NARS Hardwired Eye Kit ($59.00 for 0.25 oz.) includes six eyeshadows (0.04 oz. each) and a travel-sized eyeliner and #43 brush. As you might have discerned from the rating alone, this was a major miss for me. I’m not a fan of the Hardwired eyeshadow formula, as I find that for all its softness, it is an incredibly powdery formula that is prone to fading, sheering out during application, and often blends unevenly. The more shimmery finishes in the formula are easier to use, but the satin/matte finishes need some sort of tacky base to even have a chance of working.

Shade I (2015) is a light-medium beige with a subtle, almost cool tone to it (runs a little gray-ish) with a matte finish. It’s extremely powdery and prone to getting everywhere, both in the pan as well as on the eye. It lasted for six hours before fading. Laura Mercier Vanilla Nuts (P, $23.00) is cooler. Tarte Sand Out from the Crowd (LE, ) is lighter. theBalm #24 (P, $6.50) is lighter. LORAC Nude #1 (LE, ) is lighter. Tarte Summer Breeze (LE, ) is lighter, warmer. MAC Light Study (LE, $16.00) is lighter. NARS Nassau (LE, $24.00) is warmer. Makeup Geek Baby Face (P, $5.99) is lighter. Makeup Geek Baby Face (P, $5.99) is lighter. See comparison swatches / compare dupes side-by-side.

Shade II (2015) is a muted, medium-dark taupe with cooler undertones and a matte finish. It’s very powdery, thin, and doesn’t adhere well to the skin. This needs a sticky primer–desperately–to yield better color payoff as well as to last longer than the measly four hours it did. Dior Mirage (761) (P, $30.00) is darker. Urban Decay Naked 2 (P, $18.00) is lighter. Make Up For Ever M558 Dark Taupe (P, $21.00) is darker. theBalm Dig It (LE, $16.00) is darker. Urban Decay Cover (P, $18.00) is lighter. Tarte Merci You Later (LE, ) is lighter. MAC Lofty (LE, $16.00) is darker, warmer. Laura Mercier Stone Taupe (LE, $23.00) is darker. Tarte Power Player (LE, ) is more shimmery. Tarte Feeling Grey-t (LE, ) is lighter. See comparison swatches / compare dupes side-by-side.

Shade III (2015) is a dark brown with neutral-to-warm undertones and a soft shimmer… except that it’s so powdery that the shimmer disappears and it looks more matte applied. It goes on unevenly and turns rather patchy as soon as I started to blend it on the skin. It was a complete disaster to use and had disappeared after five hours but had noticeably degraded after a mere two and a half hours. Make Up For Ever M626 Neutral Brown (P, $21.00) is less shimmery, darker. Make Up For Ever M618 Espresso (P, $21.00) is less shimmery, darker. Tarte Chocolate Kisses (LE, ) is more shimmery, warmer. Too Faced Knockout (LE, $16.00) is darker. LORAC Espresso (Mega Pro) (LE, ) is darker. Tarte Dreamer (LE, ) is less shimmery. Hourglass Obscura #4 (P, ) is warmer. Hourglass Infinity #5 (P, ) is less shimmery, darker. Kat Von D Saleos (P, ) is darker. Becca Ombre Nudes #4 (P, ) is less shimmery, lighter. Too Faced Sexpresso (P, $16.00) is less shimmery, warmer. Too Faced Obsessed (P, ) is more shimmery. Viseart Cool Matte #5 (P, ) is lighter. NARS Zagreb (LE, $24.00) is more shimmery. LORAC Black #5 (LE, ) is warmer. First 15 dupes listed, see more: See comparison swatches / compare dupes side-by-side.

Shade IV is a soft, yellowed beige with a frosted sheen. It had decent color payoff with a soft consistency that wasn’t too powdery that applied decently to the skin, but it’s no savior for the palette as a whole. It lasted for seven hours on me. Make Up For Ever D504 Celestial Beige (P, $21.00) is darker, more muted. Charlotte Tilbury The Rebel #1 (P, ) is more shimmery. Tom Ford Beauty Nude Dip #1 (LE, ) is more shimmery, brighter. Dior Cuir Cannage #2 (P, ) is less shimmery, darker. MAC Sweet Sovereign (LE, $16.00) is darker. Makeup Geek Shimma Shimma (P, $5.99) is more shimmery, lighter. Surratt Beauty Soie (P, $20.00) is more shimmery. Giorgio Armani Gold Ashes (12) (P, $38.00) is more shimmery, lighter. Viseart Kifu (P, ) is less shimmery. Too Faced Devotion (P, ) is darker. Smashbox Flirt (P, ) is darker. L’Oreal Iced Latte (P, $7.99) is more shimmery. Kat Von D Galore (LE, ) is more shimmery, brighter. See comparison swatches / compare dupes side-by-side.

Shade V is a muted, dark forest green with subtle, gold pearl over a satin finish. It had good pigmentation with a smooth consistency, but I found it more challenging to blend out in the crease as it looked uneven. It wore for seven hours before fading. Too Faced Punk (P, $16.00) is lighter. NARS Snake Eyes (P, $25.00) is more shimmery, darker. Make Up For Ever ME310 Fir Tree Green (P, $21.00) is more shimmery, lighter. See comparison swatches / compare dupes side-by-side.

Shade VI is a dark black with a matte finish and neutral undertones. It was slightly firmer in the pan, but it was prone to sheering out and looking blotchy on the lid. Too Faced Panther (LE, $16.00) is darker. Makeup Geek Corrupt (P, $5.99) is darker. Sugarpill Bulletproof (P, $12.00) is darker. MAC Carbon (P, $16.00) is darker. Wet ‘n’ Wild Three’s a Party #3 (LE, $2.29) is more shimmery, darker. NARS Pandora (P, ) is lighter, warmer. LORAC Black (P, ) is lighter. Make Up For Ever M100 Black (P, $21.00) is darker. Divergent Dauntless Ink (LE, ) is lighter. Giorgio Armani #01 (P, $32.00) is warmer. Laura Mercier Noir (P, $23.00) is lighter. Marc Jacobs Beauty The Enigma #1 (P, ) is darker. Kat Von D Killing Moon (LE, ) is darker. LORAC Jet Black (P, ) is lighter, cooler. Sephora Collection Black Lace (P, $13.00) is . First 15 dupes, see more: See comparison swatches / compare dupes side-by-side.

Via de Martelli is a medium-dark, mahogany brown with warm, red-orange undertones and a satin finish. It had decent color payoff in a single stroke but was buildable to opaque coverage with two layers. It lasted for eight hours on me before thinning. Stila Spice (P, $20.00) is less glossy. Stila Lionfish (P, $20.00) is less shimmery, darker. Stila Lionfish (P, $20.00) is less shimmery, darker. Stila Espresso (P, $20.00) is darker. Sephora Collection Tiramisu (P, $9.00) is warmer. MAC Gentrified (LE, $16.00) is less shimmery, darker, more pigmented, warmer. Urban Decay Whiskey (P, $19.00) is lighter, warmer. MAC Brown Border (P, $16.00) is darker, cooler. Laura Mercier Espresso (P, $24.00) is lighter, warmer. Urban Decay Bourbon (P, $19.00) is darker, cooler. MAC Rich Ground (P, $16.00) is more shimmery, warmer. See comparison swatches / compare dupes side-by-side.

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NARS Hardwired Eye Kit

NARS Hardwired Eye Kit

NARS Hardwired Eye Kit

NARS Hardwired Eye Kit

NARS Hardwired Eye Kit

NARS Shade I (2015) Hardwired Eyeshadow

NARS Shade I (2015) Hardwired Eyeshadow

NARS Shade II (2015) Hardwired Eyeshadow

NARS Shade II (2015) Hardwired Eyeshadow

NARS Shade III (2015) Hardwired Eyeshadow

NARS Shade III (2015) Hardwired Eyeshadow

NARS Shade IV Hardwired Eyeshadow

NARS Shade IV Hardwired Eyeshadow

NARS Shade V Hardwired Eyeshadow

NARS Shade V Hardwired Eyeshadow

NARS Shade VI Hardwired Eyeshadow

NARS Shade VI Hardwired Eyeshadow

NARS Via de’Martelli Larger Than Life Eyeliner

NARS Via de’Martelli Larger Than Life Eyeliner

NARS Via de’Martelli Larger Than Life Eyeliner