Just a few necessities: MAC

After months of trying to convince myself that I can easily find as good a foundation/concealer/powder in a drugstore as in a higher end shop I gave up a week ago. I’m not saying you cannot find a good make-up in a drugstore, just that I wasn’t lucky with my choice. I got tired of spending small amounts of money so often and then being unhappy with the product, not using it or giving it away. It could also be the fact that I just may be..ehm…a little spoiled. Even as a poor scarf-dragger (Uni student) I managed to scrape money from my students jobs and buy myself “proper” foundation…and now when I’m in my mid-thirties I should go back to drugstore? I would if I could… I almost got Bourjois Healthy mix foundation and then chickened out. What if it’s another badly chosen shade – you know drugstore’s poor light. What if it makes me break out again – then again, even the most expensive product can do that. What if if if… I just had enough. So I went to the one shop that I know that will make me happy without totally breaking the bank. MAC. Now I know that some of you swear by Armani foundations but I tried it, liked it but not that much to shell out so much $$$ for it. MAC may not make the best foundations in the world but they are pretty good.

In the shop I was greeted by the only MA (make-up artist) available – a young blond man who was definitely more put-together that morning than me 🙂 He was very nice though and together we selected following items.

 

Matchmaster spf 15 Foundation in 1.5

I only had a MAC foundation twice before and it was Select spf 15 in NW20 and NC 20. I liked that one a lot. And I like Matchmaster even better. There is a slight difference between them. Select is to me very easy to apply and is very natural-looking. Provides medium semi-matte coverage but doesn’t stay matte through the day. The MA applied Matchmaster using the stippling brush and I have to admit that while he was ecstatic how natural it looks on me, I wasn’t.  It looked too matte and foundation-obvious. But after he applied other products I was happier. I should also mention that for some reason the shade looks quite dark in the bottle and I first couldn’t believe that when he said “you have rather fair skin” he wanted to put this one one me.

While I do have MAC’s Stippling brush I prefer to use  my beloved Beauty Blender aka the egg. This is the best make-up tool I ever had and I cannot live without it (of course I can, I’d just rather not to). And Matchmaster+Egg=the most natural look I have had in months. So polished, semi-matte, almost poreless (I have rather big pores) and the shade 1.5 is perfect too. While in the shop I thought it slightly darker but good for spring/summer season, using the egg it’s perfect. The foundation lasts all day which is unusual with my oilier skin (the weather is warmer, my skin is oilier again). I did need to re-apply powder 1-2 times through the day but I’m happy with that.

Only thing I didn’t like was the price, I believe this one is MAC’s most expensive foundation: $33 or 910Czk. But counting all the drugstore foundations I in the end gave away, it may actually be cheaper.

 

Select MoistureCover in NW20

Since I wanted something for my dark circles I opted for the moisturizing concealer in a warmer shade and it works brilliantly. Covers all imperfections around the eye are easily, I also use either the egg or if in hurry just my fingers. I only wish it was slightly less slippery (silicones?) but it’s not a major deal for me. Sells for $17 / 450Czk

 

Mineralize Skinfinish Natural in Medium

I have only previously used their Blot powder, that I may still get for hot summer days, but no other “proper” powder. And here I have to blame Mary from ALoveTart blog. I have already written about her and her blog (here). I’m afraid she could sell me a cow’s dung with a smile and I would be happy about it. She raved about this powder so many times and her face looks so flawless in all her videos that, of course  my skin HAS to look the same using MSN. Well, close enough. The sides of my face have lots of redness in them and using Matchmaster and Mineralize Skinfinish Natural (MSN) covers it pretty well without any cake-y look. The finish is extra smooth, matte without being flat. I also love wearing this powder over (in)famous Garnier BB Cream. It’s a perfect “quick-I’m-in-hurry” face. But even better, when I’m lazy I can just use the concealer and MSN over it with a heavier hand and ..voila! polished&pretty enough to go out. Sells for $29 / 650 Czk

I love all my new “necessities” but if I could afford only one thing next time it would definitely be MSN in Medium.

I bought all MAC items myself, the BB egg was a gift from a dear friend a looong time ago.