My recent haul at MAC Westfield and my MAC FOTD!

Good evening peeps!

I hope you're all having a lovely, relaxing evening! :-) I'm catching up on Idol - Love it! Now you may remember I took a little trip to a certain Westfield Shepherd's Bush last week... Well I made a few sneaky purchases in none other than... MAC!!! *swoon*

Can I just say, I received the most amazing, professional service at this particular MAC store. I guess I had quite low expectations in terms of service, but it was about 4pm on a weekday and I just walked right in and a MUA was ready to see me straight away. I can't remember his name but it was a bloke and he had tattoos up his arms? Anyway he was so helpful, answering all my questions, getting me everything I asked for and giving me loads of useful advice!

So without further ado, here's what I picked up...

(clockwise L-R: Studio Finish Concealer, Mineralize Skinfinish Natural, Mini Fix+, Fluidline in Blacktrack, Impeccable Brow Pencil, 266 brush)

Mineralize Skinfinish Natural - Light

I must be the only blogger in the world who doesn't use powder? Everyone always talks about setting their foundation with powder, but it's something I've just never done! I don't know why!

I decided I needed to kick the bad habit and purchase my first "powder." There was no point getting a drugstore substitute when the powder on everyone's lips is MAC's Skinfinish Natural!

I explained to the MUA that I just wanted to use this product as a powder, not a bronzer, and so he decided on either the shade "Light" or "Light Plus" for me. We went with Light as I really am rather pale! I recall him buffing in this product with a stipple brush but I use that particular brush for cream blush, so I just use a big fat powder brush instead which seems to do the trick :) just a few swipes over the face and it sets my foundation a treat without making me appear too ghostly white, woop!

MAC's Mineralize Skinfinish Natural is available for £20.50 on the MAC website here.

Studio Finish Concealer - NW15

Next on my list was their acclaimed concealer, which I've tried before in MAC's concession in Selfridges London, but it just didn't seem to do anything for me then! I entrusted the MUA this time in choosing the right shade for me!

I explained that I'm NC15 in their Pro Longwear foundation, but when we tried that shade in this concealer, OMG it looked awful! It just looks really yellow against my skin, horrible. So we went for the NW15 instead which looked much more natural, it had more of a pinky tint to it and blended in much nicer.

It's a really lovely, creamy consistency that's very easy to apply. The MUA applied it using a concealer brush but IMO that's too much hassle & so I end up just using my fingers instead! Naughty naughty.

The problem with this shade for me is that, although it's the exact same colour as my skin, it's just too light for me to use in the evenings when I'm caked in bronzer & highlighter! So I will have to continue buying my Benefit Boi-ing concealer, which is another another £16, d'oh! Also, I'm going to try and use this concealer only for blemishes and redness, and use my new Estee Lauder Doublewear concealer for under-eye circles (which is more what it's suited for!)

MAC's Studio Finish Concealer is available for £13.50 on the MAC website here.

Impeccable Brow Pencil - Dirty Blonde

I explained to the MUA that I used to own their Eye Brow pencil in the shade Lingering and I LOVED the shade, seriously, the shade was spot on! But... the end kept falling off! It was a twist up pencil and it just kept breaking off, I wasted so much product and I couldn't deal with that trauma again! Lol. So he recommended me their Impeccable Brow Pencil instead which is actually a pencil formula that you can sharpen, rather than a twist up pen that you can't!

He chose the shade "Dirty Blonde" for me which is similar to Lingering, if a little lighter.

Here's a swatch without flash...

& with flash...

At first I thought the shade was a little too light, but it really is the exact same colour of my brows! Trouble is, my brows are REALLY faint lol and so I think I will keep using my Ruby & Millie Brow Enhance set when I want a really "defined" brow ie. Scouse Brow!

MAC's Impeccable Brow Pencil is available for £11.50 on the MAC website here.

Mini Fix+

OK so this isn't actually a purchase. You may remember I blogged about this product back in September as I was looking for a handbag sized alternative to my full-sized Fix+. However it's been broken for quite a while; you know Fix+ is supposed to be a mist, right? Mine kept shooting straight out and it just wasn't working. So I brought it with me (without a receipt!) and they exchanged it for a brand new one for me, thank God! Now I can actually use this product - yay!

MAC's Travel Sized Fix+ is available for £7 on the MAC website here.

Fluidline in Blacktrack / 266 brush (bought as gifts)

These weren't purchases either, but I received them as presents at Christmas from my lovely sister and I haven't reviewed them yet soo... :)

As far as I'm aware, MAC's fluidline gel liner is the holy grail of liquid liners! I really really really wanted to try this!

I was slightly dubious about the 266 brush as, being a gel liner newbie, I was concerned that the brush would be too "fat" for me and it would go all over my eyelid, you know? But the MUA assured me that, as a gel liner newbie, the 266 brush would be best for me! The 210 brush aka the pin-point brush requires a really steady hand that a gel liner newbie like myself just doesn't possess! So I stuck with the 266 and he taught me how to apply gel liner like a pro :)

The 266 brush is a small, angled brush; I learnt you are supposed to work with the 'point' of the brush, working outwards, which will definitely require some practice but I hope I will eventually master it :-)

I was very surprised by how SMALL the pot of gel liner is! It's literally like smaller than a 10p coin in circumference lol, I guess I was expecting it to be much bigger! I was also very surprised by its pigmentation, it's SO condensed, a real "blacker than black" type black!

Here's a swatch without flash...

& with flash...

It just glides on so effortlessly, it's so smooth, but SO powerful! It really does have amazing staying power as well, lasting all day!

MAC's Fluidline in Blacktrack (£14.00) and the 266 brush (£16.00) are both available on the MAC website here.

Here's a pic with all the eye products used...

Studio Finish Concealer, Fluidline in Blacktrack, Impeccable Brow Pencil in Dirty Blonde, Paint Pot in Painterly (not pictured)

& finally a couple of face shots using all the products mentioned!

I also wore my MAC Paint Pot in Painterly & my MAC Amplified Creme lipstick in Cosmo... My MAC face :-)

Next on my list is their Powder Blush in Harmony. The MUA used it on me, along with one of their blush brushes, omg it looks so natural but sculpted my face brilliantly... Gotta get it!!

You can view my other MAC hauls here, here & here!

Have you done any MAC hauling recently? Any items on your wishlist?

Love,

Sophia

xo