NARS Audacious Lipstick in Brigitte, Catherine, and Natalie

Since launching last September, NARS' Audacious lipsticks have gotten so much hype that you'd have to be living under a beauty-banned rock to not have heard of them by now. There are a total of 40 permanent shades in this range, though some shades are exclusive to certain retailers. I believe Sephora carries about 20 to 24 shades in all stores, but 30 shades are available on their website. There are 10 shades that are exclusive to Barneys in the US, and Holt Renfrew carries these exclusives in Canada. All shades, however, are available through the NARS website. Audacious is described as a "modern lipstick so shamelessly seductive in touch and texture, the sensation is audacious." It is touted to be "long-lasting," and have "one-stroke, full-coverage creamy wear" and "luxurious texture and enriched with ingredients to smooth and nourish lips." They are scent- and taste-free. Each lipstick comes in a square black metal tubes with magnetized closures, contains a total of 4.2 grams of product, and retails for $37.

Brigitte, Catherine, and Natalie
Brigitte, Catherine, and Natalie

Brigitte is a light-medium warm muted pinked peach in a satin finish. This is a permanent shade, and is available at all NARS retailers. It has a soft and creamy texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It is slightly lighter and more peach than NARS Anita, brighter and more pink than NARS Barbara, similar though more matte than MAC Fanfare, more muted and more peach than Bite Beauty Tatin, more pink than ColourPop Brink, and more peach than ColourPop Frida.

Catherine is a medium brightened papaya-orange in a satin finish. This is a permanent shade, and is available at all NARS retailers. It has a soft and creamy texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It is more orange than NARS Juliette, lighter and brighter than NARS Jane, darker and more orange than MAC Style Surge, lighter and more muted than MAC So Chaud, and darker than Too Faced Melted Coral.

Natalie is a medium brightened flamingo pink in a satin finish. This is a permanent shade, and is available at all NARS retailers. It has a soft and creamy texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It is more pink than NARS Juliette, lighter and more muted than NARS Kelly, similar though more matte than MAC Elegant Accent, warmer and slightly more muted than MAC Speak Louder, more matte than YSL 33 Rose Neillia, and more matte than Too Faced Bon Bon.

Here's three great shades for summer, especially for those who like a softer, more casual pop of colour rather than bright in-your-face fuchsias and oranges that's so popular this time of year. As someone who now owns 18 shades of this formula, I can safely say that Audacious is definitely one of my Top 3 favourite lipstick formulas of all time. It performs exactly the way NARS says it does: intense pigmentation and full colour pay-off in one stroke, smooth and even application, emollient texture that dries down to a satin finish. I like that these have a demi-matte finish because they stay smooth and lightly creamy but aren't shiny or slippery. They're not really hydrating nor are they touted to be, but they're never drying and lips stay comfortable during the entire duration of wear (which is about six hours). I would say Audacious is a slightly creamier version of MAC's Mattene, which was limited edition, or a more matte version of Urban Decay's Revolution. They're actually quite similar to YSL's Rouge Pur Couture lipsticks, but with a whole lot more colour selection. And to whoever decided to change the packaging of these to metallic cases instead of those dreaded "soft-touch" tubes: thank you!