NARS Thessalonique Duo Eyeshadow Review & Swatches
Thessalonique
NARS Thessaolonique Duo Eyeshadow (2018) ($35.00 for 0.08 oz.) is a new, permanent duo featuring a pale, shimmery pink and a faded mauve. This particular duo will be best suited for someone who uses eyeshadow primer and prefers softer color and/or more buildable mid-tone shades.
Thessalonique
PPermanent. $35.00.
Thessalonique I
Thessalonique I is a pale, pinky-beige base with cooler, iridescent pink shimmer that gave it a more frosted finish. It had good pigmentation, though a little shy of full coverage, with a soft, slightly denser consistency that was still easy to pick up and apply to bare skin. It wore well for eight hours on me before fading noticeably.
FURTHER READING: Formula Overview for details on general performance and characteristics (like scent).
Top Dupes
- NARS Haedus (DC, $25.00) is more shimmery (90% similar).
- KVD Beauty Opal (PiP, ) is more shimmery (90% similar).
- Dior Devilish #2 (LE, ) is cooler (90% similar).
- ColourPop GRLFRND (LE, $4.50) is more shimmery (90% similar).
- ColourPop Super Cool (P, $9.00) is more shimmery (90% similar).
- Too Faced Unicorn Tears (LE, $16.00) is more shimmery (90% similar).
- Tom Ford Beauty Ripe Plum (Left) (LE, ) is more shimmery (90% similar).
- ColourPop Silver Crystal (LE, $4.50) is more shimmery, darker, more muted (85% similar).
- ColourPop Snuzzle (LE, $4.50) is more shimmery, warmer (85% similar).
- NABLA Cosmetics Philosophy (PiP, ) is more shimmery, warmer (85% similar).
Formula Overview
$19.00/0.04 oz. - $475.00 Per Ounce
The formula is supposed to have "rich, high-impact color" that is "lightweight" and has "increased blendability." Like most larger ranges, there are winners and losers, and some of how they perform can be related to the type of finish. The mattes are soft, slightly dusty in the pans (or not at all) with medium to opaque, often buildable, color coverage. The satin and metallics tend to be smoother, more blendable, and more pigmented with less effort; NARS does the these lower shimmer finishes particularly well, which just looks "melted" on the skin as they lay down so smoothly and have a great shine.
Most shades applied better on my lid than swatched on my arm, which has been something seen across NARS' eyeshadows for years and didn't change with the recent update to their powder eyeshadow formula. On average, they lasted between seven and nine hours on me without primer. They did apply well over primer and stayed on well for 14 hours with minimal fading.
Worth noting: the updated formula and packaging resulted in a product decrease from 0.07 oz. per pan to 0.04 oz. The single eyeshadows received a more noticeable price drop (from $24 to $19) but the duo eyeshadows could be priced better (from $36 to $35).
Browse all of our NARS Eyeshadow (2018) swatches.
Thessalonique I
PiPPermanent in Palette. $19.00.
Thessalonique II
Thessalonique II is a medium mauve with strong, warm undertones and a satin finish. It had a faded quality to it and appeared significantly warmer swatched and applied to my eye compared to how it appeared in the pan. I think part of that was due to how it only had medium coverage. The consistency was dustier and more prone to sheering out, so it absolutely needed a primer underneath it just to perform decently. It lasted for seven hours on me before fading noticeably.
FURTHER READING: Formula Overview for details on general performance and characteristics (like scent).
Top Dupes
- Giorgio Armani Terra Sienna #2 (PiP, ) is more shimmery, darker, warmer (90% similar).
- LORAC Silver Mauve (PiP, $19.00) is more shimmery, darker, warmer (90% similar).
- NARS Rome (P, $19.00) is more shimmery, lighter, warmer (90% similar).
- MAC City Beat (LE, $17.00) is more shimmery, lighter, warmer (85% similar).
- MAC Aristocratic Aura (LE, $17.00) (85% similar).
- NARS Kashmir (P, $19.00) is more shimmery, lighter, warmer (85% similar).
- ColourPop Bould Type (PiP, $4.50) is less shimmery, darker, warmer (80% similar).
- KVD Beauty Night Crawler (LE, ) is darker (80% similar).
- Viseart Blushing (PiP, ) is less shimmery, darker (80% similar).
- MAC Breaking Ground (LE, $21.00) is more shimmery, cooler (80% similar).
Formula Overview
$19.00/0.04 oz. - $475.00 Per Ounce
The formula is supposed to have "rich, high-impact color" that is "lightweight" and has "increased blendability." Like most larger ranges, there are winners and losers, and some of how they perform can be related to the type of finish. The mattes are soft, slightly dusty in the pans (or not at all) with medium to opaque, often buildable, color coverage. The satin and metallics tend to be smoother, more blendable, and more pigmented with less effort; NARS does the these lower shimmer finishes particularly well, which just looks "melted" on the skin as they lay down so smoothly and have a great shine.
Most shades applied better on my lid than swatched on my arm, which has been something seen across NARS' eyeshadows for years and didn't change with the recent update to their powder eyeshadow formula. On average, they lasted between seven and nine hours on me without primer. They did apply well over primer and stayed on well for 14 hours with minimal fading.
Worth noting: the updated formula and packaging resulted in a product decrease from 0.07 oz. per pan to 0.04 oz. The single eyeshadows received a more noticeable price drop (from $24 to $19) but the duo eyeshadows could be priced better (from $36 to $35).
Browse all of our NARS Eyeshadow (2018) swatches.
Several years ago, I got NARS Toyko and while the colours are different, they’re not all that different and have the same sort of washed out, not very exciting vibe so this doesn’t really interest me much at all.
Well, you can count me as happy as heck that I bought the *original* Thessalonique duo off of eBay! My instincts were correct when after swatching the new one, I was left perplexed at how weak the new version looked compared with the OG.
Sure enough. I got this and some others, when whatever-it-was went out of business. Great discount, and the reformulations certainly aren’t doing it for me at all. Shadows aren’t his strong suit.
The original looks more pigmented and maybe slightly warmer?
This is a much better colour combination, but misses the cut because the second shade is far too muted and of poorer qualtiy.
I love this color combination and I’ll give this a try when the time comes, but I’m so glad I have it in the original release/formula! ?