Saving MAC Heroine

MAC Heroine is my favorite MAC lipstick, not just that I own, but my favorite of all of them. There's a reason for that, not just the beautiful bright purple color, but also because Heroine was nearly my first MAC lipstick and first MAC product altogether. I say nearly because what had happened was my family had gone on a shopping trip in mid April on a Wednesday, and I was incredibly excited because the new MAC collections at the time, MAC Tres Cheek and Reel Sexy, were releasing.

What I didn't realize until I got to the MAC counter was that I'd gotten the date wrong and was a day early. I ended up leaving with Viva Glam Nicki but was incredibly crushed that I wouldn't be able to purchase the blush I wanted, Full of Joy.

Where I live to get to a MAC counter it's at least a good hour, and that involves a long and complicated drive through the city. It ended up the next day my mother needed to go close to the city to get some things at Costco, and with a little bit of hinting she drove all the way to the mall and the MAC counter.

My heart exploded, I purchased both Full of Joy from Tres Cheek and Heroine from Reel Sexy.

Heroine is still special to me to this day because I remember the intense joy I felt both buying it and wearing it, the happiness that my mother went through such trouble to let me purchase the makeup I wanted.

Then in August, tragedy struck. I wore Heroine out for the day and stuck it in my denim vest pocket. The vest was washed, Heroine with it. It was a sad, melted mess.

Nonetheless, I kept the bullet and held onto it, either in hopes maybe I could use it with a lip brush (which I never did) or in hopes it'd be re-released (which it has been, but I missed out on it with the Fashion Sets and did not get around to buying it when it went permanent earlier this year).

It remained fairly untouched until now, since I've been cleaning out some of my make-up drawer, as I am moving shortly. Tonight I was in the process of cleaning a MAC foundation sample from one of their cute little sample jars, when inspiration struck. The jar was adorable, and I loved the little MAC logo on the lid, but I wanted to put something MAC-related in it if I was going to keep it.

But what?

And that is when I decided that tonight I would save my tube of Heroine after over a year and a half of mourning.

Under the cut is the photo essay of my clumsy but heartfelt project.