me was a beauty blender, or fingers; hate it applied with a brush. I really need to buff and press it into the skin, else I feel it just sits on top and does not settle in. The application takes quite some time to perfect, especially since this foundation has a thick consistency. It doesn't layer well, if you follow up with more product it gets too cakey. Also, even if I set it with powder, it easily creases under my eyes and smile lines. It's the kind of foundation you feel on your skin, but it isn't tacky. I don't find it to be long-wearing and water-resistant, nor water resistant; I compare it to Estee Lauder Double Wear or MAC ProLongwear Waterproof, which really stay on all day, even during hikes and mud runs (yep!). Towards the end of the day the foundation starts to wear off. I tried 03 Light Beige, but it was a little too dark for my light-medium yellow tone complexion (even in the summer, when I'm more towards medium). But the warm undertone was great for a drugstore foundation.

If you are looking for a hydrating creamy undereye concealer with light to medium coverage, this is a great product to try. I have dark dry undereyes and while this is not enough for medium/high coverage, I do liked this concealer for natural looks. It's creamy and non-greasy, creases minimally if set with powder and looks great. Don't try to build up coverage, it's too creamy for that and the result will be cakey. Drugstore is again odd with naming colors; I got the Light shade, which is definitely more of a Light-Medium. It's more close to my shade when I'm a NC25 (too dark in winter when I'm NC20), but for a brightening effect I would need to go a shade lighter with this concealer. It had enough warm tones for my yellow undertone.

I use Tabby on my lower waterline, to get a more rested/luminous look. I prefer to do this with nude liners, as it looks way more natural than white. This pencil stays on many hours and does not irritate my sensitive eyes. It's quite creamy, but not that much to get into the eyes. I've heard some make-up artist use this as concealer, but I don't find it smooth enough to blend under the eyes; maybe for some will work for spot concealing, as it has quite some coverage. The finish is mate so it will be perfect for blemishes if this is your shade. It's also a lot of product, probably will dry out before I get to use 1/4 of it.

When I bought this lines, it was recommended by the make-up artist for Diva lipstick. I love Diva on it's own, this is more on the dark purple side and changed the shade a lot. So I kept it for my purple lipstick, mostly using to darken shades like Plumful. It's a great liner, but it's the drier kind. Lasts all day, prevents lipstick from feathering and bleeding. It sharpens beautifully. It's very difficult to apply all over lips. Also, it's great value. Even considering the shelf life of 3 years... I can't see someone easily using up a MAC standard lip liner.

While this product is more of a foundation powder (it has buildable coverage), I use it for setting my make-up. It makes my skin look matte, sets the concealer and foundation without caking, gives a smooth finish. It's definitely not a lightweight product. I tried applying it with a powder brush, but I barely got product on and I was simply lightly powdering my face. I personally find that I can set my make-up well with this powder only with a sponge. I got Nude Beige, just by trying to match myself online. I am light-medium with warm undertones (MAC NC20-25) and this is a summer shade for me. But the warm undertone in this is just perfect.

For oil-absorbing / blotting, this Becca powder is wonderful. Keeps shine away, while giving some luminosity. The finish has that soft-focus that helps skin look great and feel velvet-smooth. If you have large pores, it won't totally blur them; but it helps somewhat. It's not cakey and does not look powdery on the skin. It has tons of fall-out when using a brush, might be of better use for people who prefer applying it with a puff or a sponge. Because of the fall-out, I went through it very fast (never finished a powder in just 2 months). On my NC20 light-medium yellow toned skin it add a pink cast, although it's theoretically translucent. This is a major flaw for me. Either it has some tint, either it oxidizes, I just don't know what happens.

MAC Kiss Me Quick is on my that kind of bright warm red, with a hint of yellow and pink. I am brunette, light-medium with yellow undertones and mauvish lips. Like most MAC Pro Longwear Lip Pencil, I use this all over the lips, not just to line; I find the formula smooth enough for that. The finish is matte and the color is opaque. Because it's a pencil, it will dry out during the day and I feel the need to apply lip balm on top. I just love the color on me, it's a nice variation of red. Definitely a shade you need to try, at least in the store. If I would find a MAC Matte or Satin dupe for this, I would buy it immediately.

My complexion is light-medium with yellow undertones (NC20, maybe NC25 in the summer), and finding good a good shimmery bronze can be tricky for me. Most hyped shimmery bronzer are definitely too dark for me. The powder blush Trace Gold works on me more like a shimmery bronzer applied to my cheeks. It's coppery tone add a nice warmth to my skin, very natural if lightly applied. It's not very shimmery, but the frost adds just a little glow. Since I am already warm toned, this does not look warm on me. The texture is almost smooth, almost no powdery fall-out. The shimmer will emphasize pores, but that's what always expected. My natural go-to look definitely includes just a swipe of this on the cheeks. This doubles as an eye shadow too. I use it as an all over the lid muted shimmer.

Urban Decay Zero is a black that's not too black, enabling to create a slightly softer look. It's waterproof, stays on the waterline through the day. The pencil does not dry that quick; but if you want to smudge it, you have to be quick.

My Boyfriend's Jeans is a cool blue eyeliner, with a slight pearly finish. In a thin layer it can look like plain black. I'm personally not too keen on the color and I think it will compliment very few people/looks. The pencil is soft to apply as eyeliner, but not soft enough for a perfect application all over the lids. Once applied on the lids, it dries quick so it's not very smudgeable. As eyeliner it stays on all day. Applied all over the lid, it smudges on my hooded lids. On the waterline it stays on 4-6 hours, than starts fading.

This color is the perfect matte warm brown for me (brunette, yellow toned light-medium - NC20-25). It helps me create a softer look for everyday make-up, compared to a black liner. The pencil is soft, but not soft enough to easily apply all over the lid (but it's possible). It's long lasting on the lids, but on the waterline will start to fade at the end of the day. It dries quite quick on the lids, not very smudgeable.

I was really surprised by the quality of this concealer, especially considering the price. I got the Light/Medium, which is a good shade for my light to medium yellow/warm toned skin. The concealer is very creamy and applies easily; I tried before higher end stick foundation and concealer that are not as smooth as this one. The finish is smooth and radiant. The coverage is definitely more towards medium, my dark circles aren't fully covered by this. Being a cream, it will crease if not properly set. I think it could work for both more oily or more dry skin types, it will depend also on the other products used and the application technique. You have to be very careful with handling the concealer; if you push the stick up too much and apply pressure, it can easily break.

Go For a Ride is a cool dark green eyeliner, with a slight pearly finish. In a thin layer it can look like plain black. The color is quite nice and compliments specific make-up looks. The pencil is soft to apply as eyeliner, but not soft enough for a perfect application all over the lids. Once applied on the lids, it dries quick so it's not very smudgeable. As eyeliner it stays on all day. Applied all over the lid, it smudges on my hooded lids. On the waterline it stays on 4-6 hours, than starts fading.

While pinky-brown in the package, Velvet Teddy looks like a muted brown on my mauvish lips. It looks very natural on the lips and compliments any make-up. I love the MAC Matte formula; it's matte, but still comfortable on the lips almost... velvety. Since this is a natural color on my lips, I only have to reapply after a big meal. Otherwise, it's long lasting on the lips without being drying.