MAC Alice + Olivia Initial Reviews and Swatches





MAC Alice + Olivia is an eclectic collection that features a wide range of bright, flashy colors from pigments to nail lacquer to dazzleglass cremes. This collection is very summer as it features bold, vibrant hues like fuchsia, yellows, and teals. I personally like this collection because it features some products that I've not seen from MAC before, like the suede black nail lacquer.

NAIL LACQUER


Military

Military is a matte black with silver suede pearl that is not for the faint of heart. Very edgy and yet very pretty as well. I like suede nail polishes from other brands, so this is a welcome addition to my suede nail polish collection.


So Rich So Pretty

At first I didn't like this nail lacquer when I eyeballed it from the bottle. It looked too "frosty" and dated. However, when I looked at the pictures of me wearing it, it's not so bad because I think the color complemented my skintone. I still don't know if this is something that I would actually wear regularly, because I am really not a fan of frost nail lacquers. Too 70s-and-80s-looking for me.


PIGMENTS:


L-R: Partylicious, If It Sparkles, Later.




Partylicious



The pigments are real pretty. Partylicious is a turquoise with silver pearl. Being turquoise, it is lighter than Teal pigment, and more aqua blue than Teal pigment is. Partylicious would make a good summer eyeshadow pigment or liner.



If It Sparkles is my favorite of the three because this can be used as a staple highlighter. It is a white with transforming pink pearl. It is similar to Vanilla pigment but Vanilla is of course yellower. I honestly think I love Vanilla more but If It Sparkles is a close contender. This would make a really good highlighter.


Later.

Later is a black pigment with transforming purple pearl. I am not really a fan of this because I hardly use any dark loose pigment. If you are into smokey eyes, though, this would be a good product to use, but of course as with other loose pigments, there is a learning curve. You need a tacky base if you are going to use this as an eyeshadow. You can use this as an eyeliner too, and I would suggest using it wetlined on the lashline.

DAZZLEGLASS CREME




See lip swatches after the jump


Top to bottom: Sparklicious, I.Want.Candy, If It's Pink




L-R: Sparklicious, I.Want.Candy, If It's Pink

As we know, the dazzleglass cremes are of course a marriage of the dazzleglass and the cremesheen glass. As I said in a previous review, the dazzleglass creme lends a bit more color than the dazzleglass with the same amazing glass-like shine with soft sparkles of reflects glitter, but with the lightness of the cremesheen. It is less sticky than the dazzleglass. The dazzleglass creme has outstanding shine and medium-sheer, dewy coverage. MAC also claims that it contains aloe and Vitamin E, which pamper the lips and prevent them from drying or peeling. The product glides smoothly on the lips without any drag. The dazzleglass creme also has the brush applicator like the dazzleglass as opposed to doe-foot sponge of the cremesheen glass.


Sparklicious


Sparklicious is a creamy pale pinky white with soft multi-dimensional pearl. This would be nice to layer over more pigmented lip products because on its own, it's all shimmer with little color payoff.


I.Want.Candy

This hot yellow dazzleglass creme with soft multi-dimensional pearl may look scary bright in the tube but applies really sheer. This is a really nice summer lipgloss on its own. Very light but the sparkles really lends a luscious lip shine.


If It's Pink

This is hot pink with multi-dimensional pearl. Of the three, this is the one that has the most color payoff. If you like shiny, shimmery pink lips, this is for you.

All in all, I like this particular collection. My top choices would be Military nail lacquer, If It Sparkles pigment and a dazzleglass creme of your choice.

NOTE: Media samples were provided by a representative of the company.

2 comments

Anonymous said...

I thought that I was going to get the purple nail lacquer but after seeing your photos - I agree, it looks dated. :( Looks like a pass for me. At least more mooloah for the upcoming Nail Trend 2010!

The Shades Of U said...

Belle- yup, the new Nail Trend is something to look forward to!