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JackieG24 Avatar
JackieG24

So Happy My NARS blush palette is on the way! I was a nordstroms insider thing so they opened the sale early! Do u think your gonna do reviews on any of the things from the sale?

blueraccoon Avatar
blueraccoon

I was so worried about getting the NARS palette I stayed up until midnight specifically so I could purchase it online as soon as the site went live. Well, I got it, and now it’s out of stock, so I think my fear was justified. (Although I would have stayed up late anyway; I’m a night owl.) Can’t wait to try it out.

blueraccoon Avatar
blueraccoon

 @Kafka It arrived today! I swatched everything, and I’m really happy with the way Angelika, Orgasm, and even Luster look on my arm. I think Albatross is going to be *gorgeous* if I don’t overuse it–it just matches my skin tone and is lovely, although when I swatched it heavily it got a bit yellow, so I’ll have to be careful. Gaiety was okay, but it’s really pale, like mine is not very pigmented at all. I think on my skin tone it’ll work for a really subtle glow, though. Angelika is this lovely almost rose color, and I’d never have considered a color like Luster on its own, but I like it a lot, I think it’ll be a good fall/winter color. And Orgasm is really pretty, although I’ll have to see how the shimmer does. The only one I don’t think may work for me is Laguna, it seems to be just a bit too orange brown, and I’m afraid it’ll make me look muddy. I’ll have to play with it.

Kafka Avatar
Kafka

 @blueraccoon  Hip, Hip, Hurrah! Hip (Angelika), Hip (Orgasm) & HURRAH (Luster)! 😉    I’m so glad you like them, though I was a bit surprised at Orgasm. Then, I remembered how pale you are. <grin>  Angelika is a bit tea rose-like, I suppose, though I’d never thought of it that way. I’m not at ALL surprised at your comments about Gaiety. You know me and my determination to get massive swathes of the NARS blush collection….. and Gaiety is not on the list.  LOL.   (Well, maybe one day, if I go through everything else.)  But yeah, I keep hearing and seeing just HOW pale it is. I think it takes cool-toned to the level of actual cold-toned. But yours isn’t hyper-pigmented?  Hmm.  I’m trying to remember trying it in Sephora and I think it showed up a lot. Probably because I’m darker than you.  
 
Yay at Albatross making you happy! I ordered Luxor this week which is a Multiple highlighter and I thought of you.  I remembered that discuss with Miss J about Copacabana and I think that Luxor may work even better for you. No worries about potential yellow gold with Luxor; it’s a silver white pink!  Christine has a very positive review about it in the archives. So, if ever Albatross sparks an interest in more NARS highlighters, look for that one. 
 
As for Laguna, if it is too orange-brown for you, perhaps a fan brush will help diffuse it even more? Because when it’s put on very sheerly, it may be better on your paler skin.  That said, one of the “bronzers” I have my eye on — Irrestiblement — is supposedly the “bronzer” for PPP. According to Makeupalley, if you’re ice queen white, this is the perfect brown but then others have said it’s terracotta, so….. ???  Bronzers are such a tricky thing.  I think Nico may be what you’re looking for.  It’s a colour that is so light that it’s really used as a finishing powder by a lot of people.  And Amy swears by Zen as a totally neutral blush that isn’t too brown.    Keep those 2 names in mind for when Christine gets around to reviewing them! 🙂

blueraccoon Avatar
blueraccoon

 @Kafka I am really pale – we’re talking NW15 or even less, I haven’t been matched to MAC in a while. So Orgasm does look pretty soft on me – I sent pictures of swatches to a friend and without knowing what it was, she called that one out as looking really nice. 
Maybe it’s the way I’m swatching? I tried using sponge-tipped applicators but found I got better swatches with just my fingers. Is there another method I should be using to get better swatches? Gaiety looks really pretty in the pan but I can *not* get it to show up as more than a soft flush on my skin.
It’s funny you should mention Luxor – I saw swatches of that, Undress Me, and Copacabana on The Beauty Look Book and thought Luxor might suit me best! I want to go to Sephora or the NARS counter to play with them a bit more. Is it just a Multiple or is it a powder, too? The BLB just had Multiple swatches. Copacabana’s gorgeous but Luxor is a bit more subtle and pinker, which I think works well for me, since I’m a) all about subtle and b) very cool toned.
I have yet to really begin looking for a bronzer, either a regular one or an HG one. I right now have my Burberry Sheer Summer Glow compact, which is more of a highlighter but does have bronzing shades in it, and it’s enough to give me a bit of color and a bit of glow. They have two shades of bronzers, and given my luck with them so far I may check that out. But I’ll experiment with Laguna, and I’ll look for Nico! 🙂

Kafka Avatar
Kafka

 @blueraccoon  When you’re swatching, are you doing it on your arm? Is your arm also NC15?  When I got Outlaw (which is simply spectacular, btw), it swatched so sheerly on my arm but not on my face. It also took about 5-6 brush strokes to wake up the blush or break it out of its virgin newness. But then, no problem. Perhaps Gaiety is the same with you?  When you say sponge-tipped applicators, are you using those actual sponge squares/triangles or is it more of a thing on a stick/wand?  I’m trying to figure out if something is absorbing an extra amount of colour. 
 
What I remember about swatching Gaiety in Sephora is that a ton of colour appeared on my finger but the colour itself just lay there, flat and cool, on my olive skin. I didn’t go beyond that because of the colour being so icy blue-pink. I didn’t really *try* to build it up a lot, but it sounds like you will definitely need to layer and layer. (What a pain!)
 
What I would suggest is using a proper, full, blush brush (or a stiffer type brush like a bronzer blush maybe?), as opposed to the stippling/skunk brushes that most people recommend for NARS. (I have mixed feelings on skunk brushes for NARS.)  
 
You may also want to consider returning the palette and getting, instead, the dual combo from NARS of Albatross and Orgasm. (It’s even available on Amazon, I believe, with free shipping if you have Prime and I think it’s going there for $28).  Then, get Angelika separately. You can get Luster later, in winter, if you like it, though I honestly see it as a more all-year-round colour, if not a summer colour. (But then, I’m an Olive. LOL).  
 
You know what “bronzer” I’m looking into? Kevyn Aucoin’s Natura.  I was just looking at it tonight. You know, you should google that and read the comments on MUA. That may really, really work out for you!
 
And yay for Luxor. Whatever you do, stay far, far FAR away from Undress Me!  Every photo/swatch I’ve seen has shown it to be an utter glitter bomb. One blogger said something to the effect of, “well, maybe it would work for your hair when you’re going clubbing or to a costume party”…..  Yikes!

annedreshfield Avatar
annedreshfield

Did anyone else notice that a lot of the beauty stuff wasn’t at the pre-sale for cardholders? I went back during the full sale and a lot of stuff just magically appeared. Wasn’t a big deal, I was just surprised during the pre-sale! 

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