Nars Foreplay cheek blush palette 2012 REVIEW and swatches

Nars comes out with a couple of limited edition palettes every year and I happened to skip last years because I bought a bunch of other blushes around the same time. I also didn't like the color combinations too much. This year, Nars came out with Foreplay Cheek Palette and I love the colors. I prefer more matte colors rather than the shimmery or sparkly ones that were in last year's Danmari palette. This year includes two matte blushes, one shimmery one (Orgasm), and a highlight color. The light shimmer in the Orgasm blush allows you to create different combinations with the other two matte blushes! See below for swatches and comparisons.

Nars Cheek Palette in Foreplay, 0.36 oz/10g, $49, sephora.com (exclusive)

As you can see, Nars Foreplay palette comes in their signature black case with a mirror.

Foreplay has four separated blushes/highlight, which makes it easy to keep the colors apart.

top left: peach matte blush

bottom left: bright pink matte blush

top right: gold shimmery highlight

bottom right: Orgasm blush (pinky peach shimmer)

Hand swatches

I swatched the palette on my arm along with Nars Amour blush as comparison. Amour looks fairly similar to the peach matte blush in the Foreplay palette.

Same swatches, but in natural light and artificial lighting.

left to right: Nars Amour, peach matte, bright pink matte, Nars Orgasm, gold highlight

Size Comparisons

This palette was smaller than I expected, but it does work very well with travel and storage. I don't need a ton of blush so the amount given in the palette is enough for me. However, I wanted to give you an idea of how large the blush palette really is by taking a photo of it next to a single Nars Amour blush and a NYX powder blush. I want to say the Foreplay palette is about twice the size of a single blush, but contains 4 items inside. Like most Nars blushes, the two matte blushes are fairly pigmented so you don't need a lot of each.

Face Swatches

bare cheeks for comparison

Nars Foreplay palette- bright matte pink blush 

Photo on the left: applied lightly. Photo on the right: applied heavier

Nars Foreplay palette- peach matte blush

                         Photo on the left: applied lightly. Photo on the right: applied heavier

Nars Orgasm blush

Photo on the left: applied lightly. Photo on the right: applied heavier

Nars Amour blush

Photo on the left: applied lightly. Photo on the right: applied heavier

Like other Nars blushes, these do not disappoint. They are easy to apply, lasts long on your cheeks, and brings out color to your entire face. If you don't have Nars Orgasm blush already and would like to try other matte blushes, I would say to give this one a try. You get to try 4 different Nars cheek products for $49. Sure you get maybe half the amount for each product, but you can always purchase the full size if you do like what you tried. Note that the matte blushes are not sold individually, but closely resemble Nars Amour (peach) and Nars Mata Hari (pink). As for long time Nars blush users, the two matte blushes are good additions to your collection, but not must haves. However, with Nars Orgasm and the gold highlight in one place, you can mix and match several blushes to create your own unique look.

Texture: Similar to other Nars blushes, these are very smooth
Application: Use a light hand. These are fairly pigmented and you don't want to look like a clown! I used a stippling brush and it worked well.
Staying power: These lasted about 8-9 hours for me before starting to fade dramatically.
Scent: I did not detect any fragrance to these products.
Palette: Very sturdy, nice built in mirror for convenience.

Overall: I really liked this palette! My love for matte blushes really drew me in, but I also found myself liking the Nars Orgasm blush. I haven't purchased it before because of the shimmers, but the shimmers are very faint. You also can play with the four products by layering to create different blush shades. And with the sturdy and sleek palette (doesn't attract finger marks), I have no problems taking this with me during traveling!

What are your thoughts of this palette? Are you thinking about getting it? Does the idea of layering blushes for different looks appeal to you?

Em

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All products shown here were purchased with my own money and were given my fair and honest opinion.