Makeup Intelligence: Pro Finish Foundation from Make Up For Ever
Looks like Make Up For Ever has a brand new foundation out and in a wide range of shades!
New for Spring 2013: Pro Finish Foundation from Make Up For Ever. FYI: The brown girl in this photo is wearing Shade #177.
Make Up For Ever’s new Pro Finish foundation looks to be direct competitor to MAC’s ubiquitous Studio Fix foundation. Available in a range of twenty-five (25) shades, it can be applied wet for a sheer finish or dry for a matte and full coverage finish. I’ve never been quite pleased with the existing powder foundation from MUFE so it is very exciting to see this new product and formula.
MUFE Pro Finish foundation on display at Sephora. And yeah, the Rouge Artiste lipsticks are great too!
I tried applying this to my bare skin in Sephora using the new tapered foundation kabuki brush. The foundation went on flawlessly and the tapered brush expertly laid the foundation down in those challenging areas of the nose bridge and eye sockets. It was very easy to blend when dry and the resulting finish was nice and matte. I believe a sponge applicator is included with the compact but if you are prone to breakouts as I am, toss the sponge and go with the foundation brush. Even with all of the swatches I’ve shown here, my ideal shade is #175. Why this color was not included in the Deep skintone sample card is beyond me. Interesting how I am #75 in the Velvet Matte formula and #175 in Pro Finish.
MUFE Pro Finish Foundation deep shades on sample card (available for free at Sephora)
Swatches on NW43 skin of MUFE’s new Pro Finish Powder Foundation (w/o flash)
Definitely check out the foundation Kabuki brush. I am beyond impressed with how well it applies and blends this foundation. The bristles are soft and deliver practically mistake-proof application. This is definitely on the list to be reviewed/Florida Tested when I head to Disney World in July.
Make Up For Ever’s new Pro Finish Powder foundation is now available exclusively at Sephora stores and Sephora.com.
NEW! MUFE Pro Finish Foundation. All swatches are on bare MAC NW43/MUFE Velvet Mat+ #75/NARS New Guinea skin.
Swatches on NW43 skin of MUFE’s new Pro Finish Powder Foundation (w/ flash)
MUFE Pro Finish ingredient list. Why is there NO sunscreen in this? ::sigh::
MUFE Pro Finish foundation can be applied either wet (for sheer coverage) or dry (matte full coverage)
MUFE’s Pro Finish Foundation for Deep Skin (free card from Sephora, w/ flash)
Preview: Champagne Too Faced Shadow Insurance
If there was ever one eye makeup product my oil-slick eyelids could never go without, it would be Too Faced Shadow Insurance. And when I spotted this new Champagne shade I had to have it!
NEW for Spring 2013: Too Faced’s Shadow Insurance in Champange. Bottoms up!
Too Faced Shadow Insurance (TFSI) is a waterproof, sweat proof, Florida Hot-proof eye shadow primer that has always kept my eye makeup flawless all day at the office and all day slugging through the parks at Disney World. It is truly one of those indispensible products I cannot live without. Well, I could but my eye shadow makeup would look a hot mess and I’d be stuck using just eyeliner again.
This awesome eye shadow primer is described by Too Faced as a ‘nude shimmer’ eye shadow primer. As compared to Candlelight TFSI, it is more beige. Lemon Drop TFSI is matte and slightly yellow in contrast to Champagne TFSI. Frankly I believe every oily-eyelid gal should own every incarnation of TFSI, and brown girls *especially* need this new Champagne shade.
I picked mine up from Ulta but it is available at TooFaced.com and should be available shortly at Sephora.com and freestanding stores. Look for a review of this product in conjunction with my review of Urban Decay’s Naked 2 Palette coming later this month.
Makeup Intelligence: MAC Archie’s Girls for Spring 2013
Were you an Archie’s Comics fan back in the day like I was? If so, and you love makeup, check this out:
MAC Archie’s Girls for Spring 2013: Does this bring back memories or what?!?
The collection is broken up into two parts. There is Betty (Cooper), consisting of lighter shades and Veronica (Lodge) made up of the traditional in-your-face dramatic colors. The collection is huge and as such will be this post but trust me, it’s worth it. If you don’t want to read my blather but see some live-and-in-color pics, check out this post on Specktra.com.
Nothing like a love triangle to remind you of Valentine’s Day like Veronica, Betty and Archie…
Lipglasses. A Brown Girl MAC Addict’s Holy Grail 
Betty Collection: MAC Archie’s Girls
Lipsticks
- Girl Next Door Vivid blue pink (Lustre)
- Betty Bright Light vibrant peach (Satin)
- Oh, Oh, Oh Sheer brown plum (Lustre) (Repromote)
BIGA Intel says: Lustres and satins are not my favorite finishes, especially in lighter colors such as these. If you didn’t get your hands on Watch Me Simmer, Betty Bright would hold you over until a repromote happens.
Lipglass
- Summer Sweetheart Light peach
- Stay Sweet Light lavender pink
- Kiss & Don’t Tell Bright coral
BIGA Intel says: Lipglasses are more often than not a good value. If you have very pigmented lips, I would go straight for Kiss & Don’t Tell. If you already own Strange Potion from the MAC Disney Villains collection or Tour de Fabulous from Stylepacked, this shade is probably a skip for you.
PearlGlide Eye Liner
- Lord It Up Bronze with pearl
- Black Swan Black with gold pearl
BIGA Intel says: Pearlglide eyeliners are very long-wearing, go on smooth and sparkly and look amazing. Lord it Up would look best on light to medium skintones while Black Swan will compliment all skintones.
Pigment
- Cheers My Dear Light lavender (Frost)
- Lucky in Love Shimmering light blue green (Frost)
BIGA Intel says: Frankly I haven’t been too pleased with the quality of MAC pigments of late. If you own any of the mineralize eye shadows close to light lavender or light blue green, best to go with those. Should you choose to go with these pigments, be sure to pick up some Mixing Medium from MACCosmetics.com. You’ll thank me later.
Powder Blush
- Cream Soda Light neutral coral (Satin)
BIGA Intel says: This should be a nice color for light to medium skintones. I can’t see this one working on darker skintones very well. From the promo photos it looks a lot like NARS Gilda but performance could be another story.
Pearlmatte Face Powder
- Flatter Me Golden peach base (Shell Pearl Beauty Powder) with coral hearts (Foolish Me Powder Blush)
BIGA Intel says: This is the first time I’ve seen this type of product. A ‘beauty powder’ with blush ‘built in’. Beauty powders such as these seem to work best as an all-over face color for light to medium skintones, and as a nice highlighter for dark skintones. I will caution that if you have a dark skintone (NW/NC 45+) it’s best to try this in person to see if you like it.
Caramel Sundae Eyeshadow Palette
- Caramel Sundae Mid-tone warm tan (Satin)
- Cheryl Chic Light coral pink (Frost)
- Dreammaker Pale frosty yellow (Frost)
- Showstopper Dark, cool-toned brown (Matte) (Repromote)
BIGA Intel says: A nice collection of neutral shades. If you have very oily lids and/or have a dark skin tone, be sure to prep your lids with a paint pot like Painterly or Soft Ochre before applying to eyelids.
Nail Lacquer
- Pep Pep Pep Light peach nude
- Comic Cute Bright coral
BIGA Intel says: I am not a huge fan of MAC’s nail polishes as I feel the price point is too high and the performance is no where near the level of Illamasqua or NARS. Check these lines for comparable dupes.
Veronica Collection: MAC Archie’s Girls
This is me when I have to yell at tech support who has no clue I’m an engineer…
Lipstick
- Daddy’s Little Girl Mid-tone pink violet (Satin)
- Ronnie Red Bright red (Matte)
- Boyfriend Stealer Deep blackened plum (Cremesheen)
BIGA Intel says: While it’s in the satin finish I loathe, Daddy’s Little Girl seems to have such a high color saturation I still want it. Ronnie Red looks to finally be the bright blue-red I’ve been waiting for MAC to produce in forever (Ruby Woo looks like crap on me as does MAC Red and Russian Red). Boyfriend Stealer should be a hit with brown girls because of the deep, dark color. I will say that if you do not own Yung Rapunxnel (amplified finish), make sure to haul that color first before Boyfriend Stealer.
Lipglass
- Mall Madness Mid-tone pink violet
- Strawberry Malt Bright red
- Feelin’ So Good Deep blackened plum
BIGA Intel says: All of these look super-color-saturated the way true MAC addicts love their liplasses. Strawberry Malt will look amazing on dark skin over Ronnie Red, and Feelin’ So Good looks a lot like Wrong Spell from MAC Venomous Villains.
PearlGlide Eye Liner
- Petrol Blue Deep navy with pearl
- Designer Purple Violet with pearl
BIGA Intel says: Forget Designer Purple and go straight for Petrol Blue. Why? Not only does Petrol Blue look intensely amazing, it goes on smooth without issue. Designer Purple isn’t as vibrant nor goes on as smooth as Petrol Blue. Unless MAC has changed the formula recently, I don’t see myself getting another Designer Purple. But Petrol Blue? You can never have too many.
Pigment
- Black Poodle Blackened pink (Frost)
- Magic Spells Blackened teal (Frost)
BIGA Intel says: From swatches I’ve seen, Black Poodle doesn’t look too impressive on and frankly it looks like MAC’s Beauty Marked (Velvet) eyeshadow. If you were lucky enough to get Moonlight Night pigment from MAC’s A Tartan Tale collection, you can skip Magic Spells.
Powder Blush
- Prom Princess Mid-tone violet pink (Satin)
BIGA Intel says: Its violet pink, Veronica is on it. Get it.
Pearlmatte Face Powder
- Veronica’s Blush Silvery pink base (Play it Proper beauty powder) with deep pink hearts (Frankly Scarlet blush)
BIGA Intel says: I passed on Play it Proper beauty powder and as I already own ‘Too Chic’ and MAC’s Salsarose blush (MAC Pro), I’m passing on this.
Spoiled Rich Eyeshadow Palette
- Spoiled Rich Rich purple (Frost)
- Ron Ron Run Deep navy (Satin)
- Pin-Up Purple Mid-tone orchid (Frost)
- Gravel Charcoal (Matte)
BIGA Intel says: The compact looks pretty, and the colors look nice, but check your stash first and check it twice. These four colors look a lot like MAC Stars & Rockets, Atlantic Blue, Parfait Amour and some other dark charcoal grey color eyeshadow MAC has out. My first instinct is that these colors are dupeable but the palette is more about convenience than the colors included.
Nail Lacquer
- Past Curfew Deep berry
- Double Trouble Deep navy
BIGA Intel says: See my notes under Betty. Intel is still the same.
Veronica items from the MAC Archie’s Girls Collection for Spring 2013. So cool, so Veronica…and so *me*.
My being a huge fan of the Archie comics, and of course totally on Team Veronica, I am very excited about this collection! So much so that I found this bonus ‘cheat sheet’ you MUST print out and circle to note what you want. The collection is rumored to launch on MACCosmetics.com on January 30th but you probably want to start stalking the site before then.
Still here? It’s like you’re looking for that ‘bonus scene’ at the end of the movie credits. Well, here ya go!
MAC Archie’s Girls Accessories–gotta have that tote bag!!
Preview: NARS Spring 2013
My goodies from NARS for Spring 2013 have arrived!
Clockwise from top: NARS Sangria blush, Persia eye shadow, Cythere lip gloss pencil
As I hinted in my makeup intelligence post on NARS Spring 2013, I picked up the blush in Sangria, matte eye shadow in Persia and the lip gloss in Cythere. I was most excited about getting Sangria but in the back of my mind I knew I had to get Persia. And I am so glad that I did!
Full face look feat. NARS Persia eye shadow (Mekong in crease, Kilimanjaro on browbown), Sangria blush (over Luster and Super Orgasm) and Cythere lip pencil over MUFE #10C lip pencil.
I’m currently testing these products but I can definitely say all three are worth purchasing, especially the Persia eye shadow. If you are a medium to dark and darker brown girl, you need Persia in your life! And even if you have strong red undertones as I do, blending this color with NARS Mekong (or any other cool toned dark shadow) will make it work. An added bonus about this color (which is insanely pigmented by the way) is that it makes that Maybelline Color Tattoo cream shadow in ‘Fierce and Tangy’ orange worth using again. NARS Persia looks stunning on top of Maybelline’s Fierce and Tangy.
NARS Spring 2013 collection is available now at NARSCosmetics.com and coming to Sephora.com and NARS counters in upscale department stores in February.
Preview: Spring 2013-Maybelline Color Tattoo Metal Cream Eye Shadow
Spring has sprung in the budget beauty department too!
New for Spring 2013! Maybelline’s Metal-finish Color Tattoo Cream Shadows
Maybelline has come out with five (5) new metal finish cream eye shadows from the Color Tattoo collection. They are:
- Inked In Pink – A shimmery warm-toned pink
- Electric Blue – A deep dark blue
- Silver Strike – Sparkly and very metallic bright silver
- Barley Branded – Warm champagne beige
- Gold Rush – Bright yellow metallic gold
Unlike with Maybelline’s Fall 2012 collection, the Spring 2013 Metal cream eye shadows are not limited edition. They are showing up in the likes of CVS, Target and WalMart. I am currently having fun testing these out and will post reviews as soon as I can. I did not pick up Gold Rush as the bright yellow looks like death warmed over on my cool-toned skin. However I can tell you that if you are medium-dark to dark-skinned, definitely pick up Inked In Pink and Barely Branded. You’ll thank me later.
Any colors catch your fancy?
