Mac Technique and Mac haul

I still feel a bit overwhelmed when I enter a Mac store even though I've been inside plenty a time (I'd say at least once a month now that we have a Mac in my hometown Leuven).  There's just so much to choose from, sometimes I wish I could be locked in a Mac shop for a night just so I would have time to try out everything.  Unfortunately that's never going to happen but a good alternative is to book a Mac Technique class.  Last week I went to my third (I think) Mac Technique, the first one in Leuven, and I took my bestie along (if you're Dutch speaking you can read her blogpost about it here).

A little surprise was waiting for us, a black Mac Technique makeup bag

 and a travel size mascara (which I threw in my handbag and of course

 it's nowhere to be found, it has probably disappeared in that secret section

 of my handbag where stuff just magically disappears in and just as

 magically turns up again someday).

Mac Technique is like a private group makeup class, we were 7 including myself, and the reason for booking one is different for everyone.  Some people just started using makeup, others wanted to learn more about techniques and others (like myself) just wanted to test products/colors that are out of the comfortzone.  All of this is under supervision of well trained Mac MUA's (Katleen, Elke and Eva in our case) and served with snacks, drinks and lots of laughs ... all the ingredients for a fun friday evening!

MAC HAUL!!!

(and a sample size foundation and concealer)

When you sign up for Mac Technique you have to buy a voucher of 60€ that you can use to buy products on the night itself.  Needless to say I had no problems spending my 60€ and then some.  

Mac eyeshadows in Coppering (bottom) and Nocturnelle (top)

I was brave when they asked me what colors I'd like to use on my eyes.  I went with "you can choose, I'm open for everything and anything".  After a bit of whispering (I admit I did get a bit nervous at that point), Katleen and Elke introduced this duo to me: Nocturnelle and Coppering.  I know purple and orange tones go great together yet I never really try this combo on myself.  But these two were great together!  I even got some compliments from the man when I got home ...

Mac fluidline pencil in Metropolis

I used this on the outer part of my upper lashes, smudged it out and immediately decided to buy it.  The color is described as a deep metal grey and since black can be a bit harsh on me, this is a great alternative.

Mac lip scrubtious in Candied Nectar

I'll be doing a blogpost on lip scrubs soon but this one got me hooked on its smell alone.  You'll see more details on this soon so stay tuned!

Mac blushes in Blush All Day and Harmony

(I couldn't get the colors to appear correct in this picture)

I used Blush All Day on myself and since I've been looking around for a new blush colors I decided to get it together with Harmony (Eva was wearing this one and I was looking for a more brownish blush).

Mac blushes in Harmony and Blush All Day (top row) 

compared to a cool toned Sculpting powder in the color Sculpt

As you can tell by this picture, Harmony is actually very wearable and not at all too brown.

Mac cremesheen lipstick in Crosswires

Crosswires is described as a bright pink-orange and this color has been on my wish list for ages so I finally decided to just buy it (and make space for new items on my wish list).

Mac mini Zoomlash mascara in Beets Me

I admit I bought this for my makeup kit because aubergine colors are a necessity.  I love these mini mascara's, they come in a few different colors and since you usually don't use these colors on a daily bases there really is no need to buy a full size one.

I really love these Mac Technique classes, I always have so much fun and come home with goodies that I probably never would've tried if left on my own.  So if you want to venture out in to the Mac world of makeup go check out your local Mac store for Mac Technique dates.

HAUL: MUFE, MUG, MAC, Catrice and Rimmel

I know you all got the silent treatment these past few weeks but if you think I didn't do any beauty shopping during that time, you're dead wrong.  And I'm ashamed to admit that I've gone a bit overboard the past week as wel, think concealers (two different brands!), moisturizer, some lip colors  and eyeshadowpalettes.  That's right eyeshadowpalettes, as in more than one.  Don't judge,  it's not like I'm hurting anyone here and in my defense the eyeshadowpalettes are limited edition and one of the concealers was restocked after being sold out for a couple of weeks so I had no choice but to buy it now.  You know I'm right about that!

So here's a little* haul with some first impressions and reviews.

First up I ordered some plastic make up bags from Make Up Forever.  Nothing really special about these but I really love plastic make up bags.  I use them when I travel to put in liquids because they are just so easy to clean and if a liquid was to explode the plasic would keep the product inside (as opposed to a cotton makeup bag where all your clothes would be affected).  I ordered 3 because I couldn't make out the size online.  

The material is really sturdy, which isn't a bad thing necessarily because it shows that these aren't made of some crappy cheap plastic but they will take some breaking in to get them more 'easy going'.  The largest one is a different model than the other two and I was hoping that this one was a bit taller and I could put some MUFE Ultra HD foundations in there standing but that's not the case.  

I recently discovered the charms of palettes you can customize.  Buying a prepaid palette is usually a lot cheaper than buying all the colors separately, but there are always a few colors in there that you'll hardly (if ever) use.   Making your own palette is a solution to that.  I bought a large empty Mac palette with the blush insert.  

That's one lonely Sculpting powder in 'Sculpt' you're seeing.  Sad isn't it?  Maybe I should go out and get her a new friend so she's not lonely anymore ;-)

I couldn't just order the makeup bags and in all fairness, I am lacking in the lip pencil department so I bought 2 Make Up Forever Aqua Lip Pencils.  I love these!!  I used them every day when I did my course at MUFE and they are so easy to work with but because they are water resistent they stay on like forever (unless you're eating oily stuff but since oil dissolves all makeup that's normal).  Safe to say I will be getting more of these babies soon!

I got the color 2C Rosewood (top swatch) and 18C Coral (bottom swatch). 

The iconic 5 Camouflage Cream Palette has been on my wish list for a while.  I'm not the biggest fan of camouflage but sometimes you just need a bit extra and this palette provides that.  A very creamy consistency and not tacky at all makes that these are very easy to use (when you know how to use them anyway).

I already said that I would gradually be expanding my Makeupgeek collection and this month these 3 beauties joined the ranks.  

From left to right: Grandstand (foiled), Americano and Beaches & Cream.  Like the other shadows these are great quality.  The foiled eyeshadow really surprised me, so creamy and blendable while being very pigmented.  Nothing but love for these!!

Another lip pencil but by Rimmel this time.  They recently launched new lipsticks and their lip pencils are the same (or almost the same) colors.  I had bought a few before but really wanted this color.  The only bad thing about these lip pencils is that they are really soft and therefor they break easily while applying.  It's a system where you turn and the product comes up and you really have to make sure you don't turn it too high because it will just break off.  But other than that they apply easy and are a great base for your lipstick.  I went out to dinner with this one as a base and the matching lipstick on top and after dinner the lipstick was almost completely gone but the pencil was still there.

I got the color 018 Addiction.

Lastly I got me some Catrice eye pencils.  3 Kohl Kajal colors and one Longlasting eye pencil waterproof.  This may surprise you but I don't have that many eye pencils and I wanted some Kohl pencils to use as a base for a smokey eye.  

From left to right: Longlasting Eye Pencil Waterproof in 100 Pearly Bird, Kohl Kajal in 210 Brownzer, Kohl Kajal in 140 Chocwaves and Kohl Kajal in 010 Ultra Black.  I haven't tried the Longlasting Eye Pencil yet but if it is indeed waterproof I will get some more colors, you can't go wrong for 2,39!  I do have mixed feelings about the Kohl Kajal pencils, they worked great for the smokey eye I had in mind but when I used Bronwzer at the roots of my eyelashes to accentuate them on a normal working, the color didn't stay put at all.  Not even until noon!  I usually wear an Urban Decay 24/7 eye pencil and they stay put all day.  I think I'm going to get a dark brown Longlasting pencil to see how that one holds up.

So there you have it.  It turned out to be a bit of a longer blogpost than I anticipated but hey, it is weekend so there's plenty of time to read.  If there's anything you see that you want to know more about just leave a comment.

* little is open for interpretation ;-)

Where to buy:

Make Up Forever: makeupforever.be (or your local MUFE website)

MAC: maccosmetics.be (or your local MAC website)

Makeupgeek: Beautybay.com (Europe) or makeupgeek.com (internationally)

Rimmel: at the local drugstore

Catrice: Kruidvat.be