SHAZAAM!! HERE I AM!!!!
Long day over here, but yes indeedie…I spent hours fooling around with this collection. My MA is so great - he told me he gets more out of me trying everything on than when he tests stuff out himself.
Anyhow, I'm not going to beat around the bush. This collection is very weird. It's not the instant home run "OMG everything is perfect" collection like some Mineralize ones from the past few years, but there are some real gems mixed in with some products that are kind of off-the-wall. Plus, some things you would think would make sense for one skin color or the other don't always work out that way, so everyone,
especially darker skin tones, need to proceed with caution and seriously try things in person first.
First off, the Skin Finishes. Wow, at first I was kind of shocked. I tried them on at first with standard 129s and 116s and holy crap SO METALLIC - shockingly metallic. BUT, it was a tough call - they've definitely reformulated yet again and this time you got the mega-metallicness but the pores were NOT emphasized. They don't feel heavy on the skin like the old metallic MSFs like Petticoat do - they felt totally light and weightless and like I was saying, the pores weren't emphasized. Total shocker considering the drastic metallic frostiness. There was zero glitter, at least, but I was just saying "damn…I dunno about this….". THEN, I tried a 188 - that applied them a little better, but still so metallic. I was really on the fence. FINALLY I used the new 159 to apply them, and then it all came together at last. That brush is the m-f-ing bomb!!! It's a fabulous brush and I am seriously considering buying 2, which I never do. It is the perfect shape and size to get just the right swipe of highlight perfectly right on the top of the cheekbones and it made the MSFs apply GORGEOUSLY!!
So in other words, if you're interested in any of the MSFs, you're pretty much going to need the 159. I think even the 131 is going to be too big and too flat around the belly and some other highlighter brushes might be the right size but also be a little too flat. The white hairs on the 159 are shaped really well too - they're short enough so they smudge your swipe well, but not so long that they overblend. I don't think I've seen a product from MAC that was so fussy that you got a weird effect unless you used one single brush only. Obviously, if you love an ultra-metallic effect, you could use other brushes, but for my tastes, the difference between the 159 and the other brushes I tried was just too dramatic. It made the MSFs go from WTF
to OMG
Now here's the other thing about these MSFs (and the blushes but a little less so). The high sheen on these is cool-toned. They're not using gold sheen, they use sort of silver/white/clear. This is going to be an issue for dark skins. You know me; I feel like it's wrong to assume one color or another is or isn't for dark skin or light skin, but in this case, the whitish pearl here is going to be a very specific look on dark skin. You are going to be willing to have a metallic effect that is going to look even more dramatic due to the contrast on the skin. Adored, in particular, is very pale. On me it looked very nice - the coral in it worked extremely well with my sallow undertones, but it's gonna be ashy on dark skin - I don't think there's going to be a way around it. Rio may be the easiest one to deal with with any skin tone, as it has a bright light pink sheen to it, which is quite light but with more pink highlight than white or silver and the brown part is quite neutral and almost invisible. Lust is quite similar to Rio, but not as bright. It's the closest one to Semi-Precious Crystal Pink, but not as greyed out. All of these MSFs have an unusual effect once you get the application down right - from one angle it will look like you don't have anything on and then when the light hits just right, MEGA-METALLIC SHEEN. If you apply a single swipe, this effect will be quite translucent and it's actually awfully pretty and flattering, due to the light texture and the lack of pore emphasis. You can build the colors quite noticeable with a second layer, but of course then you have more metallicness too. These are not what I'd consider all-year-round MSFs - they're very very very summery. If I would use them at other times of the year, it'd be for nighttime dress up makeup for sure.
Another thing about the MSFs and the blushes too. They all looked much better when they had a chance to melt into the skin a bit. I'd say the best thing would be to apply a light layer of either the MB or the MSF and then wait a few minutes to see if you actually need more or if you need to go back and buff it in more. Both the blushes and MSFs would benefit from a nice finishing stroke of a favorite huge puffy brush or kabuki. My split fiber kabuki is gonna get a workout with these for sure. I'll continue on more about the blushes in another post, but bear all these application ideas in mind, because otherwise, they may seem kind of weird. This is a very strange collection!!!
).....Did you get to try out Midnight Mambo, and did you get a release date? (meaning did they move it up?)
