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One of the most hyped eye palettes to be released in the first quarter of 2014 has to be this one from NARS – the Narsissist Eye Palette. It’s gotten bouquets and brickbats and has such a wide, diverse range of views on it that I naturally had to check it out for myself 😀
For those who are anticipating its arrival, we can expect it in store end-April, early-May (just a week or 2 to go!) but I managed to purchase a palette early during its preview, so you have the benefit of my thoughts, before you decide if this palette is for you 🙂
I picked mine up about 2 months ago and since then, I’ve been using it quite a lot. If you head over to my earlier preview post, that was the palette in its pristine glory. The picture above shows it used, after about 2 months. It’s interesting that other than some smudging, it doesn’t look too grubby right? The rubber cover is another matter though. This has always been the downside of NARS signature rubber packaging.
The rubber is a dust and product magnet and I can’t imagine why the people at NARS thought it was a great idea, especially if it’s to be used by makeup artists, who will be working a lot with their fingers.
Bitching about the packaging aside (people have been bitching about the packaging for years but it looks like it’s here to stay) what you really want to know is how well (or not) this eye palette performs. And to this I have to tell you to manage your expectations.
The palette itself is fairly large which you can see here and there are 15 eyeshadow pans in the palette. In the big scheme of things, it sounds pretty much perfect. 15 of NARS’ eyeshadows – singles and duos – in one handy palette you can carry around everywhere to create a myriad of looks from day to night.
Now here’s where I tell you to manage your expectations.
You see, while NARS blushes get top billing for being pigmented and lovely, NARS eyeshadows have always been a bit of a hit or miss for me. I’ve experienced quite a few duos and over the years, I gave away many because the texture wasn’t to my liking. I kept a couple of duos – Tzarine, Dogon and Rajasthan – but other than Dogon, I don’t reach for them very often because I feel that there are better textures out there from other brands.
I have always personally felt that NARS eyeshadows are dry and hard despite all the raves (the new Kauai is a surprising exception and one I’ve been thinking about for a while). So with this background in mind, let me say therefore that I wasn’t too surprised by the texture of the Narsissist Eye Palette.
I do find, as many do, that the texture of the shadows feel a bit dry and hard to the touch. Some colours are softer and stronger than others, and some appear to be quite a wash out. I also find that there is some flyaway powder as you use it so you have to wipe down the sides if you are fussy. If you’ve never used an eyeshadow from NARS then the texture might surprise you. If you have, then the texture would be familiar.
I’ll show you the swatches I made using my fingers, before I tell you how best to get the most out of this palette. It’s actually quite hard to get good swatches and there are many out there but mine are here for the sake of completeness.
Row 1: All about Eve (Left side), Madrague (Right side), Fez, Bali, Coconut Grove
- All about Eve is a shimmery nude that gets panned a lot but I like it! I use a fluffy brush rather like this one and use it as an under brow highlighter and to tie the colours together. It’s subtle and is very nice.
- Madrague is a matte nude shade that does a fairly good job as a base colour or a colour to blend in or tone down deeper shades.
- Fez a bronze shimmer, is one of the better textures in the palette. It’s pigmented and warm and although I never thought it to be a colour I’d wear, I get a lot of wear out of this shade, toned down with Madrague and deepened with Coconut Grove so it doesn’t look too warm on my skin.
- Bali is a matte neutral which again works as a base or as a blending shade, or even to wear on its own and black eyeliner for a natural day look.
- Coconut Grove is a deep brown which you can either use to shade as I do, or as a base for a smokey eye, as you will.
Row 2: Madrague (Left side), Nepal, Ashes to Ashes, Brousse (Right side), Mekong
- Madrague (left) is a matte nude that I use again, as a highlighter or to blend with deeper shadows or to use as a base. It’s fairly nude.
- Nepal is a shimmer peach that works as a highlight shade or for me, I like to use it as an all over lid colour on its own, tempered with a bit of deep colour at the lash line and with black liner, for a fresh look. It’s versatile.
- Ashes to Ashes is a shimmer neutral colour that is pretty much like Nepal. Use it on its own or as a lid shade and dab some deeper shades to define.
- Brousse (right) is a deep shimmer purple shade that is quite pretty to use as an all over lid colour and goes on skin a little darker than it looks.
- Mekong is a deep brown with golden glitter but when I use it on my lids, the glitter sort of disappears so I just get a very deep brown that you can use as a liner or a crease shade. It isn’t my favourite shade but it works.
Row 3: Bellissima (Left side), Lhasa, Bad Behaviour, Dogon (Right side), Pandora (Right side)
Row 3 has the coolest shades in the palette and it’s interesting how when you mix the cool and warm shades, you get some very interesting eye looks.
- Bellissima (left) barely shows up on skin. Do you see the bits of glitter on the left? That’s it. Not a colour I use often.
- Lhasa is a light purple that goes on my skin a little more taupe and is one of my favourite shades. I can see why Lhasa is so popular because I reach for the colour a lot! I like using it as an all over lid shade, tempered with some deeper colours and it’s very pretty.
- Bad Behaviour looks like a steel grey in pan but swatches on my skin a darker grey. I like wearing gray on my eyes so this is a colour I use a lot too.
- Dogon (right) is a fascinating colour. I have the limited edition duo and this colour which looks like a blackened green in the pan and which goes on skin quite dark is quite magical once you layer a lighter shade like Lhasa or Nepal or Ashes to Ashes over it. It really brings out the colour and it looks very pretty.
- Pandora (right) is your requisite matte black perfect for shading, smoking out colour and lining. I like to use this to tightline when I’m using this palette, using the Wayne Goss No. 8 brush. It gives that nice blackness of colour that I like.
As I’ve noted above, the textures are mostly dry and hard to the touch barring a few shades like Lhasa or Fez that show up better. Most of the lighter shades barely show up at all and I know that puts off people.
However, I do also find that the secret to using this palette is to use a brush, specifically a natural hair eyeshadow brush that isn’t too soft or floppy. I like using the MAC 239 brush with this palette because it’s designed to pick up and pack on eye colour on skin and it’s what this palette needs.
I like to use the MAC239 brush to pick up colour and then use a dabbing motion to pack the colour on the lid. Then, I use another brush to blend in a deeper shade and tie it all in with a highlight shade. It works for me. However, if you want stronger colour then an eyelid primer does come in handy. Used with an eyelid primer and an expert makeup artist’s hands, you get a look approximating this.
She used Fez as an all over lid shade, Coconut Grove to shade and Pandora to darken. That’s it!
If you have an inexpert hand like mine and no lid primer, you get a look that approximates this 😛
I think I used Lhasa which I tempered with Coconut Grove and Pandora and no eyelid primer. Don’t think I did too bad a job there right? Haha 😀
Another example of a look I did using this palette can be seen in this post where I used mostly grey shades for a cool eye look. A close up is this, again with no primer and an inexpert hand.
So basically what I’m trying to say is that the Narsissist Eye palette isn’t for everyone because we all have different expectations and preferences. For me, knowing how to work with the product is important and while I wouldn’t be jumping up and down, squealing with glee at this palette, I wouldn’t pan it either.
I was surprised that I actually like it and use it quite a lot in the 2 months I’ve owned it. I wouldn’t tell you to buy it outright sight unseen, but I’d suggest that you test it out and see if the colours and textures appeal to you. It isn’t a palette that appeals to all, but it does to me.
In a nutshell
The Narsissist Eye Palette is a palette of 15 shadows from the singles and duos released by Nars over the years. The texture of the shadows are hard and dry to the touch which I feel won’t appeal to many people. However, I find that the best way to get the most out of this palette is to use a natural hair dense eyeshadow brush and the colours come into their own then. I like the variety of fairly neutral colours available in the palette and I like how the colours can be used alone or blended together. I think there’s a good mix of light, medium and dark shades to suit most people’s preferences and while this isn’t a palette that will appeal to everyone, I do like it and use it often. Don’t take my word for it though, I’d suggest you test it out in person before you decide. If you already have a ton of Nars shadows though, then you could easily pass on this one.
Pros: Handy sized packaging, Large mirror, Good selection of light medium and dark shades, Easy to blend, Colours are easy to use for most people
Cons: Pricey, Texture of shadows are hard and dry, Light shades hardly show up on skin, Needs a brush for best application
Who will like this: Anyone who is familiar with NARS eyeshadow textures, Anyone who wants a fairly portable eyeshadow palette that can take you from day to night with ease
Are you planning to pick up the Narsissist Eye Palette when it’s available? Do you already have it and if so, what are your thoughts on this?
I know that people are really divided in their opinions on this palette. At first glance I’d say I wasn’t too impressed but having played around for a while, I have to say it’s grown on me and I like how it just sort of creeps up on you like that haha 😀 If you already own it, please share your thoughts too – you don’t have to like it! 😀
Paris B
NARS NARSissist Eye Palette Price: RM290 Availability: NARS store at Pavilion KL from end April-May 2014
Another palette! I have to say you look gorgeous in both your photos! As for the palette, the packaging turns me off. Mine has broken off at the ends with the hinge for the mirror 😛 Not like I dropped it or anything, it just broke off by itself!
Haha thank you Applegal 🙂 So sorry to hear about your mirror breaking off! Gosh you’d think that they’d make better quality products won’t they? The only time I experienced that was with a blush which broke off but then, that one melted too so that explained it. This better not melt on me! 😛
The colors are so beautiful! It kind of reminds me of the Naked, but I always love another palette.
It has been likened to the Naked palettes that’s for sure, Kaolee 🙂 I wasn’t too crazy about the Naked palettes but neutral palettes sure are in right now eh?
I still have yet to get anything from NARS because the last time I went, I got overwhelmed by how crowded the store was, I just had to get out. But I do intend on getting a few of their best products. This palette has a lot of neutral eyeshadows, isn’t it? I don’t do really well with neutral eyeshadows because I have darker skin so putting on a neutral eyeshadow is pretty much useless because it wouldn’t show unless I put on a tiny bit of a shimmery color to highlight the center of my eyelids a little bit haha.
Oh dear I have noticed that the store is very busy on weekends which is probably when everyone descends on them. If you are able, go on a weekday. I’ve had much better service then too coz they aren’t too frazzled 🙂 The Narsissist palette is certainly a neutral palette. I think it’ll show up on darker skin too, especially the medium toned and darker shades. Nars colours are quite good for darker skintones as well as light skintones I find. But it’ll always come down to preference in the end 🙂
I’ve been waiting and waiting for this palette to come out 🙂 Hopefully it grows on me as much as it did for you.. Too bad about the packaging though, it seems Nars have not been listening to our multiple rants on their packaging. Hopefully I manage to get my hands on this particular baby 😀
Nope, Nars is sticking to their rubber haha 😀 I hope you’ll like it too when you finally get to have a play with it. If you’ve put your name on their list, they should be able to notify you of when it becomes available. I’m told it can be expected in early May 🙂
Hi Paris,
I have this palette for a month and been using quite alot. My favorite shade is Lhasa. I use Chikuhodo z series to pick it up, and the result is amazing, very natural.
Lucy
Hiya Lucy, I love Lhasa too! Thanks for sharing which brush you use. I’m terribly curious about Chikuhodo brushes as well 😀
I have mixed feelings about this palette, but I have more of a soft spot for it than not, so that’s fine by me. From personal experience, I found the mattes to be a bit chalky and patchy when used alone (not with any of the satins and shimmers) and without a primer. They all work well together, though. I know a lot of people who weren’t too impressed with this palette, though, but I think that they may be not so into NARS eyeshadows to begin with. Both looks are so lovely. 🙂
I know what you mean Carina 😀 I think this palette was made for the colours/textures to work together so they come together quite beautifully. On their own, the colours are less stellar. I think many people had their hopes up, but if you have never used a NARS shadow then you may be in for a shock because these are quite typical of Nars shadows quality in my experience 🙂
Hey Paris, thanks for sharing your view! By now, I have heard so many different stories. Since I have no access to a NARS counter here and can’t swatch the palette before I buy, I think it’s safer for me to sit this one out. There are NARS singles that I might end up purchasing, and I do still like the Paramaribo duo from a couple of years ago. However, each time I swatch something at the counter, I feel that something is missing and I never end up taking anything home! Strange… 😉
You’re welcome Sunny! I do think this palette deserves its mixed reviews haha! No, I’m serious, because it can on the one hand, be hard to love but once you get it, it just works. Still, I think it was the hype that really set everyone’s hopes up. I think it’s wise to not buy this palette without first testing it out. I like it but I can understand why people won’t 🙂
I’m sitting this one out. I like the colours, but I also have too many similar neutrals 🙂 Love the first look! Such smokey goodness!
I love that look too – wish I was as skilled haha! 😀
SO PRETTY. Every time I pass it at the counter I think I should get it. But UGGH-I really don’t need it. But I like the way it looks so much haha! So glad you like it! And your review has me thinking even harder about it now hahaha!
Hahaha do we ever NEED anything Tracy? 😉 To be fair, I think it’s a nice palette but then you probably have enough similar shades to come up with your own so there’s no real need to buy this. Now if there was a blush palette then erm… maybe? hehe
When it was launched here in Italy some bloggers were disappointed by this palette because of the dry texture, as you mentioned. You know, Nars arrived recently here and I think that there’s a lot of hype about a new brand and so on. Personally I’ve had the chance to test Nars from a long time abroad and I’m not surprised at all: as you say with Nars eyeshadows is always a hit or miss. I do love some shades and duos but others seem having poor colour payoff and hard texture. This palette seems gourgeous when you look at it but in the end I’m pretty happy I didn’t splurge on it.
How interesting Kenderasia, Nars also only just arrived locally too! 🙂 As you have pointed out, a lot of it is down to the hype over a new brand and a new (quite attractive to look at) eyeshadow palette but what many people forget is to manage expectations. They may not like the way the textures work, nor how the colours look and that is what I think disappoints people most of all (especially if it’s an expensive product). That’s usually how I feel about MAC which is why I know to look away 😀 Still, I don’t think this is a must-have palette so you probably made a good choice 🙂
That is one heck of a detailed review 😛 Tempting as you might be, I’m passing on this. LIke you’ve said, NARS shadows have always been a hit or miss for me and I don’t wear shadows often enough to justify another purchase. Love the looks you’ve pulled though and I think this will be very handy for a corporate jet-setting woman. One palette to rule ’em all to bring her from the boardroom to dinner, drinks and dancing! (alliteration almost intended :P)
I know! I have to stop rambling so much 😛 And your description is quite apt. I do think it is versatile enough to take anyone from drudgery to dinner, drinks and dancing! Although you might need a primer for the last 😉
Only one or two shades appeal to me in this palette as i’ve already owned some of the shades in there. Yes, you are right. And i do think most of the times, Nars eye shadows works best with a brush.
That’s the funny thing Lisa. I was quite happy they included permanent colours in the palette yet, it didn’t make sense because it will alienate their biggest fans who would already own many of them! For myself since I don’t have many Nars shadows, it was a good way to get a whole bunch of them but I can imagine that for those who already have some, it’d be a pain LOL Glad you agree with me about using Nars shadows with a brush. I think it disappoints less that way 😉
This was the hype I passed on, along with the NAKED 3 palette. It looks really good in photos and as tempting as it was, I have to agree with you, NARS eyeshadows are a bit of a hit and miss with me. They crease on me after hours of wear even with eyeshadow primer on. I already jumped on the Guy Bourdain One Night Stand palette so am definitely giving this one a miss. Still, it sure looks real pretty in the photos!
Ugh Naked3 was the worst hype driven product ever 😛 What’s next? Naked4? Like a bad sequel it keeps coming back to haunt us. Sorry to hear Nars shadows crease on you. But it’s one of those things right? Love to have it, but when push comes to shove, can pass lah 😉
I thought that i will like Naked 3 after seeing all those raves by bloggers and makeup artists. But it’s just such a fail to me after testing it out in person. Bad sequel it is.
I read the raves and they turned me off haha! Primarily it was because I saw that the Naked 3 palette was mostly rose-pinks with little depth of colour and let’s face it. If I’m going to have a palette with 12 colours in it, it better not all look the same! 😛
This is probably a pass for me, my hands are still very much inexpert hahaha. So I doubt I will be reaching for them as much. But nevertheless, your own application is still gorgeous! 😀
Thank you Syaza 🙂 Not to worry, I’m sure they’ll come out with one soon enough to tempt you 😉
Most welcome! Haha I hope so 😀
I like the colours on the palette, but they appear very similar to the colours which I already have (albeit may not all in a single palette) – which probably explains why I like the colours. Chicken and egg.
At this point, do I need it? No. Do I want it? *slight hesitation* .. No.. I will save my eye shadow budget/splurge for something that screams “buy me buy me – you cannot leave (the store) without me”. It’s only the month of April..
I think like all palettes, this suits those who don’t already have a lot of similar shades or who are collectors (or just people who have to review them at some point aka moi 😛 ) Not surprising that you may have similar shades in your collection so it’ll be good fun to go pull out some colour and play around with them 😀 I must say that since I gravitate towards neutral shades now instead of bright pops of colour (Oh youth!) this appeals a lot to me but as you’ve said, it’s early times yet. I have a sneaky feeling this may be made permanent some day. At least, it should 😛
owhhh…. colours are nice, but if the formula is dry, I will definitely PASS….. hhhmmm my perfect eye shadow palette, where art thou?
Yep, it does feel dry but always worth going in store to have a good ol’ play with them right? 🙂 I think the perfect eye palette will be one you make yourself hehe… 😉
The colors are pretty.. but its quite pricey considering there are other neutral palettes for cheaper price.
Yep I’d agree but for Nars I think the pricing is fair. Of course, once compared with other brands then the luxury price tag is rather scary 🙂
Prettttyyyyy!!! Both looks on you, I mean! 😀
So, Smashbox’s Full Exposure or this one? :p Help!
Thanks Ting 🙂 I checked out the Smashbox Full Exposure palette after reading so many raves on it, but I passed because the shimmer colours on the top row were far too shimmery/glittery for my liking although the matte colours on the lower row were nice. It’s not bad, price considering, but I’ve just outgrown glitter 🙂
There are 3 rather similar palettes on my wish list: Smashbox Full Exposure, Narcissist and Lorac Pro. The 3rd one is hard to get which make it even more tempting. Right now I cannot decide, so have been sitting on the decision for a long time.
Speaking of glittery e/s… the other day I saw a lady in her 60’s wearing loads of glittery on top of shimmery e/s… made me shudder all the way to the spine. Yikes!
I admit I’m tempted by that Lorac Pro palette too but due to the difficulty getting it, I’ve got it out of my system. Smashbox feels nicer in texture than Narcissist and I believe it’s cheaper too, but it’s also more glittery. I think they’re both nice choices to be honest. You won’t go wrong either way (unless you hate NARS eyeshadow then definitely skip it) Oh and I shudder when I inadvertently apply glitter these days. I’ve realised that there is an age limit on makeup and that means no more glitter or very shimmery eyeshadow for me!
This one is eye poppingly expensive in Australia and only available in two stores across the country…not for me. I’d rather invest in another Naked palette – like you Paris, I gave away my Nars palette. I love their lip products and primer though.
Goodness, prices in Australia never fail to shock me but as you say, if it’s got such limited distribution it’s not worth the hassle (nor the price) to buy without first testing it out because it’s just too expensive a gamble to make!