Tuesday, October 25, 2011

MAC x Gareth Pugh And Some Thoughts

With its innumerable releases and collaborations, MAC has become a brand I often pass by at department stores without even a glance. It seems like collection after collection are mere repromotes and with that amount of output, what can quality do but become (mostly) subpar? One of its upcoming collaborations is with Miss Piggy, I'm guessing in conjunction with the premiere of The Muppets movie. With only a pink shadow, a black liner, and a set of false lashes to show for it, as British Beauty Blogger aptly puts, it's very much "a half-hearted collaboration."

It is frustrating to me as a consumer. MAC makes good quality makeup for its relatively low price, and it's one of the few companies that doles out an impressive range of shades that could potentially suit every customer. I, like most people, found my love of makeup through MAC, and used to visit my local store once a week and get excited for sneak peaks of "what's next." Now it seems like the constant updating I would need to do to keep up with this one brand, coupled with sold out collections way before launch date, is just not worth the time anymore.

Enter this genuinely awesome teaser of the upcoming MAC x Gareth Pugh collaboration. Of course my excitement is predicated upon the packaging alone - I hate the lipglass formula, but I might just throw in the towel and get the two lipglosses just for the structural beauty. Also "sheer light lavender gray with violet pearl" is totally up my alley. I might have to endure the colossal stickiness if it's as pretty as it sounds. The nail polishes paired with the images are stirring up enough intrigue for me to consider all three. And the pigment pots are perhaps the best part of the collection - they look like the better packaging option functionality-wise compared to the regular pigments.

I'm excited that I'm excited for a MAC collection, and I'm most probably going to stay up to order this come November 23. That said, I wish all MAC collections could be this way. With half the volume and double the quality, I bet they'll have less products left over from afterthought collections and no way to get rid of them.

5 comments:

  1. I think that part of the problem lies with the Estee Lauder marketing machine, and it's focus on "collections" rather than a more cohesive marketing message overall.

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  2. I have the exact same feelings about MAC. None of the collections have captivated me in the past year, and it's very difficult to keep up with all the products in each collection. The packaging of this collection excites me, but I also look for practicality and use. I'm not sure how often I would use anything in this collection, so this may be another MAC pass for me.

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  3. I like MAC quite a bit, but I try to stick to their permanent line as much as possible--it's just too hard to keep up with LE stuff! I also just avoid the lipglasses completely, since I don't like the sticky texture either (and dazzleglass cremes, and most other lipglass-type things, except Cremesheen glasses)! So that, I suppose, helps.
    I do get tempted every so often though, to buy something from an LE collection...and this is definitely one of those times...

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  4. I agree with everything you've said. I think many of us found our love of cosmetics through MAC (one could call it a gateway drug) which makes us hold on to an attachment to the brand. It would be hypocritical of me to say that I do not follow their releases, because I do, and I certainly still buy things. BUT there was a time that I purchased many things from each collection not out of naivité but out of enthusiasm for the products. My choices are now limited to one or two items, or something I may have missed on it's last release.

    Though I'm looking forward to some of the collections being released in early 2012, I lack the unbridled enthusiasm I've felt in years past.
    ♥ Jessica

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  5. I do not buy from every MAC collection. I quite like the white packaging for the holiday collection. I pre-ordered some products purely based on the packaging, the colors of the makeup were tame and did not wow me. That said, I pre-ordered staples for me and I know I will use them up. By the looks, the Gareth Pugh collection is worth checking out also.

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