Ask me whatโs my favorite concealer and I will tell that itโs from Nars. Itโs the Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer in Custard. Thereโs just something about this particular concealer. Well, itโs actually a lot of things. First, this is a medium to full-coverage concealer that is blendable and wonโt make your skin look cakey. Itโs creamy and wonโt settle on your fine lines. Second, it really conceals the skeletons in your closet, LOL Third, it can also work as a highlighter for contouring and strobing. Fourth, it also works to correct skin redness, evens complexion and retains moisture. And last but not the least, itโs packed with antioxidants to give your skin a radiant and glowy finish. Hmmm, this reminds me a lot of Nars Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturizer. The more you use it, the more it improves your skin and the more youโll love it.
The Custard shade is ideal for my โslightly lightenedโ winterized skin. It has a yellowish tone that suits anyone with a light to medium skin tone. I use it a lot for my undereye circles, and then set it with Laura Mercier Translucent Powder. Well, this really works wonders for me. My face looks more awake during the days where I lack sleep.
This concealer is a bit pricey, but itโs so worth it because it really does its job very well. Itโs no surprise that itโs an award-winning concealer because its quality is outstanding.
Cold weather is here and I am obsessed with tinted moisturizers! when the temps go low, we go high with moisturizers! hahaha! sounds familiar? Seriously, chilly days like these really do require a lot of moisturization or massive hydration. Our skin tends to dry a lot, and even if youโre the oily type, you still need to moisturize a lot or your sebum will overwork.
I laid off my regular foundations, for now, to give way to Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturizer (in Bisque) and Nars Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturizer (in Groenland). These are at the top of the bestselling tinted moisturizers on the market nowadays. Theyโre much like a lightweight foundation or simply a tinted moisturizer as what theyโre called. They both work like a charm and delivers a luminous and hydrated effect on the skin. In fact, my skin never feels or looks dry whenever I use one of them. They have such a natural finish without making your face look flat or dull.
Since Iโve been constantly using these two, I feel like theyโre both similar but with subtle differences. But before we compare and contrast, letโs take a look at each tinted moisturizerโs specific benefit and description.
Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturizer Broad Spectrum Spf 20 (Bisque)โ Light Neutral complexion with balance of pink and yellow undertone. Since the start of this chilly weather, my skin has lightened quite a bit, thus the Bisque shade, which is a perfect match. This tinted moisturizer has antioxidants, Vitamins C & E, and sodium hyaluronate. It also has broad spectrum Spf 20 and is non-comedogenic.
Nars Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturizer Broad Spectrum Spf 30 (Groenland) โ Light Medium with a neutral pink to peachy undertone. This tinted moisturizer is oil-free with broad spectrum Spf 30. It has natural polysaccharides for hydration and cell-renewal and also has mineral-rich seawater for adding minerals to the skin. Itโs also non-comedogenic and itโs meant to even the skin tone by reducing dark spots or discoloration. In other words, this particular tinted moisturizer claims to overall improve skin conditions in 4 weeks.
Similarities:
They both deliver a โno-makeupโ but with a ton of makeup look. They both blend easily and are really lightweight on the skin. Both have no annoying fragrances and my skin never broke out from constantly using them. Lasting power is about the same for both, and they do stay on my oily skin for hours.
Differences:
Nars Pure Radiant Moisturizer is slightly more pigmented than Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturizer. Since Iโve mentioned that my skin has lightened a bit due to this cold and gloomy weather, the Bisque shade of Laura Mercierโs Tinted Moisturizer is probably the best shade that matches my now NC20-25 skin tone, but the closest equivalent shade that I found in Nars Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturizer is Groenland, which as you can see at the bottom is still quite slightly yellowish than Bisque, though both are meant to be light-medium or light neutral. However, once blended to my skin, the slight difference in color is hard to discern.
Also, the Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturizer only has Spf 20 compared to Nars Pure Radiantthat has Spf 30. I mean, thatโs not much of a big deal, right? The Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturizer also feels more like a creamy moisturizer and has a very very natural effect, but the Nars Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturizer, though very fluid, can feel a bit makeup-y. I guess because itโs oil-free, but, the effect on Narsโ is quite luminous and glowy. It also has a nice fresh flowery scent to it.
Verdict:
I think, whichever you wanna choose, you wonโt regret having any of these two. Theyโre really good tinted moisturizers and theyโre so on trend with this natural almost โno makeupโ look. Another great option apart from these two is the Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua, which is hard to beat, for sure.
Anyway, what dโya think of these? Any tinted moisturizers out there that you can recommend?
No one can stop me when I taste the feelingโฆ Nothing could ever bring me downโฆ Oh why hello there?!! Obviously, I had too much coca cola today, and obviously Iโm elated because itโs Friyay! I just lurve the weekendsโฆ Another thing Iโm excited about is todayโs review.
Nars just released their Nars Velvet Lip Glide which a lot of people are excited about and Iโve been looking forward to testing ever since it was announced. Itโs Narsโ own version of matte or semi-matte liquid lipsticks thatโs been flooding the beauty counters nowadays.
These Nars Velvet Lip Glides are supposed to be highly saturated with semi-matte or velvet textures and are also long lasting. I couldnโt wait when I arrived to my local beauty store and was surprised to see a lot of these sitting in the Nars aisle section. I was wondering how come thereโs not a lot of people picking up these, though I did see that thereโs only one product left of a particular shade called Bound, which I picked up immediately because it seems to be the most wearable shade of all the Nars Velvet Lip Glide line. No wonder it became immediately popular.
Just like the Chanel Rouge Allure Ink Matte Liquid Lip Colour that I reviewed a few days ago, (reviewed HERE) I also had a hard time picking up other colors that I like. These Nars Velvet Lip Glides donโt have a vast array of shades to choose from, plus most of the shades are either too dark, too red or too nude for me. Thereโs not many wearable colors for my medium NC30-35 skin tone. I was really getting disappointed, and much to my dismay, when I swatched them on the back of my hand, I noticed that theyโre not really matte, semi-matte, velvet, semi-velvet or anything like that. They resembled like a creamy and thickly-whipped lip gloss. Reminds me a lot of Buxom Wildly Whipped Lightweight Liquid Lipstick in terms of texture.
See below:
Nars Velvet Lip Glide in Playpen : Pink Coral. A nude coral tone with a bit of pink that has a thick formulation but feels lightweight on the lips. Though I find this shade to be a little too bright for me and the formula to be too thick and a bit clumpy, I still like its slightly wearable hue, plus this would be a really great lip gloss.
Nars Velvet Lip Glide in Bound: Rose Pink. Probably the most favorite and the most wearable shade of all the Nars Velvet Lip Glide. Itโs a nude-mauve tone that would really work for anyone with a medium skin tone and with pigmented lips. Itโs a beautiful hydrating shade, just not a matte in terms of texture. Sighโฆ
As you can see in the photos above, these Nars Velvet Lip Glides are not so velvety, but more like a whipped gloss as Iโve said before. Iโm really kinda disappointed because I thought they would be mattes or semi-mattes at least. I know some people thought of the same as well. When it comes to its lasting power, well, I could only get 3 hours of maximum wear on these. Then I would have to reapply and thereโs also no stain left behind. Good news is thereโs no strong scents on these Velvet Lip Glides. The packaging is of substantial size and is beautiful with a well-made brush for precise application.
If you havenโt tried these and are really interested in getting at least one, I suggest you purchase the shade in Bound, as I think itโs the most beautiful and wearable shade of all the Nars Velvet Lip Glide. If you want a similar formulation as the Velvet Lip Glides but with more wearable hues to choose from, I also suggest that you try Buxom Wildly Whipped Lightweight Liquid Lipsticks, available HERE.
The Nars Velvet Lip Glides are availabe HERE as well.
Have you tried these lippies lately? What dโya think?
Seriously, chilly days like these really do require a lot of moisturization or massive hydration. Our skin tends to dry a lot, and even if youโre the oily type, you still need to moisturize a lot or your sebum will overwork. 
