MAC released their newest spring collection A Fantasy of Flowers January 30, 2014 online and February 6, 2014 in-stores. The collection included 6 lipsticks, 6 cremesheen glasses, 4 mineralize eye shadows, 4 pigments, 2 fluidlines, 1 mascara, 2 mineralize skinfinishes, 2 mineralize blushes, 4 nail lacquer and 3 brushes. The collection is based on "brilliant blooms of color, a stunning bouquet of shades." Here's what I picked up from the collection...
* Mineralize Skinfinish $30 USD / $35 CAD (0.32 oz.) [LE]
- Perfect Topping is described as a pale pearlized pink. [Repromote]
- Stereo Rose is described as a copper bronze. [Repromote]
* Mineralize Blush $25 USD / $29.50 CAD (0.10 oz.) [LE]
- Petal Power is described as a coral pink with gold shimmer.
* Lipstick $15 USD / $18 CAD (0.1 oz.) [LE]
- Fleur d'Coral is described as a pale creamy peach. [Lustre]
- Snapdragon is described as a mid-tone blue pink. [Lustre]
- Rose Lily is described as a sheer pastel pink. [Lustre]
- Heavenly Hybrid is described as a mid-tone berry. [Lustre]
* Fluidline $16 USD / $19 CAD (0.1 oz.) [LE]
- Phlox Garden is described as a vivid violet.
- Sassy Moss is described as a vivid green.
* Pigment $21 USD / $25 CAD (0.15 oz.) [LE]
- Lily-White is described as a pale butter-yellow shimmer.
- Chartreuse Bouquet is described as a shimmering acid green.
- Violet is described as a vivid bright violet. [Permanent]
Mineralize Skinfinish
The main issue people have with this collection is the huge difference between past - present releases of both Perfect Toppingand Stereo Rose. They both lack veining intensity, quantity and coloring, thus making them a slightly different shade. Yes, all Mineralize Skinfinishes will vary. No two are similar, but regardless to what variances you may have, the outcome is different between the past releases and these repromotes. Although I was bummed, I was also glad (not my wallet though, sorry little guy!) because I could get away with repurchasing duplicate shades because there was a slight difference.
Mineralize BlushReview: Both shades were finely milled, soft but a little powdery. They lasted +7 hours before any visible fading. Perfect Topping makes for a perfect highlight on my NW10/15 skin tone, while Stereo Rose will likely be used as a blush, or even an eye shadow!
I passed on picking up Azeal in the Afternoon simply because other reviews (thanks early online release!) said it to be powdery, prone to fading and not very pigmented. Once swatched in store, even on my light skin tone it acted most as a highlighter than anything. However, Petal Power just stole my heart -- it's gorgeous and unlike anything I already own.
LipstickReview: Petal Power has a frosted finish and sheen to it. This blush lasted +7 hours before any noticeable fading or patchy wear. The texture is soft, finely milled but a little powdery. I found it applied best with one spritz of water/Fix+ which brought the most pigmentation and frosty glow!
All the lipsticks in the collection are a Lustre finish so you know they're going to be sheer. I passed on Naked Bud (neutral sheer nude) and Dreaming Dahlia (sheer red-coral) because I wasn't very fond of how they paired with my skin tone. One was a little too dark and brown, while the other turned bright orange - ah!
Review: As I said above, these lipsticks are sheer (Snapdragon being the most sheer) but mostly buildable. Not to a full, opaque color but enough to tell what shade you're wearing. All four shades I picked up were lightly pigmented, applied somewhat evenly and lasted roughly 3-4 hours before showing extreme wear. Some shades were a little tricky, the color likes to settle into fine lines. If you're not a fan of Lustre lipsticks, I would pass! But the colors are lovely and spring approved!Fluidline
Review: Both fluidlines were semi-opaque at first application but were buildable to an almost-fully-opaque color (Sassy Moss was less buildable.) Phlox Garden lasted around +6 hours before noticeable wear, while Sassy Moss only lasted about +5 hours. I plan to apply eye shadow over top next time to fully set and extend their wear time. (After all, I did intend for them to be bases any way!)Pigment
Oh, pigments how I adore you! I couldn't resist picking up the two new limited edition shades. Although again, a big issue with this collection is how different Lily-White is to it's past release. I unfortunately don't own the previous version, so I can't compare. I do own Violet though, which is still kicking around from 2008!
Review: All three are best used wet to get maximum frost, shimmer and pigmentation. Lily-White has a frost/metallic finish and applied semi-opaque when dry, fully opaque when wet. I found this shade to be a bit powdery. Chartreuse Bouquet has a frost sheen and was more yellow and semi-opaque when applied dry. When wet, the pigment becomes greener, brighter and fully opaque. Violet is a pain to deal with, it is very sheer when applied dry and can become patchy when applied wet. I've always struggled to work with this shade. (Keep in mind, mine is from 2008. Quality may have improved!)
MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in Perfect Topping (2014)
MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in Perfect Topping (2014)
MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in Perfect Topping
(Left 2009 - Right 2014)
(Left 2009 - Right 2014)
MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in Perfect Topping Swatched
(Left 2014 - Right 2009)
(Left 2014 - Right 2009)
MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in Stereo Rose (2014)
MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in Stereo Rose (2014)
MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in Stereo Rose (2014) Swatched
MAC Mineralize Blush in Petal Power
MAC Mineralize Blush in Petal Power
MAC Mineralize Blush in Petal Power
MAC A Fantasy of Flowers Lipsticks
(L-R: Fleur d'Coral, Rose Lily, Snapdragon, Heavenly Hybrid)
MAC A Fantasy of Flowers Lipsticks Swatched
(L-R: Fleur d'Coral, Rose Lily, Snapdragon, Heavenly Hybrid)
MAC Lipstick in Fleur d'Coral
MAC Lipstick in Fleur d'Coral
MAC Lipstick in Fleur d'Coral Swatched
MAC Lipstick in Rose Lily
MAC Lipstick in Rose Lily
MAC Lipstick in Rose Lily Swatched
MAC Lipstick in Snapdragon
MAC Lipstick in Snapdragon
MAC Lipstick in Snapdragon Swatched
MAC Lipstick in Heavenly Hybrid
MAC Lipstick in Heavenly Hybrid
MAC Lipstick in Heavenly Hybrid Swatched
MAC Fluidline in Phlox Garden
MAC Fluidline in Phlox Garden
MAC Fluidline in Phlox Garden Swatched
MAC Fluidline in Sassy Moss
MAC Fluidline in Sassy Moss
MAC Fluidline in Sassy Moss Swatched
MAC Pigment in Lily-White
MAC Pigment in Lily-White
MAC Pigment in Lily-White Swatched
(Dry vs. Wet)
MAC Pigment in Chartreuse Bouquet
MAC Pigment in Chartreuse Bouquet
MAC Pigment in Chartreuse Bouquet
(Dry vs. Wet)
MAC Pigment in (L) Chartreuse Bouquet, (R) Chartreuse
MAC Pigment in (L) Chartreuse, (R) Chartreuse Bouquet
MAC Pigment in Violet (2008)
MAC Pigment in Violet (2008)
MAC Pigment in Violet (2008) Swatched
(Dry vs. Wet)
Disclaimer: All products featured were purchased by me for personal use.