NARS describes the Holiday 2010 Color Collection as "brazenly mesmerizing." There were a few pieces that I found mesmerizing, and I have two of them at hand. I purchased one the minute the holiday collection was available, and I had another on hold for yesterday's event at Neiman Marcus.
Étrusque ($23) is an antique gold eye shadow, reminiscent of the bronze art for which the Etruscans were known. Applied wet for extra drama or dry, Étrusque washes the lid with gorgeous deep gold. This is a shade that should work for you no matter what your skin tone.
I applied my swatch with a sponge-tipped applicator and took the photo in full sun. You can see that the deep bronze-gold shimmers. It's not at all glittery, and I can apply it lightly for an everyday look, or more heavily for evening. I applied it to my arm fairly heavily for this photo.
Sex Appeal Blush ($26) continues the NARS tradition of racy names. With Orgasm, Sin, and Sex Appeal to color your cheeks, who needs sex? [Couldn't resist!] Sex Appeal is a very light pink that appears to have some p
each in it in the pan. On my skin, it's more pink than peach. NARS suggests the blush for foolproof contouring. I think it's a bit light for that. Rather, it's the perfect shade to give a natural flush to fair-skinned beauties. I'm not sure how it will translate on dark skin.
I applied it to my arm with a sponge-tipped applicator and took this photo at the same time I took the one above. It's hard to see the pink - it's the best I could do. It's a light shade, one that leaves a very natural and pretty glow on my cheeks.
One more item tempted me as I shopped online last night. I was ordering the Lili Marlene Cream Eyeshadow that Istvan Hrichak had used as a liner on me. Neiman Marcus has run out of it. While I was online, I finally
ordered a holiday lipstick I've been eying: Petit Monstre ($24). Described as a lipstick that saturates the lips in rich, luscious, and luminous berry pigment, Petit Monstre sounded like it was made for me. I'll let you know how I like it when it arrives. I'm anticipating love.NARS is offering free two-day shipping on orders of $40 or more online (right now). You can also find the Holiday 2010 Color Collection at Neiman Marcus, Sephora, Beauty.com, and other locations. There are other new shades - snazzy ones - that weren't the right shades for me, but they might make your heart flutter.
Photos courtesy of NARS or by BTiB