The eternal question foxing all the MAC virgins is "whether am I NC or NW in MAC?"
Firstly totally forget any any previous skin shade classification you might have had in other brands, because no drugstore brand matches MAC in the variety of shades/texture/range of finishes.
This eventually means that MAC has a mind boggling array of foundations/compacts/loose powders.To make sense of this mumbo-jumbo lets understand the concept behind the skin undertones.
The undertone & MAC classification-Note in identifying the your precise foundation shade it doesn't matter whether you are fair skinned or dark, what matters is the undertone in your skin.
MAC NC (Neutral Cool)-The skin has Golden / Olive Undertone-The skin tans easily on sun exposure
MAC NW (Neutral Warm)-The skin has Pinky / Rosy undertone-The skin burns on sun exposure
How do I find out whether I'm NC or NW-Check your wrist-notice the color of veins on your wrist?
Blue Veins-Cool Toned-You are NC in MAC
Green Veins-Warm toned-You are NW in MAC
Once you have identified whether you are NC or NW in MAC you need to get shade tests done on you jaw/neck (definitely not on your wrist) area to identify the perfect shade & the finish you need.
MAC numbers its shades the lower the number the lighter the shade,the higher the number darker the shade.
Remember that the skin shade changes with season, you need 1 shade lighter foundation in winters and 1 shade darker in summers.
Also depending upon whether you want light coverage,medium coverage or full coverage you might need 1 -2 shade darker/lighter in the various foundations.
Example I'm NC 45 in MAC select sheer powder compact but in MAC Studio Fix + compact I'm shade NC 42
Don't buy shades unless you get yourself color matched at the MAC counters.
Check the swatches in natural light for at least 1-2 hours to see if it oxidizes on you.
If you like the results after 2 hours,only then should you commit to a particular shade & finish.
When in doubt request the MUA for foundation sample for trial before you buy the full bottle.
Don't buy shades unless you get yourself color matched at the MAC counters.
Check the swatches in natural light for at least 1-2 hours to see if it oxidizes on you.
If you like the results after 2 hours,only then should you commit to a particular shade & finish.
When in doubt request the MUA for foundation sample for trial before you buy the full bottle.
(Remember to turn up the speaker volume)
Girls hope this helps
informative post pooja :)up so late?
ReplyDeletegreat post and a really useful one at that
ReplyDeleteReally informative! I have never bought MAC foundation myself! :P SO no idea!
ReplyDeleteVanity-glad you found the post useful. It seems, We are both turning into night owls! LOL
ReplyDeleteAmmu-Glad you liked it. I'd been planning to do this for a long while
Tanvee-Thanks dear.I know lot of girls usually avoid checking out MAC because of overwhelming mind boggling variety which can be mighty confusing. Thought should clear the mystery a bit :)
ReplyDeleteRegarding NC and NW its works the other way in MAC.
ReplyDeleteNC for warmer undertones &
NW for Cool undertones
:)
You need to switch these:
ReplyDeleteMAC NC (Neutral Cool)-The skin has Golden / Olive Undertone-The skin tans easily on sun exposure
MAC NW (Neutral Warm)-The skin has Pinky / Rosy undertone-The skin burns on sun exposure
You have them backwards.
Anonymous- scroll back up to the post.I've posted the link to MAC cosmetics website as well.MAC's makeup artist explains NC & NW classification accurately
ReplyDeleteYou can check out MAC website's foundation guide through the following link
http://www.maccosmetics.com/product/158/13055/Foundation-Finder/index.tmpl
MAC NC (Neutral Cool)-The skin has Golden / Olive Undertone-The skin tans easily on sun exposure
MAC NW (Neutral Warm)-The skin has Pinky / Rosy undertone-The skin burns on sun exposure
Kaps- Hi I think its one of the Beauty Urban legends we are dealing with here.MAC considers pink undertones to be warm, and yellow undertones to be cool. Every other brand says the opposite.
ReplyDeleteThe confusion usually happens as most other brands have defined cool undertones with cool blue/pink.
Karasugar has a very detailed post on this as well. Do check it out,hope this helps :)
http://karlasugar.net/2008/06/warm-cool-what-does-it-all-mean/
This is so useful .. :) Thanks ! :)
ReplyDeleteKhaddu
Iam having warmer undertones tat is NC...so hw can I choose the perfect foundation....itz showing NC 25 ,NC 46 etc.... really confused!!!
ReplyDeleteWhich shade is better for indian whitish uneven skin tone?
ReplyDelete.