The only item from the collection that I wanted but didn't get was a repromoted permanent line item which is the lip conditioner stick. She tried to insist on me getting the tube for instead which I declined for the reason that I was already getting two lip conditioners that you need to use fingers/lip brush to apply and I really just wanted the stick form since I can carry and reapply on the spot with less fuss. But I'm kinda glad in the end that they didn't have it, since I lose things like that easy and will just stick with inexpensive products for that.

Moving along, I've used all the items I've bought already. I love it all! I'm usually not too keen to buy neutral tones as they remind me of my grandmother's makeup. If I hadn't seen the swatches from temptalia I would've just blew off the whole line.


Mineralize Skinfinish in "Comfort"
One of my favorites out of the whole haul. I had originally thought it might be good as a bronzer or a blush on me after seeing the swatches on temptalia but the color is almost my exact tone with a gold shimmer to it. Used overall it really just blends all the tonal imbalances in my skin. Making the lighter areas blend with the rest and overall just giving more warmth to my face in general. I've also used it as an eyeshadow as it is extremely pigmented. It's pretty much replaced my need to use foundation everyday as it gives just enough coverage and is much quicker to apply.


Amplified Creme lipstick in "Warm Me Up"
A year ago, when I had did my yearly makeup tradition of getting my makeup done at MAC, (which I broke this year and I'll post about that later) I had asked the SA for a nude lipstick since I had the whole mindset that darker colors don't look good on me (and they usually don't) so that was the other extreme. I came away with Freckletone. Which for the life of me I can't find in this house but I remember it being a bit lighter or at least less pink than this shade. It does look better on me fortunately. So until I run this one to the ground I won't be repurchasing Freckletone.


Glaze lipstick in "Spiced Tea"
There is really only two things I hate about this lipstick. 1) It's not a lip stain although it has the sheerness I love about stains and 2) it's a limited item. After I got this home I loved it so much I ordered another one from MAC's website. This is probably the most perfect lipshade for me. I love the color, I love the texture! My favorite item out of the entire collection.


Shadesticks in (from left to right) "Cuddle", "Nurture", "Warm & Cozy" and "Relaxed"
From right to left the shades go from lightest to darkest, coincidentally thats also the order in which I like them. Cuddle is kind of a light yellowy-goldish white. I use it for my highlight and my inner tearduct area. Before I had been using Vanilla pigment for that which was a little too stark of a white and also had much more fallouts due to being a pigment. I ended up buying another one of these as well. Nurture is a goldish pale pink. I usually wear a lot of golds and pinks in my daily makeup so this is a great base for me. I had been using the rubenesque paint pot before as a base for my pink and gold looks and this is more pink and less gold than rubenesque. I also like that I don't have to use a brush or my fingers to apply like I do when using paint pots. Warm and Cozy is this beautiful copper color with glitter. Its not as smooth as the rest of the shadesticks in this collection and I pretty much only use it as a liner because I don't want to tug on my eyelids enough to get the color payoff that the others get easily. It glides on my arm more smoothly, probably because of body heat so I might try warming it up a bit beforehand and see how that helps. Its still a beautiful shade and suits me just fine as a liner. Relaxed is a nice goldish warm brown. Its beyond a medium and almost black brown in terms of shade and I really have only used very little of this since I tend to go much brighter on my makeup during the day. I'm going to try more looks with it when I get the time though!


Tinted Lip Conditioner in "Close for Comfort and "Feelin' Good"
I love how soft these make my lips feel. They don't appear as pigmented on me as I've seen on swatches but I have pretty pigmented lips as it is and I don't really slather a lot on. I use a lip brush to apply, close for comfort really just warms the tone of my lips slightly and Feelin' Good just cools them out a tad. Either way they both go with just about all my daily looks and are very versatile for me who doesn't wear lipstick too often (which Spiced Tea" might have changed that stance).

I also bought the other MSF "By Candlelight" from the online store when I nabbed an extra of "Spiced Tea" lipstick and the "Cuddle" shade stick. So I'll do another post about that MSF when I receive it.

The only other item I bought when I went to MAC was the studio sculpt concealer which I have no yet had the chance to try. I'll give it a go a few times before I have any statements on it.

In all this collection was a major hit for me, having already replaced or enhanced my day to day makeup routine. I didn't buy any of the eyeshadows since none of the shades spoke to me other than "Embark" which is permanent and I'll nab later once I'm out of the dark brown from Almay I've been using. The other colors seemed rather easy to dupe, if not from MAC from another brand. As I don't care for the feel of lipgloss (nor do I like to or have time to constantly reapply lip products at work) all the lip glass glosses were a pass to me even though I love how they look on other people!

So overall:
Must Haves: MSF in "Comfort", Glaze in "Spiced Tea" and "Cuddle" shade stick.
Nice to have: everything else but particularly the shade sticks.

I don't foresee myself doing anymore major MAC hauls anytime soon as the All Ages, All Races, All Sexes collection since its a little to neutral for me and the swatches swirling around having made me feel any differently about that statement. Also the MAC in Lillyland collection is on the whole other side of the spectrum being bright and colorful but the eyeshadows don't grab me, the lip gelees are also a pass for me and the blush colors just seems so unwearable for day to day. Fun, but I am in the need of something for everyday so I'm not in the market for them. I'm on the fence for the spring color forecast collections until I see swatches so at least my wallet is safe until February at the earliest.

Having tried a few of these it seems about time for a review. I haven't really been into makeup that long so I'd heard about how primers can keep the color on longer and prevent from creasing, etc. A little backstory is I work at a bakery-cafe and I don't have the liberty to check my makeup or fix it if it fades or creases. My lids aren't oily, they are actually on the more dry side. So it takes a lot more product and a lot more pressure for it to stay on. Then once my 8 hour shift is done there is nothing left on my face! I never had a problem with creasing so this review is only for staying power, color and texture.

Elf eyelid primer cost: $1 (at http://eyeslipsface.com)
This was the first primer I ever tried. I heard of elf from youTube and everyone was raving about them (but not the primer in particular just other items) so I tossed it in my order as an after thought.

It has a bit of matte beige color to it. The color is much more pale than my actual skin tone (which is a medium-dark brown, NC45 in MAC foundation). Its not so pale that it doesn't work for me, but anyone who has a darker skin tone might want to keep this in mind. If you only put it on the part of the lid that is getting product applied to it and not the whole eyelid area it shouldn't be a problem at all. It mostly fades once rubbed in but my skin is still left visibly lighter on the places I applied it to.

Eyeshadows applied more smoothly. I mostly use loose pigments, and it does everything it says it will. Lasts me 8 hour shifts, makes my colors pop, does its job.

elf Mineral Eyeshadow Primer cost: $3 (at http://eyeslipsface.com)
I had been using elf's regular line primer everyday for about 2.5 weeks before I ordered this one. I got it because I had a 75% off coupon for mineral products and elf takes forever to ship so I try to make sure I order whatever I want from them at once.

This one has the same color name "sheer" but to me its darker than the regular line, but not by much. If you are darker toned than me again you'd want to just keep this to the area you plan to apply shadows to as it'll make your skin look ashy.

It works better than the regular line in terms of how smoothly shadows blend onto the lid. As far as I can tell it lasts about the same amount of time. The other benefit is the lack or parabens, chemical dyes and preservatives. The website does not say if the other primer includes those but it would be safe to bet that it does.

The mineral primer is also slightly bigger. I no longer have the boxes and the amount of product is not listed on the website or the containers. But they have the same height when standing, just the eyelid primer from the regular line has a tapered bottom that is thinner towards the bottom. So for $2 more you get a smoother, mineral based product that has more in the container.

Urban Decay Primer Potion cost: $17 (at http://ulta.com)
When I first heard about eyelid primers this is the first one I ever heard about. It's also by far the most expensive of the 3. I bought both the original and "sin" in a multipack at Ulta for about 23 dollars. The original is transparent and sin is a frosty champagne color.

I tried sin first. The color is nice, but its so light/frosty that I'd really only use such a color for a highlight. Which is exactly what I've been using it for. When I used it for an all over lid primer it was just too much shimmer. I even tried putting matte colors on top and the shimmer goes right through the matte color. Which would be nice if I wanted to transform a matte to a shimmer but over the whole lid it came across as too busy for me.

I end up having to use both the original and sin together when I use sin at all. The original is transparent, which is great for me since one of my gripes about the elf primers is that the color in them doesn't really work for me. Both the original and sin both go on smoother than the elf primers. The shadows also had a more blended, almost airbrushed on look to them in comparison.

I actually lamented the fact that I know I'm going to have to buy more UDPP once I run out. If I can't afford to splurge when that happens I could suffice to use the elf primers. I mean I try to save money on what I can and splurge on what I think is vital and Primer Potion is a must have because the final look is just so much more put-together.

As for staying power... I did my makeup at 11am for a trip to the museum and I've been up for 16 hours now and my makeup is still on! (And I need to get off my lazy butt and take it off lol)

As I have enough Primer to last me till 2011 I probably won't be trying Two Face Shadow Insurance or any other eyelid primers anytime soon, but if I do I'll post my findings.