MAC x Archie's Girls (Betty & Veronica) Collection Discussion (February 2013)

erine1881

Well-known member
I know Macy's will be getting this collection but does anyone know if Nordstrom will be getting it instore and/or online? I may wait on kiss don't tell and summer sweetheart. Just in case I don't like them (very unlikely) Nordies has free returns. For sure I want to order 2 Betty Brights and one flatter me pearl matte right when they pop up on the mac site because I know I will love them!
It's launching everywhere.
 

Naughtyp

Well-known member
just drooled over karens swatches again =) i read her shadow reviews, the veronica quad is off my list. its beautiful, and the pics posted using it are beautiful, but i dont know how to do my makeup like that and i do not know the difference between all the eye brushes....( does it make any sense then to get the brush set in this collection!? i must be confused lol). I like to do my makeup quick, i barely ever use colored eyeshadow. i dunno i just think i have weird eye shape and i dont have the patience. Maybe if i end up with my tax return i will get it. otherwise its off my list. So is Girl Next Door. At least for now, but its not really my kinda pink. Daddy's little Girl is more my style =)
 

RaymondKurzweil

Well-known member


All right guys. Just got back from swatching a little while ago. I only have pictures of the stuff everyone asked for, but I couldn't get a look at the pearlmattes (weren't available). I apologize for the crappiness of the photo quality, but this is as good as I could get it with an iPhone. Here are the colors from left to right starting with the dark color on the top left.

Top row: Feelin' So Good Lipglass, Strawberry Malt Lipglass, Mall Madness Lipglass, Prom Princess Blush, Stay Sweet Lipglass (pale pink), Summer Sweetheart Lipglass (light peach), Kiss and Don't Tell Lipglass (coral)
Bottom row: Boyfriend Stealer Lipstick, Ronnie Red Lipstick, Daddy's Little Girl Lipstick, Cream Soda Blush, Oh Oh Oh Lipstick, Betty Bright Lipstick, Girl Next Door Lipstick

I loved every single one of these products. Here are my impressions and comparisons:

Lipglasses

Feelin' So Good: Beautiful blackened plum with burgundy microshimmer. It's like a gloss version of OPI Midnight in Moscow Nail Polish, and it totally surprised me with the shimmer.
Strawberry Malt: Bright juicy red inbetween a maraschino cherry and tomato red. Scratch that, it is rather maraschino cherry in terms of tone, but it's not as blue based as the red gloss that came out with Hey Sailor! last year. It's brighter and seems more opaque despite its juicy quality. Would be gorgeous on top of Ronnie Red.
Mall Madness: Muted fuschia with purple, blue, and maybe even some gold microshimmer if I remember right. I love these types of colors and have been waiting for a better replacement of Urban Decay's Pocket Rocket in Doug since those lipglosses are weak in the pigmentation department.
Stay Sweet: I don't usually like light pinks like this, but this would most likely layer well and mix with multiple pink and purple lipsticks well. Nothing special, but I liked it.
Summer Sweetheart: Yellower peach than what you normally see with these light lipglosses. Same as Stay Sweet in terms of originality factor.
Kiss and Don't Tell: If you're going to get any of these glosses, GET THIS ONE if you LOVE LOVE LOVE coral. It's out of control. I loved this one the most right off the bat since it's got a nice mix of pink and orange. Beautiful!

Lipsticks

Boyfriend Stealer: Not the same as Dramatic Encounter (as you've already seen!). Sheerer, less red-based, and most likely very similar to Yung Rapunxel as everyone has said here!
Ronnie Red: Almost like a brighter version of Absolute Power from Strength. Nice matte finish and definitely leans cool on my skin. Really stand-out retro red without being too matte, though. Worth a look.
Daddy's Little Girl: Not the same as Outrageously Fun. More muted in color, less sheer, and not nearly as fuschia. Loved this one, especially since it has a satin finish and is more opaque because of it.
Oh Oh Oh: Really liked this. Not sure if it's quite as plum as the MAC Me Over version, though. Definitely has some brown tones in it.
Betty Bright: Love coral, so I'm biased about this one. If you have Reel Sexy and Watch Me Simmer, I'm not sure if you need this too if you're set with those two. However, I agree with the poster who said it's like mix between Reel Sexy and Viva Glam Nicki. It's definitely got a little bit more pink in it.
Girl Next Door: Light pink, but has a nice twist with a hint of purple-pink microshimmer. Worth checking out if you like these colors. Good for lightening other lip colors.

Blushes

Prom Princess: Wonderful blush. Pretty smooth and has lovely pigmentation. Less patchy in comparison to the Taste Temptations blush and Magenta, and it swings more pink. Also has some delicate silver shimmer that doesn't swing too disco like NARS Angelika.
Cream Soda: Light but actually shows up on my skin. I was surprised that it didn't end up being ashy on me, so yay! It leaves a nice peachy hue, but it definitely will have to be paired well with a bronzer or another blush for it to look its best on me. Pretty sure you can skip if you're happy with Immortal Flower, Easy Manner, and/or Supercontinental. Need to see this in person and judge for yourself if you're NC40 or darker. Potentially need to do this even if you're lighter than NC40.

And that's it! Hope this helps y'all!
I'm trying to figure out perm dupes 1) to trim down my list, or 2) in case I miss what I want, and I can't figure out Kiss And Don't Tell. Your swatch (thanks btw!) is giving this beautiful rich coral and Karen's swatches are pulling a major left into the pink lane. Both are gorgeous but now I am discombobulated by swatch. With ice cream. And a list that is still too big.
 

Naughtyp

Well-known member
Do you guys think i need to get the brush set at the pre launch party? or should i wait and try to get them in a couple of weeks?do u think they will sell out?
 

bluelitzer

Well-known member
OT, does Mac still send T samples? If Karen was given the entire collection, shouldn't T be getting hers by now also? She also said she'll be buying the products when the collection launches so it makes me wonder if she still gets samples from Mac. Looks like she got the color stories but no samples?
th_dunno.gif
Lucky Karen, she totally deserves it! T just approves too many basher comments with no constructive value at all. I'm kind of not surprised she didn't get any.
 

ladyarwen

Well-known member
Lucky Karen, she totally deserves it! T just approves too many basher comments with no constructive value at all. I'm kind of not surprised she didn't get any.
I highly doubt the readers' comments have anything to do with it. MAC PR is just weird. I don't even attempt to try and figure out how they decide to send out samples and to who.
 

bluelitzer

Well-known member
I highly doubt the readers' comments have anything to do with it. MAC PR is just weird. I don't even attempt to try and figure out how they decide to send out samples and to who.
T makes excellent swatches, the reviews are well written and the comparison to other colors is helpful. She always got samples before and it seems she is an obvious choice to give samples to. But for some reason they decided to exclude her. T replied to one nasty comment in one of her entries where she gave a very low rating to a product that MAC never made her change a review nor did the PR person changed the way they treat her. It may or may not be the comments, only MAC knowS how they decide. But I read alot of her blog before coming here to specktra, and those plain nasty comments just made me stop going there and for awhile people I know started not liking MAC because of what they read there.
shrugs.gif
 

Rezel

Well-known member
Lucky Karen, she totally deserves it! T just approves too many basher comments with no constructive value at all. I'm kind of not surprised she didn't get any.
Makes me wonder because she used to get entire collections weeks in advance. I understand Mac hasn't been sending out PR samples well in advance these days but T hardly gets any samples lately. I used to rely on her reviews but now I just go there for the swatches.
 

Mac-Guy

Well-known member
Makes me wonder because she used to get entire collections weeks in advance. I understand Mac hasn't been sending out PR samples well in advance these days but T hardly gets any samples lately. I used to rely on her reviews but now I just go there for the swatches.

That's a looooong time ago. It's a very simple case of "don't bite the hand that feeds." Negative vibes do not sit too well with PR departments - and there's a big difference between an honest review and just trashing collections and feeding into negative comments. Make up should be fun. If you don't like a brand (anymore), don't buy or review it.

Anyway, 'nuff said :)
 

Mac-Guy

Well-known member
ok thats what i thought! thank you both , my wallet hates me lol
If you buy in store AND online, you are likely to spend more anyway. Having all the items on one bill makes it much easier to realize how much you've actually spend. In addition, you can relax when you got all your goodies. Unless you are lemming the excitement of online stalking.
 

Rezel

Well-known member
That's a looooong time ago. It's a very simple case of "don't bite the hand that feeds." Negative vibes do not sit too well with PR departments - and there's a big difference between an honest review and just trashing collections and feeding into negative comments. Make up should be fun. If you don't like a brand (anymore), don't buy or review it.

Anyway, 'nuff said :)
That's so true. The site has become too negative for me. Her swatches are still lovely, though the colors seem to be a little washed out. I've bought several items that are darker in real life than in her photos.

Ok, back to Archie. :) To those who've seen the collection, is Ronnie Red worth having if I already have Russian Red and Charmed I'm Sure? I want a really blue based red.
 

bluelitzer

Well-known member
That's so true. The site has become too negative for me. Her swatches are still lovely, though the colors seem to be a little washed out. I've bought several items that are darker in real life than in her photos.

Ok, back to Archie. :)
Yup back to archies. lol. That's the last time I post anything about that topic. :)
Online stalking is easier when you're in the west coast and later time zones since they often release around midnight EST.
 

That1980sGirl

Well-known member
That's so true. The site has become too negative for me. Her swatches are still lovely, though the colors seem to be a little washed out. I've bought several items that are darker in real life than in her photos. Ok, back to Archie. :)  To those who've seen the collection, is Ronnie Red worth having if I already have Russian Red and Charmed I'm Sure? I want a really blue based red.
I'm curious as to how charmed I'm sure compares to Ronnie red. When ever the stuff comes in I hope someone would be nice enough to do a comparison swatch for us :)
 

sss215

Well-known member
OT, does Mac still send T samples? If Karen was given the entire collection, shouldn't T be getting hers by now also? She also said she'll be buying the products when the collection launches so it makes me wonder if she still gets samples from Mac. Looks like she got the color stories but no samples? :dunno:
You should ask Christine. I'm sure she will tell you.
T makes excellent swatches, the reviews are well written and the comparison to other colors is helpful. She always got samples before and it seems she is an obvious choice to give samples to. But for some reason they decided to exclude her. T replied to one nasty comment in one of her entries where she gave a very low rating to a product that MAC never made her change a review nor did the PR person changed the way they treat her. It may or may not be the comments, if their PR is weird like you said. Only they know how they decide. But I read alot of her blog before coming here to specktra, and those plain nasty comments just made me stop going there and for awhile people I know started not liking MAC because of what they read there. :shrugs:
I look at it like this. At the end of the day, Christine will buy every new item released by MAC that is not sent to her for free to review and photograph for her readers. That's thousands of dollars a year and to me that's commendable and unique because all beauty bloggers don't do this. Plus photographing certain colors can be challenging. Some bloggers will only review the comp items (but still post on items they don't have, go figure) or buy bits and pieces and just review those. As far as the negative comments. I just don't read them. I personally would want to monitor the snark, but it's her choice. It's cool with me, I'm just there for the photos and comparisons.
 

Anitacska

Well-known member
Why should she? Just because she's a blogger? They're not obliged to send her every collection.
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I also don't understand why she bothers to buy every collection if she doesn't even like Mac anymore. She gets so many other samples, she could just stick with those. Not my business, obviously, just wondering...

I wanted to skip Archie so I can prepare for the upcoming Extra Dimension collection but I'm really loving Ronnie Red and after moonzie's description, I'm pretty sure I'll be getting it. I've been trying to find a blue-based retro red but didn't want to deal with Ruby Woo's dryness and application issues. Might get Daddy's Little Girl also. That's it, 2 lippies for me.

OT, does Mac still send T samples? If Karen was given the entire collection, shouldn't T be getting hers by now also? She also said she'll be buying the products when the collection launches so it makes me wonder if she still gets samples from Mac. Looks like she got the color stories but no samples?
th_dunno.gif
 
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