Beauty with a Cause: MAC Viva Glam Event for World Aids Day// 發自內心的美麗: MAC與世界愛滋病日

Many beauty brands make contributions to being cruelty-free, protecting the Earth, raising breast cancer awareness, etc. yet which does actually go full length and donate 100% of proceeds from their sales? Well, for every MAC Viva Glam lipstick/gloss sold, every penny goes to support the MAC AIDS Fund. To date, over US$228 Million was donated via the sales of Viva Glam series. It was World Aids Day a while ago (sorry it took me a long time to post this since I was really busy with work!) and I was lucky enough to be asked by my beauty pal Rach, to meet James Molloy - the Regional Director of MAC Asia Pacific, doing a demo on a model with various classic Viva Glam shades.

市場上很多品牌以保護地球, 不作動物測試等為豦頭, 但又有那個品牌會做全套 - 把100%來自銷售的收益全數捐予慈善用途? 不講不知, 售出的 MAC Viva Glam 唇膏和唇彩的收益都會每分每毫撥進MAC愛滋病基金作慈善用途, 用以支持愛滋病團體. 不久之前MAC就著世界愛滋病日發起了關注運動 (因本女子事忙, 現在才清稿, 實在不好意思!), 我才有機會認識 MAC 亞太區的總監和化妝師 - James Malloy. 他當日即時在model 唇上示範如何用Viva Glam的顏色打造經典紅唇look.

James shared some of his tips in creating the perfect, long-lasting pout. He suggested patting Prep + Prime powder on top of the lipstick to give it a matte and stay-put finish. His favourite shade was the Viva Glam V, which he said, was a universally flattering shade for women of all skin tones. Speaking of reds, I don't own a red lipstick so far. It's unbelievable yeah? Reds are a bit daring for most Asian skin, and it's the last thing I want to be caught wearing in fact, come on I've not reached that age! Anyhow, under the influence of James saying how flattering it is, I made a mental note of swatching that shade while I'm at the counters later!

James 分享他的心得 - 要令唇妝持久, 可在塗畢唇色後輕輕拍上MAC Prep + Prime Powder, 令質感變matte之餘亦有定妝用途. 他最喜愛的顏色是 Viva Glam V, 因其色調在任何膚色種族的面上都會好看. 說到鮮紅色唇膏, 本女子目前為止都未曾擁有, 很難相信吧? 個人覺得亞洲人的膚色很難carry 鮮紅色, 更不要說我還未到那個年紀要塗鮮紅色呢. 不過既然師傅講到 Viva Glam V 咁 '掂', 就聽下James教路, 下次去counter時試上手看看有幾容易配搭啦!

(James demonstrating how to create a red lip on Rach, i.e. fair skins)

I was given the latest release of Viva Glam Gaga 2, both the lipstick and the lipgloss to try on. I actually debated whether to get this or not when it was released last spring, but was worrying that it'd make me look wash out. However after trying, I was convinced that Viva Glam shades are quite universally flattering on almost every skin shade, you'll see why in the pics below.

就係咁, 我帶著 Viva Glam Gaga 2 唇膏和唇蜜回家試下係咪真係咁容易carry. Gaga 2 始終屬於裸色系, 唔小心就會望落好似生病咁, 面青口唇白. 試過後我明白點解James 話Viva Glam 的顏色係適合任何膚色喇.

Below: Perfect nude lip look created by using Viva Glam Gaga 2. A look I couldn't imagine myself wearing ever since I started using lip products!

下圖以Gaga 2來達到裸唇色的look, 發夢也沒有想過會塗得起這種裸唇色調!

Swatches: Viva Glam Gaga 2 Lipglass (above) and Viva Glam Gaga 2 Lipstick (Amplified)

試色圖: Gaga 2 唇蜜 (上), Gaga 2 唇高 (Amplified)

Viva Glam Gaga 2 is a subtle yet noticeable soft beige with pink hues to it, which I guess was why it didn't make me look washout. Pigmentation is high since the formula belongs to the Amplified family.

Viva Glam Gaga 2 是隻低調棕啡帶有粉紅的顏色, 所以塗上後都不會令人 '冇精神'. 由於 Gaga 2屬於Amplified 系列的 formula, 因此上色度很高.

Applied with Gaga 2 lipglass on top:

塗上 Gaga 2 唇膏 + 唇蜜後:

Just one try and I'm hooked with the nude lip look! Oh Viva Glam Gaga 2, thy incredible pigmentation, flattering color, and most importantly, the beauty cause behind it, deserve some praise! The latest spokesperson from MAC for Viva Glam Campaign is Ricky Martin and Nicki Minaj - aren't you ants-ing in your pants what shades they're gonna release when the time comes?!

試過這次裸唇look 後便著迷了! Viva Glam Gaga 2 的魔力果然很強, 不單上色度高, 背後的慈善用意比產品效果更大. 最新的 Viva Glam 代言人是Ricky Martin 和 Nicki Minaj, 不知道MAC 來臨的Viva Glam 系列會推出怎樣的顏色, 如何令所有膚色的人塗上都會好看呢?!