Monday, November 29, 2010

NARS Vintage Collection Fall 2010

I've been holding off on posting this until I could photograph all the colors next to the originals, but I can't seem to find my Full Metal Jacket and can't get my hands on King Kong and I just need to post these before they become irrelevant. Argh! So much for plans.

Anyway, this year NARS was awesome enough to bring back a few of their old discontinued shades including the mythical ZULU. I'm insanely happy about this and it really makes me view NARS much more positively. Many of us have been begging for a Zulu re-release since the day it disappeared- and apparently they listened!

Here are the shades:


King Kong. Rusty brown shimmer. I never recall this being a super popular shade as far as NARS polishes are concerned, but it's actually really pretty. Reminds me of fall for sure. Very smooth and velvety looking on the nail.

Full Metal Jacket. A silver-grey frost. This is one of the few frosts that I actually like. It's a little streaky but not obnoxiously so, it does dry a lot smoother than it applies. It's very shiny and metallic looking, but not quite chrome-like. It's sleek and sexy.


MASH. I think I'm just as happy about the re-release of MASH as I am about Zulu! This is an incredibly beautiful dark olive green with gold shimmer. One of NARS' best old shades, if you ask me.


Midnight Express. This one can change appearance a bit depending on how it's applied. This is two rather thick coats, but I think it looks better with three thin coats. It's a jelly, so the more even you apply the coats, the better. Really brings out the jelly effect. This is a super dark blue which looks especially nice in a jelly finish. Illamasqua Propaganda is similar in color and finish, but this was easier for me to apply and had a more jelly look.


Zulu. I apologize for the strange pictures. Zulu is really hard to capture and I wanted to show the green-ness of it. If you're not familiar with Zulu, it's a super dark blackened green jelly. One of the most unique and gorgeous polishes ever released. I know some would disagree with the 'unique' label, but I've really never worn, seen or frankened an exact match for this. The closest I've used is George Evergreen. Somehow none of the Zulu-clones have that dark jelly depth and squishiness that the original Zulu has. Unfortunately, the new Zulu also lacks a lot of the jelly effect of the original. Still awesome, though.

The best thing about the re-released polishes has to be the formula. It's three-free and greatly improved. The old ones were a little on the sheer and slightly runny-goopy side (I think they were three-free before, weren't they?) and took a while to dry. These are now thicker and more opaque which means they're easier to apply and need fewer coats. They also dry quickly. NARS' brush is not my favorite- too thin- but that's the only complaint I have about the bottles and formula.


I do wish they had re-released Platoon along with these to make a full six. But, they re-released Zulu, MASH and Midnight Express so I really can't complain! Really cool of NARS to bring back the old shades. If only some other brands would do the same- like Urban Decay or Revlon!

(These were sent to me for review.)

13 comments:

  1. These look so gorgeous! I think I want them all minus the silver.

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  2. Oh I love these winter shades.
    midnight express is so nice, eventhough it's just a simple blue. guess I like it because it's a jelly and blue jellies are quite rare.

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  3. I don't want to sound like a big hater, but I'm not as impressed by Zulu as everyone else seems to be. I like it, but it doens't mak eme drool. It might not photograph as well, but I like Mash and Midnight Express much more.

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  4. Man, I'm drooling over my laptop. Mash looks great.

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  5. midnight express and zulu have to be my favorites. SO PRETTY. Although i would have liked the jellyer version.(is that a word?)

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  6. I LOVE King Kong and MASH...but I'm not as enamored with Zulu and Midnight Express as everyone else is. :)

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  7. Aw I've been seeing these great NARS swatches but we don't have it here in Singapore (even though A LOT of people want it)! I love MASH so much. I mean I like Zulu alright but it's just average in my book. However I do rather fancy its squish factor.

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  8. I bought Mash but wasn't too excited about it in the bottle... but your pic of it is GORGEOUS! Can't wait to wear it now!

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  9. Out of the whole collection I am really loving Midnight express and Zulu.. Too bad Nars is a bit pricey :/ but the formula does look really nice

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  10. Two favoutites, MASH and King Kong. Love the Rustiness of King Kong. I love your blog so much!!! Thanks for sharing!!!

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  11. I was so happy when they re-released Zulu. When I read the news, I actually burst into song. I sang the chorus of A Moment Like This. Embarrassing, but true.

    Thanks for the swatches! I have Zulu and MASH, but I think I want Full Metal Jacket as well.

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  12. Thanks for the Propaganda reference - I was wondering how similar they were.

    I have Zulu & Mash in my untrieds and I NEED to get to them - especially given how hard I tried to find them in the UK (dragging Nixxy & Kaz & Squarrell round every Nars outlet in central London!). Soon!

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