NARS Lovers: A Discount on NARS Makeup

I am a huge fan of NARS makeup. NARS is one of my favorite cosmetics brands out there but I rarely have the luxory of buying lots of their items at a time. Everyone knows.. the stuff is really expensive. So when I want something from NARS, I usually put it aside and keep it on my wishlist until there's a Sephora 20% off sale (which only comes around like twice a year!) or a Beauty.com 20% off sale (which comes around about once every 2 months. Sign up for their emails!) I will only buy NARS full price if it's a blush or lipstick or if I have a gift card. Their singles and duos are lovely but they simply cost too much! I love their palettes but they range around $55-$75! Anyways, my NARS wish list has piled up in the past week or so. I was in Italy during the end of December to early January so I missed out on the 22% off deal on the NARS site. So I waited and waited for a Sephora or Beauty.com promo code to come up for about a week and no luck. I signed up for emails from Nordstrom, Saks, Barneys, etc.. but still no special deals.. only offers of free shipping. Finally, I took matters into my own hands and spent a LONG time searching Yahoo and Google for any NARS discount codes out there. Everything was either expired or didn't work (I tried codes from various discount sites.) Finally, I stumbled upon this:

15% off any order over $60 at NarsCosmetics.com!!

Promo Code: J1001900

(Offer expires January 15, 2010)

I really don't know why this code wasn't posted on any of those discount sites.. but it really should be. My determination paid off! I was ecstatic when I found the code. Also, NARS offers free complimentary shipping on all orders over $25 and free 2 Day shipping on orders over $150.

I ordered lots of items. I'm really trying to go on a No-Buy but these were things I "HAD TO HAVE." Anyways, I just wanted to share this code for any NARS lovers out there. It really helped me out and I hope it helps others too.

Do you love NARS? What are your must have NARS items?

(Top picture is from Beauty.com & second picture is from Narscosmetics.com)

Old News (but still something to talk about): Smashbox "Wish for the Perfect Pout" Set

I love Smashbox gloss. In particular, I love love love Smashbox's Lip Enhancing Gloss. It's probably my absolute favorite "overall" gloss. It provides great color, lasts long, and moisturizes your lips. It also smells good -which is always a plus! The size is perfect and the wide range of colors are perfect. I LOVE this gloss. They come in full, true color, and sheer color so you just choose which type of color payoff you want. From my experience, this is how I would describe each:

-Sheer Color: A moisturizing gloss with just a hint of color. If you want more color, I'd skip on these. These are almost clear on the lips with the slightest hint of color.

-True Color: For these, what you see is what you get. The color in the tube is the color that will be on your lips. To me, these are pretty opaque and creamy.

-Full Color: If you want a pretty bold lip with tons of color, choose these. The Smashbox site describes these as "high impact" with a "3-d pearlescent shine" and I definitely agree. They're not so "bold" that they look unwearable but they are high impact. I really like Aura and I think it would suit most skintones. (Picture above from Nordstrom.com)

Individually, the glosses are each $18 a pop for a full size 0.20oz tube. I was so excited when I saw this set back in the beginning of November. Even though it wasn't very expensive, it was the BEST product I purchased with Sephora's F&F 20% discount. The set was $29 (and it's supposedly a $96 value.. not sure it should actually cost $96!) With the 20% discount, the set only cost me $23.20 (plus tax.) Anyways, you get 2 full size tubes along with 4 minis. One of the full sized tubes is the full color "Pout" -which is one of my major staple products. So I basically got a refill Pout (individually at $18) along with another full size gloss and 4 minis for just $5.20 more! GREAT VALUE!! These are sold out on both sites but I bet they're still available in some Sephora stores and other department stores such as Nordstrom, etc.. I just recently saw a few sets at my local Sephora. So if you see it, grab it while you can.

The set includes: (full size) Pout, (full size) Luster, (mini) Tease, (mini) Candy, (mini) Aura, & (mini) Radiant. Full sizes are 0.20oz and Minis are 0.14oz.
(Top row from left): Luster, Pout, Tease, Candy. (Bottom row from left): Aura, Radiant. Don't mind that little blue line. =)

I'm sorry but it doesn't say anywhere on the packaging or glosses if they are true, sheer, or full color. Some of the glosses are listed on the Smashbox site but some are not. I'll do my best at explaining.

1. Luster- Sheer nude with golden shimmer.

2. Pout (true color)- My favorite. Milky baby pink that's almost bubblegum but not quite. This gloss is opaque with light shimmer. I have to admit, this won't work for all skintones but if it does work for you, it'll look so awesome.

3. Tease- Medium berry color. It looks sort of like a "True Color" since it looks as it does in the tube but it's a tad sheer. Still has tons of color though.

4. Candy- Shimmery medium pink with hint of coral.

5. Aura (full color)- Another one of my favorites. This is kind of inbetween medium and dark. It's a darker medium peachy nude with shimmer. There's a hint of pink in there also. This is one of those great nudes that won't make you look dead. It's also "full color" so there's that sort of "3-dimensional" effect. Fantastic color. I can see this looking great on many skintones.

6. Radiant (sheer color)- Dark pinky plum color (almost a wine color) with shimmer. It's listed as a "sheer color" but it seems to have light to medium coverage on me.

I really think this is such a great deal. Check out your Sephora store or other department stores to see if they still have this. It might even be on sale now since the Holiday season is over. I'm going to check my local Nordstrom store to see if they have anymore (they always have good sales.) Last time I went to Sephora, this item was not on sale.

Are you a fan of Smashbox glosses? What are your favorite colors?

500 Point Perk: Sephora by OPI Set

I think this is the best 500 Point Perk Sephora has offered so far. I'm glad I rarely bother to use my points on any of those deluxe samples and skipped out on the Sephora palette (first 500 point perk) or the Kat Von D "Rock N' Roll" palette. I think this is the BEST deal they've offered.. and for free! I remember the 500 point Sephora palette being dusty and the Rock N' Roll palette had terrible color payoff. These polishes are the real deal. They're actually sold individually for $9 a pop so this is a $27 (plus tax) value.

The set includes: Personal Shopper (rich vixen red), Dear Diary... (warm light pink), and I'm With Brad (shimmering wine over dark coffee.)

(Shade descriptions are from Sephora site.)

My nails aren't the best but I hope I captured the colors decently. "Personal Shopper" is a basic, primary red and I got the full effect with one coat. I really like the color and it's perfect for the Holidays. "Dear Diary..." is a sheer, milky pink. The first coat went on sheer so I layered on another coat and the color was perfect. "I'm With Brad" is like a dark, burgundy brown with reddish shimmer. All the swatches were done without a base coat or top coat.

Here are the swatches from the Sephora site:

Personal Shopper

Dear Diary...

I'm With Brad