This is the newest palette from Nars which is currently a Saks Exclusive in the US and available to Narscosmetics.com. The palette was sold out on the Nars website for a couple weeks, so I called the Saks Locator to track one down from store stock and had them order it for me. I did speak with Nars Customer Service a couple weeks ago and they said they were expecting another shipment of this palette by today. So check back online shortly!
I don’t have a lot of purples in my eyeshadow stash, so these comparison photos aren’t necessarily dupes, but comparisons.
1. Laura Mercier Primrose 2. MAC Seedy Pearl 3. Nars Charade Duo (darker side) 4. Trish McEvoy Haze 5. MAC Fertile 6. MAC Blackberry 7. Laura Mercier Bordeaux (old version) 8. MAC Velour (discontinued) 9. MAC Shroom 10. Chanel Lotus 11. MAC Bronze 12. Chantecaille Jasper 13. Trish McEvoy Rose Quartz
See my other Nars Palettes, Nars Best, Modern Love, and Essential Eyes here: Nars Palettes = Pure Love
I first saw the new Cle de Peau Eyeshadows in the Saks Beverly Hills back a couple months ago and immediately fell in love with a cool medium dark taupey shimmer #106. I have been eyeing it since then and finally caved in and bought it from my local Neimans. I did not realize until after I got home that the eyeshadow cost $45 for 2.0g/.07 oz. The Extra Silky Lipstick #124 retails for $50 – which is a cool natural pink with slight shimmer.
Here is one of the magazine scans of the other shades:
Overall thoughts: I had tested these out at the counter and the eyeshadow was on the sheer-medium side for pigmentation. It can be layered for more color. I am actually a fan of the Extra Silky Lipsticks for their great nude your lips but better shades which give me pretty shiny lips and flattering colors that make you look refreshed. After coming home with my goodies, I did question my sanity for spending $95 + tax on only two cosmetic items – I don’t usually splurge on Cle de Peau and from now on, I will seriously need to resist temptation and weigh in the costs/benefits more carefully.
For comparison purposes: * Chanel’s single eyeshadows are also 2.0 g/.07 oz and retail for $28.50 * Giorgio Armani Maestro singles are 1.3 g/.04 oz and retail for $28 * Dior’s New Smoothing Singles are .07 oz and retail for $27.50
I picked up the Laura Mercier Essential Orgainzer from Neimans yesterday for their Fall Beauty Event yesterday. The department store gift was fairly disappointing in my opinion, which is usually the case but I still manage to get sucked in because of the gifts within each individual line. The store was packed with lots of customers which I always find suprising because the gifts aren’t really that great yet always manage to draw in a lot of sales.
Anyways, here are pictures of the set and some close ups.
To recap from my previous post, the set retails for $125 and is a Neiman Marcus Exclusive. It contains:
* 12 eyeshadows in the following colors:
Celestial, African Violet and Bamboo Luster Eye Colours Black Plum, Buttercream, Cashmere and Coffee Ground Matte Eye Colours Sandstone, Baroque, Haze, Stellar and Sable Sateen Eye Colours
(The box says that the weight of each shade is .09oz/.2.6g which I find questionable because that is the size/weight of a full sized eyeshadow from Laura Mercier – perhaps the colors in this set are deeper than wide?) * 3 double ended brushes:
Double-ended Eye Color and All Over Eye Color Brush Double-ended Eye Crease and Ponytail Brush Double-ended Smudge and Corner Eye Color Brush
Close up of the top half:
Close up of the bottom half:
Whole set compared to a full sized Laura Mercier Eyeshadow (Primrose shown):
Size comparison of case to a Trish McEvoy Petite Planner & Louis Vuitton Small Agenda:
Neimans gift with purchase: Full sized Mulberry Lip Stain, minis of Flawless Cream, Pistache Cream, lip brush and Candlelight Mineral Shimmer Powder
Left to right: #1 Steel Black, #2 Brown Copper, #3 Gunmetal Grey
The Eyes to Kill Palettes have finally arrived at my local Saks and Neimans and have been selling fast because of Saks Double Points & Neimans’s Beauty Week. Luckily my favorite Saks associate knew I had been asking about these since June so she and the Armani reps put one of each aside for me as soon as they came in.
These should be trickling in online very soon, but so far are currently available at GiorgioArmaniBeauty.com. Here are the product & color descriptions, each palette retails for $58 (for 8 g/.28 oz):
For more pictures and scans from magazines, check out this post Giorgio Armani Eyes to Kill Preview. I have yet to try the Eyes to Kill Mascara, but am planning to pick one up soon so I should be able to report back within the next few weeks about it!
I came home with #1 (taupe/ivory/black), #2 (coppery brown/gold/chocolate), and #3 (dark violet/cool grey/charcoal).
Here are the pictures and swatches:
Close up of #1:
Close up of #2:
Close up of #3:
Overall thoughts: My counter didn’t have testers of these so I had to buy them without trying. Luckily thanks to some other boards, I was able to see swatches before buying. Before I write the rest of my review, I have to say that in addition to being a die-hard Chanel fan, I am also a huge fan of Armani.
I haven’t been able to try these out on the eyes yet, but so far, the pigmentation seems on par with other armani shadows and palettes. Each palette has a good range of finish in the eyeshadow ranging from a high shimmer finish to satin/finish. Those looking for a matte eyeshadow palette might not like these, but the shades aren’t too shimmery or frosty (with the exception of #1). The middle darkest shades are the least shimmery but not completely matte – these seem to be on the sheerer side.
Overall I’m really happy with the palettes. I have been into a major shimmer eyeshadow kick but these are nice because they aren’t overly shimmery or matte. Pigmentation is decent in my opinion. Even though $58 is steep, I am happy with my purchases.
With the exception of the middle shades which are basic black, chocolate and charcoals, the palettes were unique enough that I don’t think I have comparable shades in my current collection.
I highly recommend you call your local Neimans to take advantage of their gift with purchase. The qualifier isn’t too high. Check the neimanmarcus.com website for a picture of their gift which includes a full size shine lipstick, a mini eyes to kill mascara and more. Even if your local neimans doesn’t have these palettes, there are plenty of other fabulous things to try out!
My Neiman Marcus finally received this instore! This is Sylvie’s Personal Palette and retails for $72. It so pretty I don’t want to use it to ruin the surface (the iridescence is the overspray).
For actual swatches, check out Karla Sugar’s awesome Blog. FYI Neiman Marcus has their Beauty Event starting next week so if there are more Chantecaille items, this is a good time to take advantage of the gift. I couldn’t think of more things to get so I decided to pick the palette up yesterday instead of waiting for the event. The gift with purchase for the line is:
They will be having two more incircle events for this year in October/November and December.
1. Paul & Joe Pearl Powder 01 2. Nars Cyprus 3. Benefit Fawn Over Me 4. Dior Beige Print 5. MAC Deckchair 6. Shu Uemura P Brown 820 7. Dior Beige Sunshine 8. MAC Femme-Fi 9. Bobbi Brown Beige Shimmer Wash
Swatches (used a sheer tinted moisturizer as a base):
1. Paul & Joe Pearl Powder 01 2. Nars Cyprus 3. Benefit Fawn Over Me 4. Dior Beige Print 5. Bobbi Brown Beige Shimmer Wash 6. MAC Femme-Fi 7. Shu Uemura P Brown 820 8. Dior Beige Sunshine 9. MAC Deckchair
Received another goodie in the mail yesterday from Sephora.com along with my new shadows which is the DiorShow Black Out Look set which basically their Black Out Mascara that comes in a soft black tied pouch and a mini iridescent quint of Smoky Light 019. The set retails for $24 so you basically get that cute quint for free.
I’m a huge fan of Dior Mascaras, I actually prefer Iconic and DiorShow, but couldn’t pass on this cute quint.
I have seen this on various e-bay international seller auctions and have been looking all over to see if they have this quint in a full size, but I believe it’s only in the mini size right now. I haven’t had a chance to test it out, but it seems like what I wanted Sky Glow to be (that is the quint minus that powder blue shade which I know I will never wear).
Has anyone seen this in full size or know any other details? I think I would be in heaven if this came out in full size, even more so than when they released the Leather Palette for Eyes and Iridescent Leather quint.
* Due to the uber-tiny size of this, I probably won’t be swatching the palette. Thanks for understanding!
