MAC Toledo Makeup Look: Moodyblu Palette and Oxblood Matte Lipstick (plus Toledo swatches part 2!)

MAC x Toledo is one of the most colorful collections of the season, with lots of intense blues, violets, lime greens, violets and rich deep reds. So it was a bit of a challenge for me when I decided I wanted to create a softer, more wearable everyday look with some of the items in the collection.

It's quite wearable and neutral for the most part, but I chose to keep a pop of very intense blue around the outer corners of the eyes for a bit of interest, and to define and draw attention to them. (There wouldn't be a point in doing a look with the Toledo collection if it was going to look like any other neutral collection!)

The star of the show here is really the sparkly metallic blue eye pencil, Petrol Blue. I highly recommend you check it out if you like colored eyeliners and want buttery smooth texture and intense payoff. The lasting power is pretty darned good as well, but of course, I had to intensify it and lock it down by dabbing a matching blue shadow (Deep Truth) over it. 

 And Oxblood matte lipstick? It's a fab, FAB kittenish peachy-beige. Not quite nude, but very pretty if you want something muted with a bit of color.

The surprise of the look for me was Azalea Blossom, the pink-purple blush ombre. I'd expected a very cool-toned shade but over my skin, the blend of pink and purple went on quite a bit warmer. If you're looking for a sweet pink flush, this is great. If you were expecting a very purple hue, you might not get it if you have a yellow undertone, or you're wearing a bronzer beneath.

MAC Azalea Blossom goes on surprisingly neutral on top of bronzer

Speaking of blush, I do owe you all the swatches for Ripe Peach Blush Ombre from the Toledo Collection, which was missing from the first delivery. Here it is.

I was also missing Victoriana matte lipstick in the swatches, so here it is swatched beside 2 other true reds. Tenor Voice is the true red in the Toledo collection, and Victoriana is a cherry red with slight pink undertones. 

Here, the 2 shades are swatched beside Carmine Red from the MAC Prabal Gurung collection, which is another vivid red. On first look they all look identical, but the difference is in how they sit against the skin. 

Tenor Voice casts neither a blue nor an orange border against the skin, while Carmine leaves a blue border. Victoriana has a rosy hue. This is how you check undertones of reds. And when picking one, look not at the color itself but how it makes the surrounding skin look. The best red for you, is one which brightens your skin and makes it look more glowing and even. 

Sunday FOTD: Softer Take on Taupe and Oxblood

Face of the Day: Tom Ford Eye Color Quad 01 Golden Mink, Cheek Color 02 Frantic Pink, and Burberry Lip Mist Oxblood No 214

Quick FOTD featuring a much softer take on a Burberry Beauty look done the other day. This is completely wearable for the day time. 

Base: 

• Tom Ford Traceless Foundation in Fawn, with Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powder in Ethereal Light just down the T-zone and under the eyes
• Benefit High Beam highlighter patted lightly along cheekbones

Cheeks:

• Laura Mercier Matte Radiance Baked Powder in Bronze-03 just buffed just under the cheekbones to sculpt the face.
• Tom Ford Cheek Color in 02 Frantic Pink on peaks of cheeks for soft color

Eyes:

• Shu Uemura Hard Formula 9 Pencil in Seal Brown to fill in sparse areas of brows
• Tom Ford Eye Color Quad in 01 Golden Mink; soft taupe on lids, rich brown in outer corners  and socket line, blonde glitter overcoat over inner half of lids
• Revlon Lash Potion Mascara in Black

Lips:

• Inglot AMC Lip Pencil 16 traced lightly along the outer edges of the lips
• Burberry Lip Mist in Oxblood No 214 applied over lips

Nails:

• Burberry Nail Color in Oxblood No 303

Burberry Beauty Oxblood Lip Mist and Oxblood Nail Color

Burberry Winter Glow Collection 2014

Burberry Beauty "Winter Glow" Collection 

There were a few beautiful pieces in Burberry Beauty's festive Winter Glow collection that really caught my eye, including the very pretty and odd taupe highlighting powder which I do not have here sadly.

I do have 4 other pieces that I love though. The entire collection features a lovely balance between antique golds, Burberry's soft signature taupe, and also sexy oxblood red.

Complete Eye Palette Gold No.25

Burberry Beauty Complete Eye Palette Gold No. 25 swatches

Here I applied a basic 4-shade eye look using Gold No.25 and a dark brown pencil.

I admit I hadn't been all that interested in the palette initially. (Looked like any other taupe-y bronze palette.) until I saw it demonstrated on a model. I'm telling you, if you have blue eyes... this would looks completely amazing. I don't, but I love it anyway!

Lip Mist Oxblood No.214

Lip Glow Gold No.25

Swatches: Lip Mist Oxblood No.214, Lip Glow Gold No.25

The collection features 2 Gold lip shades; a Lip Mist (sheer lipstick) and a Lip Glow (lipgloss). But my personal obsession is with the Oxblood shade obviously. The gold lipstick and gloss is pretty to look at in their tubes, but the gloss is just a translucent gloss with some subtle gold sparkles, and the taupe-gold lipstick won't necessarily flatter everyone.

Lip Mist in Oxblood No.214 on the other hand, looks brown in the tube, but goes on more berry-hued. It's semi-sheer but the color builds up beautifully to a jelly-like sheen. Almost like you applied gloss on top. One annoying problem I find with some of the Lip Mists though, is the softer consistency makes some of the lipsticks bend and smoosh against the insides of the tube when used. My particular tube of Oxblood did just that, which is an issue if you love the checks embossed on it.

Annoying barrel marks on the lipstick tube...

Nail Polish Oxblood No.303

 As for the two nail polishes in the collection, they are both opaque and one is a Burberry taupe shade with a slight gold sheen, and the other is the classic Oxblood shade No.303. Guess which one I like more?

Makeup look using Burberry Winter Glow collection

The lip shade really isn't as deep as it looks in the tube. On the lips, it looks like an opaque berry lipgloss. The sheen is absolutely gorgeous. I'd give it a 9/10 if not for the fact that the lipstick smooshed against the insides of the tube.

Have you checked out anything in the collection yet, and if so, which are your fave products?