Saturday, July 14, 2012

My NARS 413 Bleecker makeover



           A blistering 95 degree summer day and a heavy traveling bag couldn’t stop me from making my way to the New York City NARS Flagship store on 413 Bleecker Street. It’s a makeup pilgrimage that any NARS devotee hopes to make. On my recent trip to New York, I finally had the chance to go to 413 Bleecker with my friend and fellow NARS enthusiast, Ponyo.

          NARS 413 Bleecker is nestled on a cozy street full of high end boutiques. A few steps away, you’ll find Marc Jacobs and BOOKMARC, Marc’s bookstore.  Further down the street, you’ll find other beauty boutiques, including Dyptique (absolutely gorgeous), MAC,  and L’Occitane.  It’s nothing like the madness in Midtown. Bleecker street has a neighborhood feel. The storefront was currently promoting the NARS Orgasm line (see below).

         When we entered the boutique, we were greeted by a heavenly blast of cool air. Next to the doorway, there was a black and white framed photo of Marcel, Francois Nars’ late French bulldog who was a well-loved NARS icon.  On the right wall, there was a small mantle displaying inspirational books on art, makeup, and film, including as Francois Nars’ own, and NARS candles as well.  In the center, there were a few small upright displays of recent collections, including NARS Orgasm, NARS Summer 2012, and the NARS Thakoon nail polish collection. On the far wall, there was long and breathtaking display of all the NARS colors you could possibly imagine. If I remember correctly, there was symmetry in the form of at least two iterations of the entire collection so there was room for everyone to play.  A couple screen monitors played the current NARS Orgasm promotional video with Ginta Lapina. And of course, here were artist stations and mirrors galore.

         Since Ponyo and I were overly enthusiastic about this trip, we were the first people to show up. The staff were nice and let us play around for probably all too long. I'm sure we were there for at least an hour, if not two! Even without appointment on a busy Saturday afternoon, Pierette, the boutique manager, generously made time to give us both makeovers. (Those of you who visited the NARS pop-up booth in the MAKE UP SHOW Chicago, may have met her!).
I have to say I loved the result. The image below is the face chart that she created for me. It's absolutely gorgeous. A work of art. I'm going to keep this memento safely tucked away in a plastic sleeve!

          When creating the look, Pierette asked me what I'd be interested in trying. I'm currently trying to build my NARS singles / permanent eyeshadow collection so I asked for a look with a red-toned brown eyeshadow. I had also wanted to try NARS Maldives Multiple and NARS Buenos Aires velvet gloss pencil for a while, so I mentioned that. You can see the result above, and read how to get the look below.

          I decided to keep my NARS Sheer Glow Foundation in Santa Fe on for convenience sake. Pierette cleaned up my existing eye makeup with NARS eye makeup remover, but kept my NARS Larger than Life Volumizing Mascara on. She applied NARS Smudgeproof eyeshadow base and dusted NARS Night Star, a glittery peach as a base color. (Apparently Night Star was a big seller in Chicago). She applied NARS Nepal eyeshadow, a rosy light brown, on my lids and blended in NARS Lola Lola, a red-tinged neutral brown. She finished by lining my upper and lower lashline with NARS Larger Than Life Eyeliner in Bourbon St., a dark plum-purple. I'd never reach for purple liner, but the richness of Bourbon St. combined with Lola Lola was beautiful. She finished with a simple application of NARS Maldives Multiple on my cheeks. Maldives is a lighter multiple, but it looked very pretty alone in combination with the eye. On the lips, she used NARS Buenos Aires Velvet Gloss pencil in combination with NARS Larger Than Life lip gloss in Gold Digger. Every last bit of the look was love. If you have any of these products at home, I'd definitely recommend trying to recreate it. I certainly will. I wish you could have seen Ponyo's face chart too. It was completely the opposite of mine with NARS Habanera eyeshadow duo on the eyes, but equally gorgeous.

           I certainly wished I could walk out with everything on my list; many of those items have been on my long term wishlist for a while now! However, I did limit myself knowing the NARS Fall 2012 collection is around the corner (it launches on July 13 at 413 Bleecker, lucky New Yorkers!). I purchased NARS Lal Mirchi nail polish from the NARS Thakoon collection. It was the one color I wanted from NARS Thakoon, but it happened to be the one color exclusive to the 413 Bleecker or online. It's of course more fun to buy it in store! NARS Chinatown is a NARS film noir classic and has been on my wishlist forever! Chinatown is the perfect deep red. Its availability on Sephora online is on and off, so I figured I should get it now for convenience and sentimental value. NARS Lola Lola was the product I indulged in from makeover. I don't have any red-browns in my collection since that's a color I'm getting into more recently. It's really pretty and I couldn't be happier to add it to my collection!

          So that's it! My dream of making it to NARS 413 BLKR became a reality and it was just as wonderful as I hoped. I owe a thanks to the staff who made it a wonderful experience and a big thanks to my friend Ponyo, without whom I'd probably never have made it there to begin with!!
 Thanks for reading! Have you been  to 413 BLKR? What NARS products are you loving now?

Love, Dovey.

29 comments:

  1. Lovely post! Lola Lola is gorgeous! I've had my eye on that as well. Nars Lipstick in Barbarella! The perfect orangey coral!

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    1. Thank you productdoctor! I'm quite smitten with Lola Lola. Barbarella is sooo pretty! It's been on my wishlist forever.

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  2. You got La Mirchi! Ahhhh! That's the one I thought was the real stunner of the collection, too. Sounds like so much fun. Putting 413 BLRK on the list of things to do in NYC alongside the perfumeries. :)

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    1. I know!!! It took a while to get it, but it's mine now :). What perfumeries do you know of? (I'm very novice at that sort of thing)

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    2. I'm a novice too but my curiosity has been piqued by Le Labo (on Elizabeth St. in NYC) and CB I Hate Perfume (in Brooklyn)! I imagine they will be full day excursions per boutique. :)

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  3. Aaah this sounds like a fantastic experience! I don't own a lot of NARS products so far (no counter in Belgium, though I WILL check as many out in Taipei as I possibly can haha), but the Paramaribo duo and Mexican Rose lip pencil are still some of my favorite pieces!

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    1. Thanks Sunny! No counter is o_o, although admittedly I do order mostly online. I hope you get to see as much as possible in Taipei. Mexican rose was gorgeous :)

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  4. Amazing, Dovey! The face chart is beautiful, and I would love to see you recreate it with things you have, as well (if possible!). La Mirchi is also a great buy - such a beautiful shade. Of course, Chinatown is a stunner, as well - so vampy!

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    1. Hi Larie, Thanks! I got some of the makeup I left at my parents' place so I'll work on being brave enough to post a fotd :) Both the nail colors are <3! I might love neutrals with makeup, but bright and vampy nails are a-ok!

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  5. thanks for this post, Dovey!
    i didn't know the new collection is available now. i was just there yesterday, gah!
    the lola lola blush color is absolutely gorgeous and the chinatown polish look delish!

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    1. Hi Lena! AH!!! I wish I was there :) If you have the chance to go again, be sure to report back and tell me what you think!!

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  6. I love Nars' Lola Lola! Such a beautiful shade. Those polishes look beautiful!

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  7. oh lola lola i love that shade its one if my most used singles from NARS, haha i have still yet to go to the store but ur make over sounds dreamy!

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    1. Hi J, yay! I'm glad we can share LL in common now! I can't believe you've never been (so close yet so far?) :)

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  8. Awesome - the flagship store is top of my list for stores I need to visit on my next NYC trip. I did get to swatch the new Fall colors and the trio shadow does not disappoint - can't wait to get that one.

    Loving your face chart and did you see Nordstrom anniversary blush palette? It's already sold out during their pre-sale event. I have to wait till the sale starts officially in hopes that they can find one for me!

    The new surprise favorites for me are the velvet matte lip pencils because they are super comfortable even though it's a matte.

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    1. Hi Lexi!! AHHHH yes you do! The trio is gorgeous! I still haven't ordered my items yet, eep. I'm still sleeping on the duo. I don't think I've seen the Nordstrom blush palette yet, but I guess I won't be seeing it since it sold out during presale! Yikes, I can't believe there are so many NARS fanatics out there. The velvet matte pencils do sound wonderful; I tried one my friend had and it was sooo pigmented!

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  9. Eeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!! I'm so jealous, going to the Nars flagship store is like going to St Pauls (cathedral not city) but with make-up.

    I'm thinking of putting Lola Lola on my Nars wishlist.

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    1. Hi Mopsy, LOL! It is a bit like that... I'd been looking forward to it for quite a while. Lola Lola is a shade I hadn't paid much attention to, but really loved when worn.

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  10. Wow,cool trip! I wish you could show us the look on you :)

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    1. Hi Sarah, Thanks! I wish I could, I'd love to try more photos, but I'll have to fine tune my self-shot camera skills :)

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  11. AnonymousJuly 15, 2012

    Lovely look--I bet it looked a million times better on you! I haven't purchased a new Nars shadow in a while, so I definitely need to get on that!

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    1. Hi Becca, Thanks so much! I do like the singles, but don't have too many yet!

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  12. What a neat experience! Chinatown is gorgeous - I'm a sucker for vampy reds. I've never tried Nars np although I've always been drawn to Orgasm as a laquer, ironically. Now I'm even more curious about the formula!

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    1. Hi Caroline, Thanks! Chinatown is gorgeous, I do love vampy reds too! One can never have enough. The formula can be hit or miss depending on the polish. Some of the more recent ones have a nice hard shiny finish!

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  13. I remember going to NYC once and walking by when the NARS flagship store was just being constructed/renovated! Looks like you had a blast there. The look she did for you looks gorgeous and Lola Lola is beeeautiful! :)

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    1. Hi Maggie, Thanks! Maybe it was being built? That's pretty neat!

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  14. I am so late, but YAY! I love your post. And the face chart!!! <3 It was so much fun, even despite the heat. I want to go back! Next time you visit, we'll go back for sure. :D

    P.S. We were definitely in there for 2 hours... actually OVER 2 hours. But it was during the hottest part of the day so it worked out well *_*

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    1. YAY! Next time we go back, I'm taking pictures of your chart too! And omg 2 hours *embarrassed* (not really) :D

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