Getting Lippy with Nars Audacious Collection

UK peeps clicking on to the blog will be wondering why an ultra polished me with super pro make-up is peeping out from the sides of the page where the ads normally are, it’s because specifically for Style Bubble, I’ve worked with Nars to explore their new Audacious Lipstick collection… in the only way I would know how to – to pile on the colour and run with the idea of wearing lipstick shades from head to toe.

Longtime Style Bubble readers will know that I’m normally beauty averse., not “beauty” per se but beauty products, or the sheer abundance and technicality of it all.  I don’t “get” a lot of it and keep my own routine to a minimum so as to not disrupt the sensitive skin status quo.  The realm of beauty starts to interest me when colour is involved – as in the high impact stuff that you can instantly see.  With my lack of deft skills, my default route to colour tends to revolve around the lipstick, and specifically Nars’ jumbo crayon lip pencils which I discovered a year and half ago on a shoot and have since been a loyal devotee.

For brand founder François Nars, it all began with the lipstick in 1994 when the acclaimed make-up artist created a range of 12 richly-pigmented lipsticks in soft-touch cases.  The brand has of course expanded to a full make-up range since then but for their 20th anniversary this year, they have returned to their lipstick roots with an “Audacious” 40-shade collection which delivers a pigment-rich and a mega saturated finish.  Looking at the forty shades in Nars’ Audacious collection, named after women who have inspired François Nars, I was up for playing around with their super intense shades with a special shoot that matches up lippy to outfit, based on the coincidental fact that there does seem to be an array of deep reds, plums and pinks running throughout the AW14-5 collections.

The Audacious collection runs the gamut from neutral nude shades to deep deep aubergine.  I picked out six contrasting shades to use on the shoot to match up with outfits that, like I said, were somehow serendipitously in tune with your classic lipstick shade umbrellas like reds, pinks and plums.  When I was browsing lookbooks to pull in outfits, it was actually surprising how many similarities you could draw between shade and outfit from the shocking pink of Michiyo matching up with Thakoon’s hot pink accents to tangerine Geraldine tallying with a pre-fall skirt by Roksanda Ilincic.  And you know how I love colour co-ordinated matchy-matchy ness…

On set, Anna Priadka, Nars’ stylist was incredible in schooling me on all kinds of nifty tricks that means the Audacious lipsticks are versatile, beyond their saturated and moisturising characteristics.  We tried out techniques like using a darker liner on the edge of the lip with a paler shade inside (aka the “Chola” lip) or playing up the matte and glossy qualities.  Without the help of a clever make-up artist, the Audacious lippies  are excellent as a single stroke (as in, no multiple dabbing) straight-from-the-stick kind of lipstick, that withstand even my dubious application technique (often involving a moving vehicle and a smudged mirror).  I may not necessarily be “audacious” in my own beauty norms, but once in a while, it’s nice to be able to team up with the pros and let them show me the light.

““Embrace the audacious in everything, especially your lipstick color, it’s liberating, exhilarating, empowering.” François Nars

Nars Audacious shade Janet – Thakoon dress and wrap, Burberry coat (my own), Sophia Webster shoes (my own)

Nars Audacious shade Rita – House of Holland skirt and top, Tome satin top, Tabitha Simmons shoes (my own)

Nars Audacious shade Greta – 3.1 Phillip Lim coat, Jonathan Saunders dress, Emma Cook x Topshop boots (my own)

Nars Audacious shade Geraldine – Michael van der Ham jumper and Roksanda skirt

Nars Audacious shade Anna – Tome dress, Claire Vivier sunglasses (my own), Whistles shoes (my own)

Nars Audacious shade Jeanne –  Erdem dress and Mother of Pearl coat

This is a commercial post courtesy of Nars… just in case the ad wraparound wasn’t a dead giveaway.