AERIN Lauder Multi Color for Lips and Cheeks from the Spring 2013 Color Collection

I'm sure you know by now that Aerin Lauder launched her own beauty line under the Estée Lauder umbrella last year. Each time I have visited the counter, I have studied it (visually), and so far, nothing has jumped out into my jaded fingers. The makeup is all pretty. I just didn't find something to love. For spring, I found something to love.

Multi Color for Lips and Cheeks ($42) is available in two shades:  Freesia, the one I purchased online (shown here), and Sweet Pea, a pink that I feared would be too light. I took quite a chance on Freesia, which appears to be coral in the photo above from the Web site. I was totally delighted when I saw the cream color on my skin.

Capturing that first day of spring, can't-wait-to-get-outside feeling, AERIN's limited-edition Spring 2013 Color Collection is inspired by the shades of early spring flowers. Enhanced with AERIN's signature floral infusion, this endlessly-wearable collection washes cheeks, lips, and eyes with the shades of the season, from softly delicate to slightly dramatic. It's beauty made easy, stylish, and effortless - it's the perfect fresh start for Spring. 

Spring days grow longer, as does your daily to-do list. Skip a step with one of AERIN's favorite two-in-one essentials. New limited-edition shades are as easy to blend as they are to wear, enhancing any skin tone with a delicate hint of natural color that blooms on lips and cheeks. 

The presentation of AERIN's items is special. Not in your usual black pouch, AERIN makeup is presented in a signature pink pouch with a silky cord. Very classy!

I looked at Freesia with trepidation when it arrived, thinking, "This experiment better go well." Imagine how excited I was when I saw this on my skin.

It's a pink-leaning peach with a sheen that will delight anyone. I think it's exquisite. Who would have ever pegged that compact to produce this color?

I took my swatch photos in full sun, while I was freezing (notice my veins trying to deliver blood to keep my arm warm?). I applied the cream color with a sponge-tipped applicator. It applies and blends beautifully.

The appearance? I don't know about you, but I think I think this is a gorgeous sheer peach blush, highlighter, lip tint - and even eye shadow.

Even though I have written it before, never judge a color by the way it looks in the tube, compact, or packaging. AERIN's Freesia made me a believer in AERIN's line. Next time I swing by the counter, I will test everything there.

You can purchase items from AERIN's Spring 2013 Color Collection at the Estée Lauder Web site and at Estée Lauder counters (and online) at Neiman Marcus, Bergdorf Goodman, Saks Fifth Avenue, and at AERIN.com.

Photo at top courtesy of AERIN; other photos by Best Things in Beauty

MAC Art Supplies Collection

There's something about this photo that entices me. I'm not sure whether it's the combination of gorgeous colors or the perfection of the image. Those lashes, those eyes, the colors, such beauty! It reeled me in, so I had to see MAC's Art Supplies Collection.

I have a lot of MAC products, but I don't write about them often. The blogosphere is saturated with MAC reviews, and sometimes I feel that MAC is best left to the "younger set." Those gals can wear Barbie pink lipsticks, artsy pigments, and even magenta hair streaks and fit in with their peers. I envy their freedom for playful expression, but I'm smart enough (or old enough) to know that there really is such a thing as "age appropriate."

Not only that, MAC's collections are released with such rapidity, by the time I purchase and get to know a product - give it at least a few days to determine what I think of it - MAC has moved on. My purchase is old news. I would love to tell you about some of my favorite MAC products, but you wouldn't be able to purchase most of them. They have long since been replaced with the products of the moment. So, I buy carefully selected pieces, I enjoy them, and I seldom tell you about them.

Today, I'll change up my routine and tell you about my two latest MAC purchases, both from the Art Supplies Collection, which I "experienced" at Nordstrom, working with Chris Coles and a friendly MAC sales associate who didn't seem at all disinterested because my age was north of 25.

The Greasepaint Sticks ($17.50) were especially packaged for the Art Supplies collection in color-matched casing and packaging. The sticks are available in a selection of eight limited-edition shades. They can be used as shadows or liners, and they offer long-wearing, water-resistant color. MAC calls them creamy crayons with an opalescent sparkle finish formulated for maximum drama. It's easy to see why; you can apply them for ultra-high-level coverage. Although the colors can be intense, they are also controllable. A light touch will yield a light application, and that can be blended out quickly for a more sheer wash of color.

I chose Dirty - conservative and taupe with a touch of gray in it. Dirty is a totally wearable and versatile color! I wanted Greengrease too, simply because the color is gorgeous, but decided it would go into my "seldom worn" pile of cool colors that have limited use. While I might enjoy running around the house with Greengrease eyelids, I'm sure I'd draw stares - even at CVS. Here's a photo of Dirty, smudged and unsmudged, taken under a strong indoor light. The sparkles are reflections of the light and are not characteristic of the makeup.

The collection also features Pro Longwear Lipstain Markers ($16), lightweight lip stains featuring the look and delivery of a color marker. With their felt-tip nibs, they apply with precision to deliver a sheer, instantly absorbed flush of color that can last a long time. They can be used to fill, define, and layer for more color, depending on your mood and needs. MAC says there's no need for a lip liner with these markers, and I agree. The felt tip allows you to draw your line in first if you wish.

I stood at Nordstrom and tested every one of the nine colors on my arm. With an order from my brain to narrow it down to one, I came away with A Classic, the favorite shade of the MAC rep, and a juicy color for summer. A Classic is described on MAC's site as rose red, but I'd call it juicy strawberry.

These really are long-wearing shades. Once applied, they do not just wipe off with a tissue and water. That's a nice feature for summer.

You can still purchase the Art Supplies Collection - at least for now! MAC stores and the MAC Web site have these items, plus the other items in the collection, Pearlglide Intense Eye Liner and Clear Lip Glass. MAC is also available at Nordstrom, Macy's, and Bloomingdale's. Swing by a MAC counter and check out the collection - before it's gone and the latest trend has taken its place. The Art Collection is fun, and it has something for everyone. I think I'd enjoy art classes today more than I did in school.

Photo at top courtesy of MAC