Meet & Greet with Mr NARS and an awesome new liquid blush :-)

I recently had an opportunity to attend a book signing event by the renowned makeup artist and photographer Francois Nars. He is the Founder & Creative Director of NARS Cosmetics and I am sure we all either know about the brand and/or have used one or few products from them. He recently launched his self-titled book celebrating his work over the decades. I still have not have the chance to read the book though!

Francois Nars founded NARS Cosmetics in 1994. I am very well aware of the brand (thanks to YouTube and Instagram) but apart from his name, I know very little about Mr. Nars. I still decided to purchase the book and participate in the event - it was a personal project. One of my gentle resolution for this year is to do things that I have not done before; things that may be outside my comfort zone. I am not an easy-going, overly extrovert person and the idea of going to an event to meet a celebrity definitely falls in my uncomfortable zone!

I was a little apprehensive about the whole event but I had such a nice experience! Please keep in mind that I am not very much educated about his work and I have tried just a handful of NARS Product, so I was definitely not fangirling! But from the moment he arrived at the event he was smiling, and taking his time to start small talk! He was complimenting all his fans with genuine intention. I have a lower voice, so I immediately got concerned thinking that he would not be able to hear me :-) but he instantly made me feel comfortable! My entire conversion with him lasted only 2 or 3 minutes but he managed to compliment me and ask me if I want a photograph. He was not even rushing through the process. I think humility is what makes a successful person so loveable and admirable!

I am glad I forced myself to act outside my comfort zone.  As a beauty blogger by hobby and as a avid make up lover, I think my first “meet and greet” went on perfectly fine, thanks to Mr. Nars!

Of course, that `feel-good` feeling from the event later that night encouraged me to check out some of the new stuff from the brand! I wanted to get their Velvet Matte Lip Pencil in famous “Mysterious Red” as well but there was a glitch in the system and I could not add it to my cart. I only managed to order their new Liquid Blush in “Dolce Vita”.

I know that you are not interested in my personal jibber jabber! But I have noticed that as I age more, I have harder time taking decision; particularly while taking decisions about very unimportant stuffs! For example – I had the hardest time determining which shade to pick – Dolce vita or Torrid? Is Torrid too light or is Dolce Vita too dark? Do I already have shades like these? Which one to pick? Should I pick both? NOT REALLY, coz I don’t have money for both! Ugh!

After much deliberation, I finally settled on Dolce Vita. There are four different shades that they are launching for summer 2017 – Orgasm, Torrid, Luster and Dolce Vita. All these shades are available in their cult favorite powder blush formula. Check these shades here (photo by @youngwildandpolished. They also released their famous orgasm shade in lipstick formula. 

Price and Availability: This liquid blush will cost you $30 for 0.5 oz. of product. You can find these on Sephora online and in stores, Nars boutiques, Nordstrom, Barneys and Saks Fifth Avenue. It has already launched in some of these stores but it will launch very soon in all of them and online.

Packaging: Nars always does a great job in terms of packaging. I know that the black packaging attracts a lot of stain and dirt, but I love the look of their products. And it is a cost I am willing to pay. This blush come in a beautiful glass jar that has a pump. The pump is actually very easy to control. I find that a full pump is somewhat more than what I need to apply on both my cheeks. If I am careful and use only a ¾ of a pump, it is the perfect amount! It is a gorgeous bottle and is not very bulky. I do have a concern about the packaging; sometimes when I try to pull off the lid, somehow it unscrews the pump inside and there is a significant concern about getting the liquid product getting spilled. It did happen to me once and I spilled about 3-4 drops ☹ But I am now more careful while opening it.

Shade: Dolce Vita is a beautiful dusty rose shade. It is described as a matte with natural finish. I do however see a tiny little bit of sheen in it. It definitely a flattering shade on me, it also works on my mom. She is 2-3 shades darker than me but it shows up beautifully on her as well. Unfortunately, I don’t have its powder counterpart so I am not able to show you comparison. I will like to refer you to MLBB blog; she has a detailed post on this.

Quality & Formula: In general, I do enjoy cream formula especially during the weekdays; cream products are quick and versatile for me. This blush has great pigmentation but it is quite buildable. I squirt 3/4^th of pump on my palm and apply a few drops with my finger tips and blend it. Often, when I use a cream/liquid blush I don’t feel the need to use a brush to blend the product. But with this one, I feel that I get a better and more seamless application when I further blend this blush with a brush! When I was watching Young Wild and Polished videos on these, she was highly suggesting that they work over powder unlike other cream/liquid blush formulas! I did try it over powder and yes, it does not lift the powder underneath. For some of you who uses powder bases, this might be a great advantage. Overall, I am really happy with the pigmentation, blend-ability and the ease of application!    
By the way, the formula reminds me of the Aqua Glow Watercolor Blush formula from Stila (I have reviewed "Water Lily" here). Nars one is a bit light-weight on the cheeks while Stila blush gets a bit greasy by the end of the day.

Weartime: Let’s talk about the staying power. In short, I am utterly impressed! I have been wearing it non-stop since I got it. I have worn it over bare, just moisturized skin. I have worn it over my beloved Make Up For Ever Ultra HD Foundation, and over powder foundation. I often use Benefit Porefessional on my cheeks, but I do have to agree that the wear time is incredible. Typically, over bare skin, it kind of fades when I get home after 8-9 hrs. long work day. But over foundation, it lasts for the entire time till I wash off my face at the end of the day. 

Look at the picture above. I applied my makeup around 9 in the morning and went off to St. Louis with my parents for a quick getaway. It was a relatively warm day, and we were walking, driving the entire time. By the time we wrapped up our Getaway Arch visit and headed back to the parking lot, it was raining profusely. We had to walk in the rains for at least 15 mins. Then drove 2 hrs. back to our hotel in Springfield. I was amazed to see that the blush was still proudly hanging on my cheeks even after that heavy rain and daylong torture. In fact, I have worn it many times when going out for day long trips and it has performed really well every time.

Another important thing, you have to shake it well before using it. Otherwise, as you can see in the picture, the blush tends to condensate a bit. 

This was on a separate day, but my foundation got a bit darker :-( just wanted to sow you all my failure :-)

If you can’t already tell, I am really enjoying this product. It is an easy and work-horse type of a formula. I just need to practice a little bit of patience when opening the cap and use the pump. This will definitely be in my June Favorites :-)

Love,

~Arrru