MAC Cosmetics Chromagraphic Pencil - NC15/NW20: rated 5 out of 5 on MakeupAlley. See 62 member reviews and photos. MAC Cosmetics Chromagraphic Pencil - NC15/NW20: rated 5 out of 5 on MakeupAlley. See 62 member reviews and photos. Our list of 20 red lipsticks has something for beauties of all skin tones. Today's video is a Mac Studio Fix Fluid Foundation Review and as you all know full transparency from me I was very generously gifted the foundati. MAC 190 Foundation Brush $32. MAC 195 Concealer Brush $22. Available September 16, 2010. I’m ON the concealer. It reminds me of the Lorac Undercover Loving Concealer I tried a few months ago. Hell, I might be daring and give the MAC Foundation a go too!
Hello beauties check-out my MAC Studio Fix Fluid vs Estee Lauder Double Wear Stay-in-Place Makeup Review!
After using Estee Lauder Double Wear Stay-in-Place Makeup in Ecru for the past six months, I have recently strayed and I’m now using MAC Studio Fix Fluid in NC15. Both popular ‘heavy duty’ foundations, I wanted to compare my experiences with both.
What They Say:
“Estee Lauder Double Wear Stay-in-Place Makeup
15-hour staying power. Flawless all day. This worry-free, long-wearing makeup stays fresh and looks natural through heat, humidity, nonstop activity. Won’t change colour, smudge or come off on clothes. Feels lightweight and comfortable. Now the flawless look you see in the morning is the look you keep all day.
15-hour staying power. Flawless all day. This worry-free, long-wearing makeup stays fresh and looks natural through heat, humidity, nonstop activity. Won’t change colour, smudge or come off on clothes. Feels lightweight and comfortable. Now the flawless look you see in the morning is the look you keep all day.
MAC Studio Fix Fluid
A modern foundation that combines a natural matte finish and medium buildable coverage with broad spectrum UVA/UVB SPF 15. Comfortable and long-wearing: lasts for up to eight hours. Applies smoothly, builds coverage quickly and easily. Contains specially treated micronized pigments and soft-focus powders for a super-smooth look that helps minimize the appearance of imperfections. Absorbs and disperses oil. Contains special skin-conditioning ingredients. Oil free.”
A modern foundation that combines a natural matte finish and medium buildable coverage with broad spectrum UVA/UVB SPF 15. Comfortable and long-wearing: lasts for up to eight hours. Applies smoothly, builds coverage quickly and easily. Contains specially treated micronized pigments and soft-focus powders for a super-smooth look that helps minimize the appearance of imperfections. Absorbs and disperses oil. Contains special skin-conditioning ingredients. Oil free.”
What I Say:
The first thing to note is that these two foundations are at different price points. Double Wearretails at $68 AUD for 30 ml, while Studio Fix Fluid retails at $48 AUD for 30 ml. This factor certainly influenced my decision to try Studio Fix Fluid to see if it might be a less expensive alternative to my beloved Double Wear. One thing to note is that MAC does charge an extra $8 AUD for a pump for the foundation, which you can obviously re-use on future bottles.
Both foundations are packaged in glass bottles with a wide mouth and screw-top lid (before you buy a pump from MAC). As you can see in the product pictures, Double Wear comes in a square, thick frosted glass bottle which is quite sturdy (I’ve dropped it a couple of times without any problems), while Studio Fix Fluid comes in a cylindrical, more delicate glass bottle (which is apparently prone to breakage, although fingers crossed I haven’t dropped it yet to find out).
You’ll notice in this foundation swatch that Studio Fix Fluid seems to be a better colour match for me. That is definitely true, but the difference between the colours isn’t as dramatic as it appears in the photo. However, I would say that Studio Fix Fluid in NC15 is the best colour match I’ve been able to find for my skin tone. Contexts 2 4 download free. If I were to use Double Wear again, I would probably try Bone, their lightest warm colour. Both brands have a reasonably wide colour selection for people with lighter skin tones.
Both brands claim their foundations have medium to full coverage. I would argue that Double Wear is a full-coverage foundation, while Studio Fix Fluid is a medium coverage foundation. I can easily achieve that flawless, ‘blank canvas’ look with Double Wear, while this wouldn’t be possible with Studio Fix Fluid without layering it on and looking cakey. On application, both foundations have a matte finish, although Studio FixFluid probably looks more satiny and natural than Double Wear.
I always applied Double Wear with a damp cosmetic sponge, as I found this produced a more even finish than using a brush. However, I have learned to apply Studio Fix Fluid with a foundation brush, as a cosmetic sponge seems to ‘suck up’ all the foundation, with very little going onto my face. Both foundations effectively cover my minor acne and any other blemishes.
Mac Nc15 Foundation
Where the paths of these foundations diverge is how they wear over time. Double Wear just plain lasts longer on my skin, no matter what happens. I honestly think that Double Wear could survive a nuclear holocaust. For an oily-skinned girl like me, this is a gift from the heavens above. In comparison, maintaining a medium coverage with Studio Fix Fluid would require a couple of touch-ups during the day. I also sometimes notice that Studio Fix Fluid will transfer a little onto my phone if I take a call. However, I tend to feel that Double Wear‘s amazing longevity does come at a price. Over the longer term, Double Wear tends to make my skin a little flaky and dull. In comparison, Studio Fix Fluid‘s ingredients seem to nourish my skin and help keep it moisturised.
There is a place for both Estee Lauder Double Wear Stay-in-Place Makeup and MAC Studio Fix Fluid in my life, heart, and makeup cabinet. At the moment, I wear Studio Fix Fluid to work during the day, while I reserve Double Wear for special occasions, nights out, and days where I just want to hide behind a flawless finish.
Choosing a foundation can be really daunting, but it’s a key part to our makeup and can make or break a flawless face so it’s important to get it right. Many clients ask me about the labelling of MAC foundations as they don’t understand what NC and NW means and how to colour match themselves.
In colour theory, we’re taught that cool undertones are reds, pinks and blues and that warm undertones are yellow, peaches and golds. However, in MAC labelling, the undertones are the opposite.
NC: Neutral Cool – golden beige undertones.
NW: Neutral Warm – red, pink or blue undertones.
N: Neutral – beige undertones.
Mac Nc15 2000
C: Cool – Yellow, golden or olive undertones
Mac Nc15 2020
So a person with yellow, peach or golden undertones would be suited well to an NC foundation whereas a person with red, pink or blue undertones would be better suited to an NW foundation. A person with a beige undertone would be perfectly suited to an N foundation.
Mac Nc15 2018
You might have heard that some ladies use an NC foundation but have been given an NW concealer, this is because the pink undertone of an NW concealer helps to cancel out dark green under eye circles. For blue tinged under eye circles, you could cancel them out with an NC concealer.
Mac Nc15 Color
My client Nina has warm undertones (reds in MAC terms) with cool under eye circles (yellow). I used MAC Studio Fix in NC20 over her face to even out and correct the redness and NW10 concealer to correct the dark circles
The number that follows each NC, NW, N or C is simply the colour of each foundation. Sharon, from Sharonthemakeupartist.com explains this perfectly:
“…there are some odd numbers peppered along the way in some of the foundations. For example there is an NC27 or an NW18 in Studio Fix Fluid . These colours don’t have quite as strong an undertone as those that end in 5 or 0. These odd numbers have more of a neutral undertone. So an NC27 is not as yellow as an NC25 but it is a little bit darker.
Conversely there are also plain C’s and plain N’s. These have a stronger yellow or pink undertone than their NC/NW counterparts. Very few of the foundations in the range now have these strong undertones, it’s mostly the old school formulas like Face and Body, or Studio Fix Powder.”
The shade I wear myself is NC15 – this is much more flattering to my skin tone and helps to cancel out any unwanted redness over my cheek area. This is my personal preference too and I find that the NC blends seamlessly into my skin. I find that with the majority of my clients, an NC foundation always looks better and evens the skin tone beautifully.
The most important thing is to make sure that your foundation matches with your chest and looks natural. If you are still struggling, don’t be afraid to ask a counter makeup artist for advice and a colour match. Makeup is all about having fun so there is no wrong or right way to wear your foundation, as long as you have a good match and avoid the dreaded ‘tideline’ around the neck, you’re good to go!
© This post is copyright of Rachael Divers 2015.