A dupe for Mac's Painterly...?

When you're prepping and priming your eyes, you want a base that really is going to stick around.  Mac Paint Pots are great for getting your powder shadow to last much longer and appear more vibrant - but as my lids are especially oily I've got to use a primer underneath to reduce creasing.  I find that a thin layer of Mac's Painterly is fantastic for disguising redness - and that almost tacky texture really gives your shadow something to stick to.

Painterly is the one and only Mac paint pot that I own though - and in truth I much prefer the texture of the Mayeblline Colour Tattoos to use as a shadow alone (am currently in love with the taupe coloured one.)  But when the other day I was too lazy to dig around for it in my drawer I grabbed my Rimmel Scandaleyes Nude Liner and scribbled it all over the lid instead.  When blended out, it gave pretty much the same effect as Painterly and hung around all day!  I even think that the shade of nude is slightly better for my pale skin than Painterly, as it's a bit more yellow toned so cancels out any purpley hues and for £3.99 where can you go wrong?!

L-R: Mac Pro Longwear Paint Pot in 'Painterly', Rimmel Scandaleyes Waterproof Liner in 'Nude'
You can see the difference much more clearly here, where they're heavily swatched.

I did take a couple of pictures to show them on the lids, but they were practically indistinguishable - if I had to point out one difference though it would be that Painterly is a little more opaque than the Rimmel liner.  Having cream shadow in a pencil form also is much more hygienic and means it doesn't dry out quickly - there is going to be product wastage when you sharpen it but considering it's so cheap in comparison that doesn't really matter.  Plus, you can use the Rimmel Liner to brighten up your waterline on those days where you wake up and see a puffy, red eyed reflection in the mirror!

Mac Paint Pots are £15.50 at Debenhams.
Rimmel Scandaleyes Liners are £3.99 at Boots.

xxx

The Sheer Berry Lip...

All year round, I always seem to gravitate towards sheer berry-red lip shades.  I don't know whether it's the 'I woke up like this' look that they give, or just that on me that they're a great MLBB shade - but either way I have quite a few of them!  The three I've picked out here are the ones I feel are the best dupes for each other, at various price points.  I'm not saying that they are identical in formula, but colour-wise they are pretty indistinguishable on the lips.

L-R: Revlon 'Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain' in 'Honey',
MAC Lustre Lipstick in 'Plumful',
YSL Volupté Sheer Candy in 'Mouthwatering Berry 5'

Revlon 'Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain' in Honey

This one is the most wallet friendly - rolling in at a fairly reasonable £7.99.  The colour in the tube is very different to when you get it on the lips, on mine it oxidises from a pinky nude colour to a bright berry pink.  It's not quite as red toned as MAC's offering, but a very similar colour for less than half the price if you catch it on offer in Boots.  What I love about it is the staining quality - it can be a little drying without a balm.  I tend to work it into the lips with a little Carmex if there's some chapping going on, otherwise you can just swipe it on and it sticks around for most of the day.  Also, some people can't stand the minty scent, and have mentioned that it goes slightly rank after a while - but I can say that after about six months of use mine is still fresh and lovely (although the packaging may look rather battered!)


MAC Lustre Lipstick in 'Plumful'

I love the formula of these lipsticks - they're just so creamy and moisturising but the colour really sticks around.  I wore it last night down to the college bar, and it just perked up my twelve hour old makeup enough for me to look passable (when you're that tired the last thing you want to be doing is tidying up your eyeshadow!)  It is the boldest colour of the bunch here, but still isn't too 'in your face' either.


YSL Volupté Sheer Candy in '5 Mouthwatering Berry'

The whole range of YSL Volupté lipsticks are just to die for.  The ritzy packaging, the gorgeous mango scent and the weightless formulae.  And did I talk about the packaging?!  Just look at that tube - I could not bear to throw that away once it runs out!  This one is from their super sheer range, which I purchased a couple of lipsticks from at the start of the year.  The other I have is the orangey toned 'Dewy Papaya' which doesn't really have much colour, and I wish I had saved my money for a more pigmented lipstick from their range (but it does make a super luxurious lip balm!)  This one has a lot more colour payoff, probably the most of the whole range - and although it isn't super long lasting - it's almost a bullet form gloss - it's great when you don't want a sticky, thick product on your lips.

T-B:  Revlon 'Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain' in 'Honey',

MAC Lustre Lipstick in 'Plumful',

YSL Volupté Sheer Candy in 'Mouthwatering Berry 5' 

Revlon 'Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain' in 'Honey'
 on the lips - you can really see the colour difference!

xxx