NARS Dual-Intensity Eyeshadow

[patentg33k]

I would like to order about 2 or 3 of these to start with, but I am having trouble narrowing my list down.

You might start with a dense shade (like the navy or deep brown) to try them out, and one metallic to see if you like them.

 

[mysteereous]

@patentg33k Awesome review! This collection is going to be the death of my wallet

My preliminary list, pending in-person swatches:

Andromeda - Alabaster
Callisto - Icy Pink Silver
Desdemona - Rich shimmering burgundy
Dione - Metallic Champagne Biege
Europa - Shimmering Pink Peach
Himalia - Shimmering Topaz
Lysithea - Shark Grey
Phoebe - Deep Shimmering Amethyst
Subra - Black Orchid
Sycorax - Black


Can't wait to check these out IRL!

 

[Haven]

You might start with a dense shade (like the navy or deep brown) to try them out, and one metallic to see if you like them.

Great idea! I am leaning towards Himalia. Not 100% sure what other one I want though. ( Most likely I will go with the blue.)

 

[Aquamarine1543]

NARS customer service is terrible. I mean "getting worse"!!!
I ordered twice because the first order is for me and the other one is for my friend. And the shipping address of the second order is also mine.
I put Andromeda, Callisto, Dione and Europa for the first order and Himalia, Cassiopeia, Timanfaya and 413 BLKR illuminator for the second one.

But the problem is they put Andromeda, Callisto, Dione AND Timanfaya in the first box and the rest of them in the second one when I got them today!!!
I can't believe they didn't handle them correctly and were confused. Seriously...they have different order numbers, so they had to be in the right boxes even if the shipping address is the same. (Oh, by the way, they didn't even send me shipping info emails at the right time.)

 

[Forestans]

i feel like im the only one that hasnt had good luck with their eyeshadows

Not just you. Some are just low quality. I have high hopes for these new shadows!

 

[Monsy]

NARS customer service is terrible. I mean "getting worse"!!!
I ordered twice because the first order is for me and the other one is for my friend. And the shipping address of the second order is also mine.
I put Andromeda, Callisto, Dione and Europa for the first order and Himalia, Cassiopeia, Timanfaya and 413 BLKR illuminator for the second one.

But the problem is they put Andromeda, Callisto, Dione AND Timanfaya in the first box and the rest of them in the second one when I got them today!!!
I can't believe they didn't handle them correctly and were confused. Seriously...they're different order numbers, so they had to be in the right boxes even if the shipping address is the same. (Oh, by the way, they didn't even send me shipping info emails at the right time.)

Whaaaaat? Omg this is seriously stupid

 

[Haven]

I think that I will wait to order from Nordstroms. Not a fan of Nars online.

 

[Monsy]

Waiting on nordstrom too...

 

[Forestans]

I just got Himalia in the mail today. It's very enchanting than a mere metallic shadow. Kinda like a precious gemstone. It looks like a metallic bronze-taupe, but in natural light has a unbeknown violet hue, while indoors its a beautiful rose golden bronze. Defiantly going to try a lighter shade.

 

[Aquamarine1543]

Here's a swatch and I'll post Europa, Himalia and Cassiopeia tomorrow.

First of all, I'm quite disappointed. I haven't used them with brushes yet and usually don't use eyeshadows as wet.
Anyway, textures aren't that much softer unlike other reviews which we saw. They're stiffer than I expected. Somewhat between buttery and stiff.
I thought they're buttery, creamy or like marshmellows just like GA eyes to kill.

The color payoff is just ok. Andromeda is the worst among three (Seriously Nars? it's almost invisible.) Callisto is the best and Dione is not bad.
Andromeda is cream with pink shimmer, Callisto is muted/mauvey/taupey pink silver with a metallic finish and Dione is cool-toned champagne beige-bronze with silver and metallic finish (somewhat between shimmery and metallic).

Overall, I don't think they're worth the price. ($29, 0.05oz each). I'm a big fan of NARS and it's my number one cosmetic brand, but I'm not usually satisfied with their eyeshadows and this time it happens again. I don't think I'll keep buying dual-intensity eyeshadows in the future. Average quality, but too expensive. Besides, I don't understand why they're more expensive because I don't see the big difference (esp, in a quality way) between them and their regular eyeshadows. Is it because they're magnetic cases? Well..

If you want to get some of them, I recommend Callisto because it's unique, beautiful and the color payoff is great. Dione is ok, but I haven't decided which one is better between it and Himalia. Besides, Dione isn't an unique shade. We can find dupes easily. I'll let you know tomorrow.

 

[Monsy]

how is the texture different from regular powder eyeshadows?

 

[Aquamarine1543]

how is the texture different from regular powder eyeshadows?

Can you give me some examples so that I can compare? What kind of regular eyeshadows do you have? I mean they all have different textures. Some of them are really buttery and smooth, but some of them are really stiff and horrible.

 

[Monsy]

I have gazillion nars eyeshadows.
I meant like you have regular powder eyeshadows for example from chanel but then you have Illusion d ombres that are more gel/powder ... this is what I understood with these that aren't regular powder, or am I wrong?

 

[Aquamarine1543]

I have gazillion nars eyeshadows.
I meant like you have regular powder eyeshadows for example from chanel but then you have Illusion d ombres that are more gel/powder ... this is what I understood with these that aren't regular powder, or am I wrong?

Come to think of it, textures are quite similar to Guy Bourdin ones (esp, Rage eyeshadow) and somewhat between stiff and buttery.
I thought they're like marshmellows or gel like GA eyes to kill eyeshadows just like you said.

 

[Monsy]

I only got one Guy eyeshadow and was superb. Yes I was thinking the same think, that they were like Chanel IDOs or Armani eyes to kill

NARS shadows can be hit or a miss, but most of mine I have I am very happy with them

I think I will try only callisto once it shows up on nordstrom. 29$ is a lot

 

[Aquamarine1543]

I only got one Guy eyeshadow and was superb. Yes I was thinking the same think, that they were like Chanel IDOs or Armani eyes to kill

NARS shadows can be hit or a miss, but most of mine I have I am very happy with them

I think I will try only callisto once it shows up on nordstrom. 29$ is a lot

Agreed. If they're like GA eyes to kill, it would be awesome.
I think you're going to like Callisto. I like the color which is somewhat between mauve and taupe.

 

[Aquamarine1543]

Here's a second swatch.
Cassiopeia is iridescent pink, Europa is peachy pink and Himalia is beige bronze with golden shimmer.
The color payoff of Cassiopeia and Europa is below or about average (but it's better than Andromeda) just like T's review and Himalia is great.

All of them aren't unique shades and we can find dupes easily, but I like Europa even if it's not unique, but it looks natural and gorgeous.
And Dione and Himalia are really similar. The difference between Dione and Himalia is Dione is brighter, less browner (lean on more beige), cool-toned and has silvery shimmer, whereas Himalia is warm-toned and has golden shimmer. Personally, I like Dione more than Himalia. If you prefer warm-toned eyeshadows, I recommend Himalia.

 

[USCgirlie]

Thanks so much for the thorough and honest review, Aquamarine! I was really tempted to get Andromeda but after seeing your review will definitely skip. (My wallet thanks you!

)This is definitely disappointing as NARS is also one of my favorite brands.

 

[Monsy]

they are up on nordstrom

 

[Haven]

they are up on nordstrom

Thank you for the info! And they seem to be available in a store close to me. Time to go and swatch!