Do you remember my post about falling out of love with Nars? If you are new to MWS go read it but don’t blame me if you too fall out of love with Nars :)
Essentially, I learnt the hard way that Nars’ sexy rubberized packaging does not survive in the hot humid tropical Malaysian climate. Nars Cosmetics should really look into this – we’re a global community now!
Things got so bad, I refused to touch ANY of my Nars blushes. Why would I want to when my fingers come away sticky and icky? So yeah, Nars makes beautiful blushes but I have options – a whole drawerful of them!
Then I came across the Unii Palette while browsing online, and thought “Hmm… this might be a good home for my Nars blushes!” So I placed an order (they ship internationally for about US$4.90 for 1st palette) and a week later, I received it well packed in a box. Its cheaper to order more than 1 but I wanted to see first how useful it’d be. Let me tell you more about it below :)
My Unii Palette is in Pomegranate which is a red with orange undertones. Its a pretty colour and I’m glad I chose this one :) The box it comes in opens up with instructions on how to depot, and how to assemble your Unii Palette. It even comes with a piece of magnetic strip you can cut to size.
I decided to start with the worst afflicted Nars item I own – Orgasm. I’d treated it like a leper, banishing it to the far recesses of my blush drawer, far away from its brethren so it would not infect the others. Not that it helped. The others started to melt anyway :P
Here’s a quick picture tutorial on how I depotted my Nars blush. It was not without incident as you will see of the nick in the corner of the Orgasm blush. But it was by and large successful.
Once you are done, cut a piece of magnet out of the strip Unii Cosmetics gives you and stick it to the bottom of the pan.
Do note that if you manage to get the metal pan out of the black case, you do not need to peel away the double sided tape from the magnetic strip. It will adhere, and adhere tightly. However, if you can’t get the pan to come out without shattering, like Sin, leave the black plastic insert on and stick on the magnetic strip with the double sided tape provided. Take note to peel off the plain side, not the side with the Unii Cosmetics logo. Aren’t you lucky I’m here to tell you this? I wasn’t so lucky hence my mistakes :P
Unfortunately, I only managed to get 3 Nars blushes to fit into the Unii Palette properly. (If you lie them horizontally, you can only fit 2 side by side with lots of wasted space) There is space for a couple of eyeshadows or another slim blush pan, or perhaps a small blush brush. I’m not planning to add anything because I generally do not depot my makeup. I like them in their original cases, no matter how bulky they might be. For me, it came in a case for a reason and part of the price I paid is also for the packaging.
In this case, I had no choice. It was depot or toss and it would be a waste to toss out the Nars blushes I have.
I did have 2 casualties. Desire shattered totally beyond repair, and Torrid has a fault line running right through it, like an earthquake zone. I gave up on depotting Torrid so as not to damage it further. Gina’s case is relatively alright so I’ll hold off depotting that one too because its discontinued.
Do I like the Unii Palette? Yes I do. Its got a nice heft, I like the thoughtfulness of including a thumb grip that moves around to fit all sizes of hands (the square thing with the flower pattern) and I like that it is a magnetic palette so you can swap things around more easily.
Would I recommend it? Yes, if you like depotting stuff and like nice looking well made palettes to house them in. This one’s pricey at US$29 each (a little cheaper if you buy more so do share with friends), but I’d pick it over a more flimsy non magnetic palette any day because I’m like that. I do however find it thick so if you plan to use this for travel, it can get bulky.
Would I get another? Not at present because as I said, I don’t like depotting my makeup. I’ll learn to live with the other 2 Nars blushes which are still in their original packaging. In time, if my tolerance level falls, I might get another Unii Palette to house them in. Till then, I’m happy with just one.
Do you NEED this? No you don’t. If you aren’t into depotting your makeup, aren’t into having makeup that does not fit nicely into the palette without odd spaces, or you like your makeup that fits in their proper slots e.g. MAC eyeshadows in MAC palettes; and you aren’t into making your own palettes in general, don’t bother with this.
Have you had problems with your Nars packaging melting? How do you deal with it? Do you like the idea of the Unii Cosmetics palette? :) Perhaps if it was a little bigger, it might be better. But then not everyone is hankering to put all their Nars blushes in one place lol…
Paris B
The Unii Palette retails at US$29 each (cheaper if you purchase more) and comes in 5 colours. I purchased this from www.uniicosmetics.com and they ship internationally. I have been told they are sold online here too at serendipity.com.my at slightly higher prices (even taking into account international shipping costs). However I have never shopped with them so you’ll have to take your chances.
what IS that thing in the lower left corner taking up space?
Its the thumb grip. Its removable though so that can free up a little more space.
Cool review! Too bad about your Nars stuff that didn’t make it during the depotting process. I want one but the price is a little steep.
The Nars or the palette? ;) Both also are steep LOL! I wasn’t so upset about Desire shattering – that’s one blush gone but I was pretty upset about the cracked Torrid!
Hey,
You can try holding the black plastic pan over a candle for about 30seconds. That will soften the glue and allows you to take out the metal blush pan very easily. I did this successfully with my Nars blushes recently.
Thanks for the tip Iris! I did try this candle trick but it didn’t help and my Torrid blush was already cracked so I didn’t want to risk it totally shattering. I wonder if it might be because my blushes are too old?
And I was about to look for NARS blushes in Taiwan when I get there this year end… I watched too many Taiwanese beauty shows featuring Kelvin, or Kai Wen, whatever he’s called. HAIH.
Oh don’t let it stop you from looking! Nars blushes are really good stuff. Just be warned that it might melt – will take a while though because if you get it new, you won’t see it degenerate for a couple of years at least unless they have improved the packaging :)
I agree on the Nars packaging. I try to keep my stuff away from the window and i even stored it in the fridge once!
Mine are stored in a drawer away from light and heat and still they died. Sigh.
I don’t like depotting my products either. I’ve shattered and cracked many. it’s very painful! I made my own “unii palette” using a CD case and a magnetic sheet. Not aesthetically pleasing but functional nonetheless
Yup I’ve suffered many a mishap previously so these days everything stays in their original homes. I know about the CD case trick – its super clever, cheap and easy! :D Besides you can customize it so its pretty anyway :)
Oh yes, I’ve shopped with Serendipity, they were great. =)
But I think RM120 (or USD29+USD5) is too much to pay. I’d rather make it myself!
Yup! Either way, its a pricey palette. Less so for those who are earning USD, more so for us who have to think in the hundreds!
I’m glad I’ve never had any problems with melting NARS cases, even the summer. Phew! :)
But yeah, I’m not a fan of their rubbery cases. Makes the makeup look cheap, which is sad because I’m such a fan :(
And can you say dirt magnet?!
You can try to salvage your broken palettes.. get some alcohol from the pharmacy, drop a few drops over the cracked area, tap it down a little, repeat until crack is gone, wait for it to dry.
You can even try repressing the totally shattered one. The alcohol will evaporate totally, so you won’t have to worry about it changing your product :)
Thanks for the suggestion! :) I’ve done it before a while ago but I did find there was a difference in quality so I try not to alter my products anymore. Still, this works very well to put things back together so its worth bearing in mind for the future :)
I’m in Singapore. My NARS multiples are alright. I have them over a year already.
I store them in a plastic drawer in the bathroom. Sometimes outside if I happen to be using one of them daily.
Perhaps the multiples aren’t as “flimsy”? I had a lipstick and that was fine
Are NARS blushes only available outside malaysia at the moment?
Yes. Closest neighbour that has them is Bangkok
I generally use this set of depotting instructions to depot anything.
http://mac.larahill.com/depotting.htm
They have been extremely reliable. It’s important to not force a pan out of the casing because the powders are not built for movement after setting. Keep a close eye on the other 3 that you managed to depot. There might be hairline cracks inside already which may shatter (the way Nars Laguna does) in transit.
Anyway, if it does, just get isopropyl alcohol from Guardian and pour liberally into the pan, pat the crumbs together if needed and let it set. It doesn’t affect the quality of the product.
Good luck!
Thanks for the tips Kat :)
How long have you had the NARS blushes until the casing started to ‘melt’? I got mine early this year, so far they are still ok, but like u said it is a dust magnet. And it’s a shame considering the price that we have to pay, yet to a certain extent it still dissapoints us. I hope I would not have to depot mine as I also prefer my makeup in their original casings.
I had them a couple of years, kept in cool dry conditions. Who knows if the quality is now better – I haven’t bought new ones since. That said, the eyeshadow duos have the same packaging too and I just got Tzarine this year so I’m gonna give it a couple of years and see what happens :)
Hi! Do you still have your empty nars pots? Because if you have a lot of them I’ll buy them from you :)
Mine cost RM 10 bought tin case and magnetic sheets from daiso ..yeay =)