NARS PONDEROSA CREAM EYESHADOW
NARS Ponderosa Cream Eyeshadow - Limited Ed Holiday A/W 2 2011
Nothing beats a good cream eyeshadow. When done properly it can completely transform the look of a powder eyeshadow, can set the eye and can make a base that lasts all night. I love getting a new cream eyeshadow because they're generally 1. harder to find in the colour you want compared to powder eyeshadow (hundreds of those in the world) and 2. hard to find one that doesn't crease. Now, I can't lie to you ladies and gentlem...alright, ladies, it's not possible to find one that doesn't crease. The closest i've come is with Illamasqua's Cream Pigments - I can get about three hours wear out of them alone before they crease on my eyelids. So I was very excited to try my first ever NARS Cream Eyeshadow to see how they faired against the others. I popped it on alone and did it crease? Yes. It did, unfortunately. This was after about an hour and a half. So it doesn't pass the crease test - but to be fair, I challenge you all to find me a cream eyeshadow worn alone that doesn't crease!
The pigmentation - does it live up to NARS Powder Eyeshadows? Yes, i would say it definitely does. It's very pigmented and the best thing about it is that it layers so well. If you buy a cheap cream eyeshadow and try and layer it it wont layer, it'll just slip and slide and go into a lumpy gooey mess, ergh. This however, layers beautifully - just adding more and more pigment each time. So impressed. I find this generally happens with higher quality makeup though, my Illamasqua and MAC are the same - layer beautifully. Here's a little look at how it swatches:
Anyway I was marvelling at it's beauty and looking at my inner arm all funny when I suddenly thought *ding of lightbulb* 'this totes reminds me of Mekong!' And so I dashed off, swatch on arm still, to grab my Mekong and see how it faired. Mekong is a powder eyeshadow from NARS and has been a staple in my bag for over a year now, look how smushed it is! (Sorry Francois)
They look really similar don't they! Mekong is much darker, a bit dirtier looking than Ponderosa. Ponderosa is very sparkly and metallic whereas Mekong is very grubby almost - it's my smokey eye must-have. Here's a look at how the two compare:
Ponderosa is on the top and Mekong is on the bottom. What do you think?! I love how similar they are, means I can make Mekong sit on a base that helps it pop perfectly in the way it should and also creates the most gorgeous brown smokey. I also love how totally different they are in that Ponderosa is really metallicy and Mekong has that matte base. I absolutely love Ponderosa - I can forgive her for creasing, it's not her fault right? She's just so sparkly and pretty! It feels very soft and creamy and is quite slippery to the immediate touch but dries to a lovely slightly powdery finish. I would recommend patting on a couple of layers of Ponderosa and then using a soft but dense brush patting on the desired shade. A glitter shade will create a pretty party look and a dark shade like Mekong will create that most-wanted dark smokey NARS eye that will actually stay put all night. I found when layering powder on top of Ponderosa it lasted pretty much all day, about 9 hours wear.
Ponderosa is completely Limited Edition and only available for the A/W Holiday collection. It retails at Space NK, Selfridges, Harrods and NARS.co.uk. It costs £16.50.
What do you think of Ponderosa? Do you think you'd invest in it? How do you feel about cream eyeshadows, do you love them or hate them? Do you own Mekong and would you layer the two up? I know I will!
