The fires are still raging in Sonoma and Napa. It’s still bad up there, and it’s pretty smoky here, but it isn’t terribly windy right now, which is one small blessing. Hopefully it stays that way for another day or two, and then maybe some of the fires can be contained. We just keep checking the county fire alerts, being ready, and trying to stay positive.
Speaking of staying positive…Liptensity! 🙂 After swatching all 22 of the MAC Liptensity Lipsticks, which, by the way, are now available in the MAC permanent line, my lips were stained a magnificent magenta color that lasted — no joke! — a day and a half.
The pigment is that serious.
More importantly (at least to me), I’m pretty sure that one of the colors, Clouds in My Coffee, is a shout-out to Carly Simon’s You’re So Vain.
“I had some dreams. They were clouds in my coffee, clouds in my coffee, and…you’re so vain, you probably think this song is about you…”
I guess 2016’s limited edition Liptensity collection did pretty well, because the Liptensities are permanent now. Nine of the shades are new, and 13 are re-promotes.
The MAC Liptensity Lipsticks (now permanent)
- The re-promotes: Driftwood, Smoked Almond, Toast and Butter, Dionysus, Habanero, Fireworks, Marsala, Mulling Spices, Cordovan, Galaxy Grey, Double Fudge, Ambrosial and Stallion
- And the new shades: Clouds in My Coffee, Well Bred Brown, Ginger Rose, Brick Dust, Bite O’ Georgia, King Salmon, Fire Roasted, Beetroot and Noblesse
It’s been a minute since the last time I wore any of these, and this swatch sesh reignited my affection for them again. Not only are they preternaturally pigmented, but they don’t settle into my lip lines. At all.
The thing is, though, they’re so intense that you have basically zero room for error when you use them. Applying one of the dark or bright shades straight from the tube is kinda tough because they don’t have a pointed tip like regular MAC lipsticks do, and that makes it difficult to follow your lip contours, especially in the outer corners.
For what it’s worth, a few of the shades have matching Liptensity Lip Pencils (I’ll post swatches of the pencils on Monday).
I applied a single layer straight from the tube for each of these, which is how I usually apply lipstick, and one layer of Liptensity lasts me about three hours, or until I have something to nibble or drink.
Each of these lippies is $21, and you can find them now at MAC counters and online.
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
P.S. tgif, right??
Julia says
October 13th, 2017 at 5:22 pmHi Karen, I live in Canada and we have haf serious fires in the west. I am thinking of you and hope the California fires will be contained soon.
Rachel says
October 13th, 2017 at 5:57 pmSmoked almond looks like the one for me to try! The fires are unbelievable, I lived in Santa Rosa for about a year when I lived in California, so sad.
Kim-Anh says
October 13th, 2017 at 6:11 pmYour lip swatches are the best out there, Karen. Colors seem really true to life without that studio light glare. And your smiles are natural and varied so I can easily envision how the colors and formulas would look on me as I go about my day. Thanks also for the fire updates. We were just in Napa for a big anniversary celebration last month & are heartbroken about all the destruction. Stay safe.
Sam Hodgett says
October 13th, 2017 at 10:11 pmI haven’t tried this one out yet, but the colours do look beautiful. Mac makes one of my favourite lipsticks, also because their ease of application so won’t be sure how i’d feel about applying these ones, but Toast and Butter does really look good.
Love your swatches and hope you’re safe with the fires out there!
Leah says
October 13th, 2017 at 10:45 pmWhich one stained your lips for a day and a half?
Jane says
October 14th, 2017 at 7:33 amLove the look of Smoked Almond, might have to go and take a look at that one. I am very embarrassed to say that I always thought the line in the Carly Simon song was “grounds in my coffee”, thanks for clearing that up! Hope the fires are coming under control, it’s not only the people I feel for but the wildlife too, must be awful for all lives caught up in it, human or otherwise. Hope everyone is OK.
Linda Halpern says
October 14th, 2017 at 12:37 pmLove the Toast and Butter! Hope the winds keep down for you until the fires are out! I understand the edge you are living on as I live in South Florida where we just had Hurricane Irma. It was Irma for days until it was finally over and now, guess what, I need a new roof!
Sissi says
October 17th, 2017 at 12:40 pmThank you so much for all the swatches Karen! I picked three shades, two new ones and one old color and just ordered them! So excited!