Just got back from my MAC counter and what everyone said was right, you need to see the collection in person. For me the standouts were Blonde and Redhead msfs and Red Devil and Strawberry Blonde lipglasses. I'm an NW20ish light olive for reference.
Msfs: I was afraid that the msfs would look too frosty after reading reviews on MUA, but they were nicely pigmented with no chunky glitter to have to deal with. If you're an msf virgin, these are a really good group of msfs to start with. Nicely pigmented, smooth finish and a subtle glow as opposed to the nuclear fallout of some previously released msfs. They do vary in how large the stripes are, so I picked a Blonde with a larger percentage of the msf being made up of a darker shaded pink stripes than pale pink stripes, just for a slightly deeper pink blush when I apply it. On me it looked different than my Petticoat, but my Petticoat has really large Burgundy veins running through it, so that could be why. The Brunette msf was lovely too, but I already have a couple of dozen bronzers, so I passed on it. I've already ordered the Redhead msf, but that one is chalkful of lovely apricotty goodness.
Lipglasses:
Strawberry Blonde and Red Devil are gorgeous. I agree that Red Devil is nothing like Shine Manish. Red Devil has much less orange in it and much more wearable. The other lipglasses were nice, but I already have tons of neutrals and pinks, so I passed.
Lipsticks: I skipped these, as I already have a ton of neutrals and pinks.
Eye Shadows: The eye shadows weren't impressing me much, but mainly because they replicated shades that I already had for the most part. The only one I was interested in was Top Knot (purple eye shadow addict here). It looked gorgeous in the pan, but swatched it was chalky black - no pretty purple shimmer at all. I suppose you could fiddle with it using a base and all, but it just seemed like too much effort when MAC has released much better purples in the past. If you don't have a lot of MAC shadows, then the standouts are Femme Fi, Flip and Henna. They had smooth easy to blend textures and great color. The rest of the collection, not so much.
Oh and PSA: French Cuff sucks and I mean sucks. MAC should pay us for taking it off their hands. Its one of the worst eye shadows I think I have ever seen MAC release. Chunky doesn't even begin to describe it. Get Expensive Pink instead, if you really want a lovely pink gold.
Good for you.
