NARS Summer 2016 Collection – swatches and review
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NARS Sizzles Into Summer
Summer is here! Or it might as well be. The temperatures here in Los Angeles have surged to the upper eighties. Summer fashions are in the shop windows, and summer makeup collections are on the shelves. I just got my hands on some of NARS Summer 2016 Collection and I can tell you that it runs the gamut from ultra cool to hot, hot, hot!
Normally, this is the part where I talk about the company, but NARS is so iconic (can you say Orgasm?) that I’m going to skip that part. Seriously, if you don’t know NARS, suffice it to say that it’s never less than exceptional.
Partnering with contemporary artist Konstantin Kakanias, François Nars’ love of the lens meets the glamorous glare of the French Riviera for this 10 piece collection. Inspired by the sensational whirl of an editorial photo shoot, each limited-edition piece captures high fashion moments steeped in exclusivity and ease.
So, yes, ultra cool to hot, hot, hot. I’ll start things off on the cool side—the Deep End, if you will. Actually, I received two of NARS’ Dual-Intensity Eyeshadows ($29) from the Summer 2016 Collection: Deep End and Topless. Both eyeshadows are satiny with a buttery, cream-to-powder feel, and both are packed with a very sophisticated kind of shimmer. These are medium opacity shadows.
Topless is a pale, peachy beige—like what’s under an Irish gal’s bikini top. Those of us of darker hues will find this a great highlighting shadow, while paler folks will find it a lovely nude.
Deep End is a shimmery turquoise—like the translucent waters of the Caribbean, but with a touch of the iridescence of a silvery-skinned tropical fish. I’m saving this one for when my faux tan is in full summery swing. My still wintery pastiness can’t quite handle this much cool yet.
These shadows are served up in small, rubberized square compacts (1.5 in.), each containing a small mirror. The compacts are also magnetized so that stacking doesn’t mean falling or breaking. Nice touch!
One thing my pasty, still-winter skin can handle is an awesome red lip color. Red is my signature lip color, and finding a good one isn’t quite as easy as it seems. NARS Lip Cover in Do Not Disturb ($28) deserves a place at the top of my shortlist.
Lip Cover, a brand new formula to the line, is a very highly pigmented liquid lip color with a doe foot applicator. The color glides on ultra smooth while feeling quite light. Do Not Disturb is a rich orange-red, deep and fiery. The finish is almost matte, but with a little more luster—like your lips have been out dancing.
Lip Cover in Do Not Disturb, Dual-Intensity Eyeshadow in Deep End and Topless
NARS is dragging us out of the cold with one hot summer collection.
we heartsters, what are your favorite summer colors for eyes and lips?
Wow, that’s serious pigmentation! I love NARS! This has just been added to my make-up radar list!
The Lip Cover looks awesome; definitely want to try that! Deep End is gorgeous too: I can’t pull off shades like that on my whole lid, but I bet that would look mermaid-y and pretty as liner.
For now, I used Deep End in the crease and corner with a brown lidcolor. It’s a great pop! It was def too much on the entire lid while my skin is still so pale. I do think that with a (fake) glow on my face and body, it will do fine as an all-over lid color, though.
Here’s a little wht story for you…when samples come in, I photograph them, then send them to the team of writers for review. I often “oooooooo” over the items, and the swatches, but most times I can move on and just be happy with what I already have. Not the case with Do Not Disturb Lip Cover. I could not get this out of the head once I sent it to @sherrishera – the perfect orangey red, the perfect matte texture, that swatch haunted me. I bought it within 2 weeks. It’s a must-have, folks. Even for someone who owns more red lipsticks than she can count.
I am forever in your debt, @stef! Truly one of my favorite reds EVAH!
“like what’s under an Irish gal’s bikini top”…dying. What a perfect description. (and lovely shade too)
For some reason, the site isn’t saving my login so I can leave a comment here, so here we go—
Great post, @sherrishera! I’m really loving NARS’s latest collection and I’m having a difficult time narrowing down the key items I want/need from it. I know I need the shadow in Deep End but I’m going to have to swatch in person to narrow down which red lip from this collection I need. Everything is so pretty, I hate having to choose. Like, “I will take all of it.” is a choice, too, right? :D
Oh @Krista, you will love it. This one is in my top three reds of all-time!
I don’t need another red… but I have to have Do Not Disturb! It looks like something Bettie Page would wear. I love that it’s not-quite-matte. Great review, @sherrishera!