NARS

NARS is killing it this season with yet more pretty palettes for summer. They just launched called Heat of the Night Summer Edit with two Face Palettes in Summer Lights and Hot Nights along with new colors of Satin Lip Pencil and Velvet Matte Lip Pencil. The palettes are truly phenomenal in terms of pigment, blendability and color selection. They’re pretty for summer to add warmth and glow. Lip pencils offer bold color deeper than I’m used to wearing but are still nice everyday kind of neutrals. The collection is limited-edition and is available now at Sephora and NARS.

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Summer Lights Face Palette

The Summer Lights Face Palette ($59 for 3.2 g x 4 eyeshadows, 7.1 g x 2 for cheeks) is the lighter option of the two palettes with four eyeshadows, a soft highlighter and matte bronzer. Everything is a powder formula with super soft textures that are easy to blend. If you already own the Skin Deep Eye Palette you might want to skip both of these as you’ll find similar color options. However these palettes do have a really nice lighter shimmer shade for eyes combined with the cheek colors they make for excellent travel companions. In the Summer Lights Face Palette:

• Rainwater Eyeshadow is a shimmery taupe beige
• Hibiscus Eyeshadow is a yellow bronze shimmer
• Papeete Eyeshadow is a terracotta bronze
• Hei Eyeshadow is a satiny cool brown shimmer
• Paper Flower Highlighting Blush Powder is a warm champagne shimmer
• Destination Unknown Bronzing Powder is a neutral soft matte brown

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Hot Nights Face Palette

The Hot Nights Face Palette is the deeper option of the two with bolder eye colors ($59 for 3.2 g x 4 eyeshadows, 7.1 g x 2 for cheeks). It’s not too dark for me to wear I still prefer the lighter option. I think this will definitely work better for deeper skin tones to show up more. Colors in the Hot Nights:

• Pacific Eyeshadow is a pink champagne beige shimmer
• Paradis Eyeshadow is a violet bronze shimmer
• Maeva Eyeshadow is a reddish cranberry shimmer
• Black Sand Eyeshadow is a deep purple shimmer
• Tautira Highlighting Blush Powder is a shimmering rose gold tan
• Manihi Bronzing Powder is a matte medium bronze

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Velvet Matte Lip Pencils

There are four shades of Velvet Matte Lip Pencils. These have medium coverage with a velvety matte finish. The pigment is buildable to cover the entire lip.

• Good Times is a nude beige matte
• Take Me Home is a terracotta color
• Promiscuous is a hot bright deep pink
• Dance Fever is a 90’s matte brown

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Satin Lip Pencils

I haven’t used a Satin Lip Pencil in so long I forgot how much I liked the creamy formula! They have a nice shine finish and very pretty smooth coverage. Colors run darker than I’d normally wear but they’re a nice bolder option for summer:

• Balboa is a plum cream rose
• Giusti is a medium rose
• Golden Gate is a cool grey mauve pink
• Exbury is a soft creamy warm rose

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Makeup look wearing the Armani Power Fabric Balm in 6.5 (review here), La Mer Loose Powder to set, NARS Summer Lights Palette on Eyes and Cheeks, Tom Ford Emotionproof Mascara, NARS Take Me Home Pencil. Top by Nation LTD.

Overall a solid collection of easy to wear bronzey shades for summer. I tend to like brighter lighter colors for lips so most of the lip colors were outside my comfort zone. They’re still neutral and easy to wear for a more dramatic but still neutral lip look. I really like the Summer Lights Palette – it’s enough to give me a complete beachy bronze look. I feel like I need a little more color so I’ve added blush in addition to the palette, but other than that these make for great summery looks. The compacts are sturdy and have large enough pans to dip a brush into. Yet they’re compact enough to travel with.

Quality and lasting power is really good, true to NARS powder shadows and lip pencils. For me the palettes lasted all day on the face for a good solid 7 hours without fading. Lips are always tricky to test as I’m constantly snacking, drinking or wiping my face to do swatch tests. They do stay put as long as your lips don’t touch things.

You can find the NARS Summer 2019 collection out now. Available at Sephora and NARS.

NARS Summer collection provided courtesy of NARS for review consideration.

There’s a lot of newness from NARS this spring to summer. I’m working my way through all the launches, I feel like I just blinked and so many palettes just popped up! I have a look at the Fever Dream Collection which is a Nordstrom exclusive. There is a super cute mini nude Lip Tint Trio called Lusted which has three sheer glossy lip tints. I was sent the two limited-edition eye and cheek palettes and they far surpassed my expectations! For those who want that neutral look that isn’t too warm or red-pink like the colors that seem to have flooded the market in the last year this collection is worth checking out. In today’s post:

• Fever Dream Lusted Lip Tint Trio ($30 for 0.12 oz/3.5 ml x 3)
• Wild Thing Face Palette ($49 for 0.04 oz/1.2 g x 4 for the eyes, 0.13 oz/3.8 g x 2 for the cheeks)
• Lost in Luster Face Palette ($49 for 0.04 oz/1.2 g x 4 for the eyes, 0.13 oz/3.8 g x 2 for the cheeks)

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Lip Tint Trio

The Fever Dream Lusted Lip Tint Trio offers three neutral nudes in a sheer glossy tint with a balmy feel. The same formula launched in the Lip Duos from Exposed Collection from Ulta (reviewed here). Colors in this trio include:

• Stoked a neutral nude pink
• Hot Memory a sheer warm nude peach
• Escape Plan a sheer pale peach

Colors are very sheer and offer a soft wash of color. I think they’re perfect for an effortless nude but I think some of you may find them too sheer for your liking. For me they’re truly your lips but better kind of tints. If you need more pigment I’d recommend opting for some of the Chanel Rouge Coco Gloss neutrals like 714 Caresse or 716 Caramel (reviewed and swatched here) or NARS Velvet Lip Glides (some swatched here) which offer more coverage. Lasting power is not extensive. I can get a couple hours of wear but need to reapply which I actually don’t mind. The mini size means I’m going to use them up easily! There’s no scent or taste.

Swatch comparisons:

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Lost in Luster Face Palette

Lost in Luster Face Palette is something I had low expectations for because I swatched it in store and it had really poor color payoff. The pans must have been hardened though from testers being touched by so many fingers though because I tried mine at home and was pleasantly surprised. It’s a true neutral with four shadows, a soft highlight and the perfect soft pink glow for blush. The eyeshadows need a creamy base to show up on my lids but they apply really nicely as long as my eyes aren’t dry. I feel like the eye will need another deeper shadow or liner for a complete look. The perfect liner to add to this is the Marc Jacobs Highliner Gel Crayon in Ro(Cocoa) which is my favorite neutral taupe shimmer liner to wear for something that isn’t black or brown. Colors in the palette:

• As You Please is a soft beige brown (applies more true to pan on the eyes, for some reason it darkened on my arm swatch)
• Let Go is a medium taupe brown matte
• Dazed is the perfect champagne shimmer
• Free Fall is a neutral taupe shimmer
• Free to Fly is a cool champagne pink shimmer highlighter
• Crush is a soft warm pink shimmer blush

Below wearing the Lost in Luster Face palette on eyes and cheeks, Lips have Stoked and Hot Memory layered together. Foundation worn is the NARS Natural Radiant Longwear Foundation in Punjab and Vanuatu mixed. Concealer to cover redness is the Radiant Creamy Concealer in Ginger. Tank is an older style from Madewell. Nail polish is OPI Tiramisu for Two.

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Wild Thing Face Palette

Wild Thing Face Palette is the warmer option. Don’t let the orange blush scare you because it is easy to blend and adds nice warmth. Still I think if you’re fair you might find this a little too warm. If you’re medium or deep skin this is going to be a really lovely neutral warm bronze peach palette. I wish I had brought this with me to Miami because it has everything for a complete look.

Colors in this one include:

• Alive is a warm brown matte
• Psyched is a a deeper matte warm cocoa
• Erratic is a shimmery neutral warm gold
• Lala is a shimmering warm neutral brown
• No Limit is a shimmering soft gold highlighter
• Goddess Complex is a golden orange shimmer

Swatches:

Overall a solid easy to wear collection of colors perfect for spring to summer. Based on everything I’ve tested combined with a peek at what’s coming out for summer I can’t say that I’d call any of these absolute must-haves just based on the unique factor. Colors are standard ones that I think can be duped with previous launches and existing colors. Still performance, quality and pigment for the palettes are excellent. They’re easy to wear and each option has enough for a natural glowy look without being overdone or too frosty. Colors are perfect for the beginner makeup wearer and size is ideal for travel. There are new summer palettes out which I’ll be reviewing soon which have a similar concept (eyes and cheeks) for a more bronzed look. I haven’t tested them yet so keep an eye out for the review.

I really love the lip tints but they are sheer and so natural looking you might think they’re too sheer. If you’re into the no makeup makeup look they will be perfect for you. Otherwise I’d say pass.

I get tons of emails from new readers asking for recommendations on what to wear for something who is just getting into makeup and wants to know what to wear for a natural goof-proof look. I think this collection fits that bill. Even with all the dupes I find myself really loving how effortless Lost in Luster is!

You can find the NARS Fever Dream Collection out now at Nordstrom. Everything is limited-edition.

NARS face palettes provided for review. Lip trio purchased by me.

The NARS Exposed Color Collection just launched with limited-edition shades for lips and cheeks. There’s an Exposed Cheek Palette ($59) and three Explicit Color Lip Duos ($22 each) with mini-sized Velvet Matte Lip Pencils and Lip Tints. Swatches of everything below. The collection is exclusive to Ulta Beauty and online at NARS Cosmetics.

The Exposed Cheek Palette has that unique cream to powder finish NARS has in their dual intensity blushes, but most of the colors are satiny and glowy in finish (versus frost). It has a similar texture and pigment level to their Holiday Hot Tryst Cheek Palette, but the colors aren’t as shimmery for spring. Colors have medium but buildable coverage. On my skin tone the two pinks look nearly identical, if you’re fairer I suspect you’ll see more of a difference. The exterior packaging is so pretty with the pink, orange and pearl swirls.

Colors include:

• Tell All is a shimmery champagne
• Now or Never is medium nude peach
• Give It Away is a soft brown rose
• Make You Mine is a perfect apricot peach
• Come Hither is a shimmery pink rose
• New Fling is a deeper shimmery rose

For lips they have three Explicit Color Lip Duos with a small miniature Velvet Lip Glide and a new formula called Lip Tint. The pencil and gloss match each color in color. I owned Sex Machine many years ago and it’s been a while since I looked into the pencils in general. The formula is on the dry side for my lips, color is sheerer for the lighter natural shades, but the reds and bolds have phenomenal coverage and color payoff. I wish the neutrals applied better alone for me. The Lip Tints are medium-sheer almost balmy like glosses. They have a very lightweight almost slip like feel. I love the effect when the pencil and gloss are layered. It feels comfortable and cushiony, but so much so it feels like it’s going to slide off my lips. Good news is the colors do stay put but they’re not transfer proof.

There are three options:

• Intriguing is a beige rose
• Sex Machine is a neutral mauve pink
• Dragon Girl is a red with pink tones

Colors layered together on bare lips:

Two makeup looks below wearing:

• NARS Radiant Longwear Foundation in Punjab + Vanuatu mixed (I’m in between shades)
• Armani Neo Nude Powder #4 to set
• Anastasia Brow Wiz in Caramel
• NARS Exposed Cheek Palette with Tell All, Now or Never and Give it Away layered
• Left lips: NARS Explicit Lip Duo in Sex Machine
• Right lips: NARS Explicit Lip Duo in Dragon Girl

Overall fresh and pretty for spring! Colors are very wearable and I love that they aren’t overly frosted but still glowy. Love the concept of matching pencils and gloss to layer together. I’m not sure I would call any of these must-haves. Even though the palette is super wearable I feel like the colors have a similar vibe to previous NARS launches. I’m not the biggest fan of the Velvet Matte Lip Pencil formula but I really like the three colors for this launch. The Lip Tint has an interesting feel – it’s super lightweight and glossy. I would have preferred them in the Velvet Lip Glide formula instead for more impact but it’s still nice and fresh for a spring feel.

You can find the NARS Exposed Collection out now. Exclusive to Ulta Beauty and NARS Cosmetics. Have you checked out anything yet? What did you think?

NARS Exposed Collection provided for review.

NARS recently launched a couple new things including their Skin Deep Eye Palette ($59 for 12 x 0.12 oz/ 3.5 g) + Super Radiant Booster ($30 for 30 ml/1 fl oz). I bought them the minute they launched and they are both really lovely. Thoughts, review + swatches on each one below. I think the products and formula are excellent with naturally flattering easy to wear colors.

Super Radiant Booster in Isola Rossa

The Super Radiant Booster in Isola Rossa is a fluid highlighter that is a soft gold shimmer. It’s described as “a universal rose gold” shade but to me it’s more golden on me, I barely see any rose. It has a very lightweight texture, it’s easy to blend and layer and dries fairly fast on my skin. Finish is luminous but dry down leaves little to no moisture which is a plus if you have oily skin. It almost has a powder dry down but it’s not dry or super matte.

I tried this as a highlighter. You can definitely mix it in with foundation but these days I wear medium to full coverage finishes. The added radiance will be more noticeable when mixing if you mix it with sheerer finish formulas. It was really easy to apply and blend with finger tips. I tried it over just foundation and on top of a foundation + powdered face. It applies nicely without disturbing or rubbing away your base which is a plus.

Swatched out of the tube vs blended:

There’s no detectable scent to me. It goes on smoothly, there’s no streaking, no emphasizing of pores, it’s a beautiful color and product. Lasting power is really good, it stays put all day. The only thing I wish is that it came in the same packaging as their regular Illuminators so you can see how much is left/gone. There is a small clear strip at the base which is nice so you can see the color of the actual product. I’m not entirely sure what the difference is between this new Super Radiant Booster versus their original Illuminators. I personally feel this new one has a little more pigment and more radiance, but they seem really similar.

Color swatch comparisons to:

• Marc Jacobs Coconut Drops Highlighter in Dew You?
• Charlotte Tilbury Wonderglow Face Primer
• L’Oreal True Match Lumi Glotion 902 Light Glow
• L’Oreal Visible Lift Serum Tint 803
• Fresh Instant Glow Luminizer in Sunset (this looks the closest to the NARS straight out of the tube, but this is heavily scented and more dewy and sheers out on the skin more)
• MAC Strobe Cream in Goldlite*

Look wearing just the Super Radiant Skin Booster on cheeks to show you how it looks alone. More color added in the look if you scroll down. Also wearing:

• Foundation is Beautyblender Bounce Foundation in 3.60
• Concealer is NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer in Ginger
• Powder is Charlotte Tilbury Airbrush Flawless Finish Pressed Powder in 2
• Highlight is just the NARS Super Radiant Booster
• Brows are Anastasia Brow Powder Duo in Taupe
• Mascara is NARS Climax Mascara *
• Eyeshadow is the NARS Skin Deep Palette
• Lip Color is NARS Velvet Lip Glide in Swing applied all over lip with a little bit of Unlaced mixed in
• One-Shoulder Sweater is from Abercrombie
• Nail Polish worn is OPI Samoan Sand

Skin Deep Eye Palette

Nail polish is Samoan Sand, Eyeshadow Brush is Chanel

Next is the Skin Deep Eye Palette. I ran to my local stores to try and buy this as soon as it launched but none of the counters or stores near me had it. I ordered sight unseen online and it’s swatches a little different than all the promotional photos I’ve seen but I still really love it. NARS launched a few videos showing how this looks on a few different skin tones which I think are great to give you ideas on how to use. I fall somewhere in the middle of skin tone range and this pulls warm but not too warm. If you’re fair this will pull significantly more warm on you. If you’re deeper in skin tone I think this will be a winner and still show up on your skin. A couple of the colors have a similar vibe to the Loaded Eyeshadow Palette from a while ago. This year’s Skin Deep Eye Palette is a more modern rosy version.

This new palette has a mix of new and existing colors. All the shades performed really well with smooth even coverage and good pigment. Blending is easy and even though this pulls warm I still find it very wearable. I’m normally a little irritated when brands repeat a lot of shades but I think these are nice options to own.

Colors:

• Taunt is a medium matte cream beige
• Sophia is a warm soft brown
• Whipped is a reddish matte brown
• Undressed is a soft cool matte light brown taupe
• Bali is a matte neutral brown
• Icon is a shimmering champagne
• Basic Instinct is a shimmering soft rose
• Coconut Grove is a deep matte brown
• Centerfold is a shimmery metallic grey
• Calender Girl is a shimmering bronze gold
• Faster Pussycat is a warm copper red shimmer
• Unbuttoned is a shimmery deep brown

I really love this one. I think I could probably find similar colors in the palette in my existing stash but I love the overall look and feel of this one, it’s easy to wear and I love the pigment. Since this runs on the dark side I would have loved it if they had other variations like a Light or Medium palette. This one will suit a wide range of skin tones and I think it will show up even on deeper skin tones. I do think if you’re fair you might find this too deep. My favorite neutral eye palettes are still Urban Decay Naked2 and Naked3 but I get a little bored with using the same colors over and over again so this is a nice variation.

Wearing same colors as listed in the above makeup look photo, only difference is this one has the Hourglass Incandescent Electra blush added on cheeks for more color. Top is the One-Shoulder Sweater from Abercrombie.

Closer detail photos of the eye makeup. I’m wearing the colors Taunt all over the eye as a base, Icon and Basic Instinct Mixed applied 1/2 way up the lid, Sophia + Faster Pussycat mixed and applied closer to lash blended up, Faster Pussycat + Coconut Grove applied along lower lash line, Coconut Grove used as a liner.

Bottom line is I love both. The formulas perform really well for me and I’m really liking the overall look and vibe of the palette. Colors for both the eye palette and highlighter aren’t super unique but they work as is without any added mixing required. I think it’s really challenging for brands to create color palettes that are truly “universally” flattering but based on the videos I’ve seen I was really impressed to see how these perform on a wide range of skin tones.

I don’t know that I’d call these must-haves. I own a lot of other palettes and neutrals and I suspect you do as well. If I did some digging I could most likely find dupes. I am really happy with these purchases and have no regrets. The palette applies better than I anticipated. Looking at the compact straight out of the box I thought it would be a little boring and too dark but it turned out to be very wearable for me! I also don’t think we need any more highlighters but I don’t think there’s going to be any slowing down with the new launches. The Super Radiant Booster is really lovely. I love that it adds glow in a visible way without being too frosty. I love the dry down and color. It won’t disrupt your base if you apply on top. It’s a flattering color on my skin tone. So even with the million options I own I think this is a good one, but at this point it’s very hard for me to call any a must given all the other options that have been previously launched.

You can find both the NARS Skin Deep Palette and Super Radiant Booster out now. Both are limited-edition. I bought mine from Nordstrom and Sephora. Also available at NARS Cosmetics, Ulta Beauty, Bloomingdale’s, Barneys New York, Neiman Marcus and all other NARS retailers.