Review - NARS Eyeshadow in Euphrate.

If Emerald is the color of the year, then mint has to have some popularity by hue association. I feel like I'm seeing as much mint on the runway and in media as I am Emerald! And given, I'm incredibly drawn to it.

Just a small update - my eyes are doing quite a bit better! Not 100% back to normal but there has definitely been a big improvement. I think I'm going to wait until Friday at the earliest to attempt to wear contacts again, but right now they don't look, or feel, too bad! Thanks for all of your well wishes!

When NARS released their press photos for the summer collection a couple months ago I was pretty much already set on Euphrate. It was the perfect mix of mint and gray and I knew I had to have it.

Nice, clean NARS packaging. It's stunning while it lasts. The single eyeshadows are housed in the same shape and material packaging that the brand's blushes are - just miniaturized. 

NARS describes Euphrate as a "Frosted mint steel" and is categorized as one of their Shimmer Eyeshadows. It is a shimmery, neutral take on mint, as the steel tones to it are quite strong as well. I feel like this is a more wearable take on mint for neutral hoarders like myself, or those who aren't too comfortable with color. I wore this as a base and lid shade with MAC Copperplate (reviewed here) in the crease and NARS Barrow Street (reviewed here) as a pop of color along my upper lashline. Needless to say, and incredibly cohesive and stunning look!

I really enjoy this shade because its a "color without being a color". You can play up the neutrality of this (like I did with Copperplate) quite easily to achieve something more neutral, or you can go the opposite direction and play up the mint in this, use it as a base for more colorful looks, etc. The uniqueness of the shade makes it worth it.

Euphrate applied evenly and blended without issue; I really didn't have any problem with sheerness or anything of the like. I'm really wanting to try this as a base under the mint shade from the LORAC Mint Edition Collection to see if it amps up that shade. Wear time for Euphrate was average; nothing out of the ballpark, but it stood well against my eyes mid-allergic reaction.

I have one other single eyeshadow by NARS - Lhasa, which I've reviewed here, as well as the And God Created The Woman palette by the brand (also reviewed here), versus quite a few more singles from MAC and Urban Decay respectively. Reasoning is, while NARS has a phenomenal formula, the price tag is a bit less than palatable. When looking at NARS shadows I categorize the ones worth purchase into two categories - Holy Grail shades that I'll get a whole lot of use out of (i.e. Lhasa) or incredibly unique shades that I'm not finding in other brands at any price point (Euphrate). They're lovely, but pricy - so research is key.

Overall:

Pros - 

- Unique shade.

- Applies and blends easily.

- Usable for a diverse amount of looks.

Cons - 

- Could have a slightly longer wear time for the price point.

While I changed my mind countless times about what I liked in NARS' summer collection, Euphrate was a constant that I didn't waver on. I love it. Its fun, but practical and kind of neutral, but kind of colorful at the same time. The uniqueness is what sells this shade for me.

9/10