M.A.C. Strobe Cream and Studio Fix Powder + Foundation

Note: This is an old entry reposted from my old blog called Boudoir Angel on Tumblr. I'm reposting all of these old entries because I plan to delete my old blog and consolidate everything to this one. Some posts may have its text updated and/or reformatted slightly according to the platform change.

I mentioned before that I'd requested my aunt to purchase for me some M.A.C. products, among them, the Strobe Cream and, because I needed it for theatrical purposes, the Studio Fix Powder + Foundation.

I first learned to use compact powders from my grandmother who has always been...who always was very conscious of how she looked and presented herself to people. I was nine when I received my first powder compact but though I enjoyed using it--it made me feel like a proper little lady--I eventually stopped doing so as it was very tiresome for me.

Fast forward to the 2000s when work has forced to me consider foundation (powder or otherwise) a necessity.

I'd been using my Max Factor cake foundation, an old reliable product I learned of from my mum, but I wanted something extra that could really be used as a powder since the cake foundation doesn't actually fare as well when used dry.

Enter Lauren Luke, under whose tutelage I learned of such things as moisturisers being a good base for make-up and the occasional necessity of various product-specific primers. In her case, one of her favourites at the time I started watching her tutorials was the M.A.C. Strobe Cream.

And here we go.

Scary as it is to post my face on here for whatever reason one can think of, here it is. LOL. This is me with a completely clean, freshly washed face. The pink tinge on my cheeks is not artificial blusher, it's a heat reaction.

I first tried the Strobe Cream at the M.A.C. counter and fell in love with it because it felt so silky smooth and had a lovely lustre. Of course, me being me, I only tried it out on my hand and not on my face. Now, I have oily skin and as you'll see in the next photo, oily skin and Strobe Cream are not the best of friends.

I mentioned when I first posted my first set of M.A.C. products that there is an alternative product that is actually formulated for my skin type. The cream version made my skin appear quite greasy but despite the dissatisfaction over that particular effect, I love how it moisturised my skin. In that department, I believe it truly delivered as a moisturiser and I love that a little pea-sized dot of it could cover about half my face. For a product that comes in a 50ml tube, that's a lot of applications.

So that's the Strobe Cream out of the way but what about Studio Fix?

Look back to the first image. Now look at this next one:

Compared to the first image, it's like I Photoshopped my own face! And this is all with just one thin sweep of powder too. Instant matte and imperfection coverage in one go so like the Strobe Cream, a little goes a long way for a 15g product.

I've already mentioned the Back 2 M.A.C. program where you can give the empty packaging back to the store and, to quote, "by returning 6 M.A.C. primary packaging containers to a M.A.C. counter or M.A.C. Cosmetics online, you'll receive a free M.A.C. lipstick of your choice as our thanks to you."

This is, happily, in effect in the Philippines as well which is fabulous because it's all the more reason for me to indulge, hahaha! Well, I'm partly kidding, of course, and at this point, I have yet to verify whether or not M.A.C. falls under the animal testers or the non-animal testers.


Originally posted as Boudoir Angel on Tumblr, 6 May 2010