M.A.C. Holiday Collection Haul

I am obsessed with M.A.C. collections.  I get the little flier in the mail, find out when it is going to be released and I'm there.  Many times, I don't buy anything because when I see it in the store, either it's been picked over, or the items don't excite me.  I was super depressed when I was so late for the RiRi Loves collection that all they had left was the mascara and an eyebrow pencil.  I only really wanted two things: the blush and the bright red lipstick, but alas, I was too late.  So when I got notified of the dates for the holiday collections, I marked them down and hit the stores early.

The full collection was released in three waves and has very Art Deco designed packaging.  The first collection, "Divine Night", came out in early October.  I wasn't super impressed with that line.  It featured a few new lipsticks, nail lacquers, paint pots, and gel liners.  While the lipstick colors were nice, I knew what was coming out later and saved my cash for those instead.  I have never tried a M.A.C. nail lacquer but at $21, I can't see myself doing so without it being free.  Who knows, it could be liquid gold, but I already think $8 for an Essie polish is a bit much.  I only have one of their paint pots (Painterly), but they seemed to come in kits with the gel liners which I can't stand.  If you want a great gel liner, get the L'oreal Infallible gel liners, they are much better pigmented and stay much longer.

The second grouping was called "Stroke of Midnight" and it featured a bunch of different palettes released on October 24th.  Now, I am a palette junkie.  I really love them because who has room for a thousand single eye shadows?  I know I don't.  Palettes allow me to have many colors for less money and they generally take up less space.  This collection also featured a bunch of brush collections and I do love M.A.C. brushes.  They are super expensive so I only have, like, three, but I couldn't help checking them out.  

I did jump at one of their eye shadow palettes.  I chose the cool toned one (literally called "Cool") which has two matte shades and three satiny/shimmer shades ranging from a light pink to a deep plum.  Again, I was saving my dough for what comes next.

(Shimmers from left to right: Fair Sex, Deception, & Romance Me.  Mattes top to bottom: Frisco & Shadowy Lady)

The last group, "Nocturnals", released on November 7th.  This collection featured pigment and lip gloss sets which was what I was lusting after. 

I had trouble showing restraint, but managed to walk away with only 3 out of the 7 sets available.  Bad, but not ridiculous.  I grabbed two of the pigment sets and one of the lip gloss sets.  Let's start with the first pigment set.

(From left to right: Naked, Museum Bronze, Gold, Copper Sparkle, & Black)

I picked up the "Black and Gold" group because I felt the colors would go well with my other pigment that I already own in "Tan".  I was right, you could really create a beautiful look reminiscent of a sunset with these colors.  Now, the sets did not get an A from me because it wasn't until I got home that I saw the warnings on the back that the glitters are not eye or lip safe.  So...um...WTF?  Seriously, what am I going to use these for?

Another blogger suggested in the hair, but if they aren't eye safe and it falls out of my hair, onto my face, and ends up in my eye, well that could be crappy.  Really, don't put these on your face, people.  I know you want to, but the difference between cosmetic grade glitter and other glitter is the fact that these will not dissolve if they go in your eye.  Nope, those little pieces of plastic will scratch your cornea.  Not worth going blind.

Anyway, I did get three good pigments from the set so I won't whine too much.  If you have an idea for the glitter, please let me know.  I'd hate to toss them.  The other pigment set I grabbed was "Silver and Violet". 

 (From left to right: Vanilla, Kitschmas, Pink, Push the Edge, & Grey)

Again, I got three very lovely pigments which go quite well with the cool toned palette I picked up earlier in the collection.  The lightest color is more sheer than the other two, but it has a lovely pearlescent sheen which will be beautiful for a snowy winter day.

The lip gloss set was called "Nude" and features one Dazzleglass and three Cremesheen lip glasses.  I can easily wear all of these colors, and even though I tend to shy away from glittery lip glosses, I really like the lightest color. 

(From left to right: Phiff!, Boy Bait, Over Indulgence, & Richly Revered)

I may head back and see if I can't snag that red lipstick and gloss set that benefits AIDS research.  M.A.C. wasn't the only company to have awesome holiday sets, so more posts will be coming on some Tarte and Too Faced sets that are freaking amazing.

XO - Bekah