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NARS Melusine Eyeshadow Duo Review, Photos, Swatches (Holiday 2010)

NARS Melusine Eyeshadow Duo
NARS Melusine Eyeshadow Duo

NARS Holiday 2010: Melusine Eyeshadow Duo

NARS Melusine Eyeshadow Duo ($32.00 for 0.14 oz.) is one of two new and permanent products from NARS’ Holiday Collection (the other is Sex Appeal). NARS describes these shades as “pale silver lilac” and “bright deep purple.”

From NARS: In folklore tales, a melusine was described as a feminine, free spirited woman. Similarly, this duo eyeshadow is an ultra-modern union of two colors working in harmony. Sweep the bright deep purple across the lid and highlight under brow with the pale silver lilac.

First things first–this is by no means a dupe for NARS Daphne. The swatch tells the whole story! Daphne is a brightened violet with blue undertones, while Melusine (the purple side, of course!) is an eggplant purple with red undertones. Bottom line: they are quite distinct.

The light shade of the duo is a silvery gray, and if I look close enough, I can make out the finest misting of lilac–so light that it’s almost pink. On cooler skin tones, I imagine the lilac will be more pronounced, but the effect is still quite subtle. The finish is a frosted shimmer, smooth overall, but does have shimmer kick up. The darker shade is a rich eggplant purple with red undertones and has a matte finish. It swatches better than Daphne did, but they’re both lovely in use–very rich, smooth, and true-to-color.

I threw this duo on before running some errands, and I had three sweet ladies compliment me on my eyeshadow. There is a lot of contrast in the duo, with the silvered shade being so much lighter than the deeper purple, so it works well on its own. When I wore it, I wore the silvery shade all over the lid with the purple hue in the crease (to highlight, I used Burberry Trench Eyeshadow, which is just my-skintone-but-better!). I’ll try and post that look soon!

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  • Product: 27/30
  • Value: 8/10
  • Ease of Use: 4/5
  • Packaging: 4/5

RECOMMENDATION: I think as a duo these shades work really well together; you have the mix of textures, nice contrast, and overall, two nicely pigmented, smooth textured eyeshadows.

AVAILABILITY: NARS

NARS Melusine Eyeshadow Duo
NARS Melusine Eyeshadow Duo

NARS Melusine Eyeshadow Duo
NARS Melusine Eyeshadow Duo

NARS Melusine Eyeshadow Duo
NARS Melusine Eyeshadow Duo

NARS Melusine Eyeshadow Duo
NARS Melusine Eyeshadow Duo

NARS Melusine Eyeshadow Duo
NARS Daphne / NARS Melusine Eyeshadow Duo

20 Comments

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Comments on this post are closed.
dolce aria Avatar

Yeah. I’m a little disappointed. I LIKED their old system! I don’t mind waiting for a product I know I’ll like, so long sa it’s back, eventually…. And if they’re going through all the trouble of developing colors and formulas, it seems like it would capitalize on that investment more to KEEP offering it for purchase. I don’t totally understand the psychology behind the way that companies like MAC and UD handle their LE launches. And I don’t like the idea of NARS converting to it.

Lady Slatternly Avatar

I have this… the silvery lilac color is amazing, very dimensional on the lid. It’s a very “NARS” finish– almost like you can see a matte gray underneath, with the metallic part sitting on top. It goes well with the purple as an upper lid eyeliner (using water or a mixing medium).

Alexis Avatar

Yeah the Melusine is definitely more traditional purple (IMO)> I’ll be going to a NARS event tomorrow at Nordstrom – I’ll be sure to ask the MA to try this out on me.

Megan B Avatar

I got this during a F&F haul and have to say I LOVE IT! I wear it every other day and tried it with the Nars Etrusque and got so many compliments with the gold and purple duo!!! I am still debating on getting the Nars Okinawa Trio to complete my holiday haul but am afraid it might just be too blue and already have a ton of silver and black.

kate Avatar

beautiful! did you find that the purple applied a bit more smoothly than Daphne does? I’m not totally inept, but I had a lot of application issues with Daphne going on streaky.

knownever Avatar

Ooohhh. All too often I’m turned off by the color combos (though not the individual colors themselves) in NARS eyeshadow duos, but this one I’m definitely understanding the vibe it’s going for.

aradhana Avatar

so pretty.esp. the purple….but i think the lilac will not be so wearable on me…maybe i should just break out my fig.1 and nocturnelle instead….

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