Nars Gaiety review and comparisons

Nars Gaiety (new for spring, but permanent) is my second purchase of the year (the first was Rouge Bunny Rouge Long-Lasting Pencil Calypso, swatched here). I decided to make it one of my twelve after running around swatching it against every other pink blush Selfridges had to offer, and turning up no 'dupes'. The closest -- Illamasqua's Katie and Nymph powders, and Sob and Laid creams, and the new Dior Rosy Glow -- were all much warmer once on the skin. I have been searching for years for a truly cool acid-pastel that would pop in true Japanese pop cultural style on my skin:

cover of TOMOTOMO June 2011

...and Gaiety, my dears, is it. Another selling point was the unusually silky, satin finish. I am not a fan of Nars textures in general (mattes can look chalky, shimmers rain down nightmarish glitter dandruff), but Gaiety swatched smoothly on my very parched winter skin and its subtle silvery sheen helps it retain that cool lavender undertone once applied. As soon as I swatched this, I remembered that Shiseido is Nars' parent company -- which, if you know of my adoration of Shiseido textures, is very high praise indeed.

Here it is against some of my other cool-ish pinks and lavenders.
All swatches are one-swipe (though the mix of textures skews things), pictured in natural light.

Etude House Miss Tangerine Cream Choux Blusher #4 Miss Grape

Becca Lip and Cheek Cream Rosebud (housed in a detachable Muji pill case)

Rouge Bunny Rouge Gracilis

Shu Uemura Colour Atelier M225

Nars Gaiety

Addiction Amazing powder blush and cheek stick

Kevyn Aucoin Creamy Moist Glow Liquifuchsia

Blended swatches of Gaiety (applied with Suqqu Cheek Brush) against its closest shades:

London winter lighting being what it is, you may have to take my word for it that Liquifuchsia has a more reddish base, and Amazing lacks Gaiety's cool lavender undertone.

You've seen this look before -- for different angles and the product listing, click here.

Lipsticks Are Red

My love affair with makeup really began with red lipstick (one of my mother's or grandmother's Chanels or Elizabeth Ardens) dabbed onto my lips and cheeks before a dance or music recital, play, gala or competition. Histrionic hothoused upbringing, moi? Fie! And la! And *thirty-THREE fouettés en tournant*. Pursued by a bear.

Aaaanyway, red lips are still my default, and I beeline for these when exploring a new range. However, as love is also letting go, my wardrobe of reds experiences heartbreaking contractions as well as and as often as besotted expansions. In its current er...spasm, it consists of eighteen shades, which I've arranged in 'artistic' fashion:

Love is also endearingly inept?

Yeah, it's a marvel I don't pierce a cornea every time I apply eyeliner.

The creams (ish)

1. Revlon Super Lustrous Fire and Ice -- bright orange-red cream
2. Besamé Classic Colour Lipstick Red Hot Red (older formula) -- saturated warm red satin (vanilla-scented)
3. Addiction Colour Lipstick Last Scene -- soft warm red satin-matte
4. Shiseido Perfect Rouge RD514 Dragon -- rich, neutral-warm red satin
5. Suqqu Creamy Glow 18 Karakurenai -- bright, neutral red cream
6. Guerlain Rouge G Garçonne -- bright, slightly cool red satin (candied violet scent)
7. Chanel Rouge Allure Laque Dragon (discontinued. WTeverlivingF, Chanel.) -- sanguine lacquer
8. Chanel Rouge Allure Fatale -- muted, cool wine-red cream
9. Revlon Super Lustrous Cherries in the Snow -- bright fuchsia-red cream

The others

10. RMS Beauty lip2cheek Rapture -- muted neutral brick red satin-cream
11. Revlon Matte In the Red -- warm brick red matte
12. Revlon Matte Really Red -- bright, warm red matte (these are in Muji pillpots)
13. Nars Velvet Matte Pencil Pop Life -- warm coral-red matte
14. Chanel Rouge Alllure Extrait de Gloss Fatale -- true ruby red gloss
15. Sonia Rykiel Sublime 02 -- bright, cherry-red jelly (rose-scented)
16. Suqqu Creamy Glow Moist EX-03 Usubeni (LE) -- balmy pink-red sheer
17. Hourglass Aura Sheer Lip Stain Flush -- pink-red matte stain (slightly minty)
18. Illamasqua Intense Lipgloss Follow -- pop-bright pink-red gloss (can be blotted to a satin, strong scent/taste of boiled sweets/hard candy)

All pictures taken in natural light and all shades are scent/taste-free unless otherwise specified. Sorry Hourglass looks so gross -- stains are tricky to swatch on dry skin.

Suqqu Blend Eyeshadow Quad 03 Matsukasa

According to the lovely ladies at the Suqqu counter, 03 Matsukasa (松球, pine cone) is by far their best-selling quad. It makes me a little sad that people choose this tonal brown palette over the more unconventional colour combinations, but hey, can't really argue with workhorse neutrals in Suqqu's unmatched formula. Or the Lisa Eldridge effect.

The shades in this quad are obviously no-brainer stand-bys for many, but it took the brilliance of the Suqqu International Makeup Artist Kazumi Obayashi to sell such warm browns to me. Even now, I wear it rarely, and mostly on cool and overcast days, when its muted elegance seems right.

Swatches in natural light (sunny), one swipe each

From dark to light: 
rich matte chocolate (slightly more yellow- than red-based), pigmented
warm coppery bronze satin, v. pigmented
neutral sandy-silvery taupe satin (only marginally more shimmery than the bronze on the skin), pigmented
neutral matte ivory base/primer, pigmented

Layered swatches, natural light (sunny)

Left to right:

1. all shades
2. dark brown + bronze
3. dark brown + taupe
4. bronze + taupe

This is the least shimmery of all the permanent Suqqu quads in my collection, by design -- it looks and wears like the plushest velvet and reflects the light (because all Suqqu eyeshadows work this flattering magic on skin texture) in a soft, rich glow, rather than the sparkling iridescence of Mizuaoi, or the airy smoke of Keshizumi. 

I usually wear Matsukasa in a smokey vertical gradation, with the darkest shade at the lashline, blending up and out to the lightest.

closeup with flash

I usually need to offset such uncompromising warmth on the eyes with cooler cheeks and lips -- for which my new toy Nars Gaiety and slightly older toy Guerlain Rouge G Girly come in handy.

Other products: KATE gel eyeliner BK-1, Shu H9 brow pencil Seal Brown, Helena Rubinstein Feline Blacks wp mascara, RBR Sea of Clouds, usual base (Shu SP/KA SSE/EF).


And an experimental, soft tonal look, with the ivory packed over the lid, taupe mixed with a little of the bronze in the socket, and the matte chocolate to line. To create a more rounded eyeshape (I usually prefer to elongate), I for once didn't join the upper and lower lash liner at the outer corner, but separated them with a sharp white (Shu Uemura gel eyeliner M White).

Other products: Shu H9 Seal Brown, Helena Rubinstein Feline Blacks wp mascara, RBR blush Delicata, Addiction lipstick Last Scene, Ellis Faas concealer under eyes. Otherwise bare face (too cold and eczema-y for foundation).