NARS Satin Lip Pencil – Palais Royal Review

NARS Satin Lip Pencil – Palais Royal Review

Hi Gals,

How are you all? Hope everything is fine on your side! We are also enjoying our days with frequent get togethers, potlucks and hangouts as compensation to our bad days in the past.  I had been living remotely since a few weeks and now I suddenly feel like I hit a jackpot (of happiness and blessings) and I want to share that jackpot with each of my friends 😛 Moreover, I also want to share my recent purchase with you all – a berry red satin lip pencil from NARS.  This seems to be a perfect Indian bridal shade for every skin tone, more for medium/dusky gals. So, let’s get right into the review of NARS Satin Lip Pencil – Palais Royal (named after the Palais Royal – originally called Palais cardinal, a place located in first arrondissement of Paris).

Price:

$25 for 0.07 Oz (2.2 gm).

Packaging:

These satin lip pencils come packaged in a sturdy black pencil with shade details printed on the pencil while the base an gives idea of the actual shade inside. It is fragrance free and except for sharpening, it is quite an user-friendly and travel-friendly too.

My Experience with NARS Satin Lip Pencil – Palais Royal:

Well, Palais Royal seems a deep berry red lip pencil which comes slightly translucent and glossier on my lips unlike other satin lip pencils. At first sight, it might seem a purely vampy shade as I myself felt that way 😛 However, it is a perfect shade for all Indian medium/light skin tones as I have seen many medium dusky beauties flaunting berry red lips with their Indian outfits. Moreover, I am sure it will suit me best with heavy bridal outfits and occasions. Needless to say, it can be pulled off gracefully irrespective of age bar provided you know the trick to pull it off with western outfits while it is truly meant for Indian wedding parties and bridal glory! I did eventually realize some tricks of wearing it casually (other than parties) on my pale skin – courtesy the informative IMBB posts.

I usually pat it on my lips with a lip brush and/or fingers for intense yet wearable berry stain which does not look loud even in bright day light. In fact, it gives bright berry red glossy stain finish on my lips, which stays put for a good 4-6 hours, thereafter fading evenly, leaving behind a subtle stain. It might not work well on pigmented lips though. It is not overtly hydrating or over drying on lips though we may feel the urge of wearing a lip balm after a few hours.

The other safe way which I have tried is gently lining lips and filling in upper or lower lip with soft hands and then pursing them together to get an even and intense berry stain on lips without looking vampy.  It brings out a nice berry glossy stain which is more intense and gives enough color payoff to conceal light/medium lip pigmentation.  It stays put for good 4+ hours leaving behind a subtle tint after several hours.  However, the best thing to do is to scrub hard and hydrate the lips well as this shade is certainly not forgiving unlike other satin lip pencils.  It tends to settle into fine lines and even the lightest dry patches and hence make sure to soften your lips before application.  Even if we directly swipe it on lips, it gives a bright berry red, translucent and medium color pay off which will work on pigmented lips as well.

However, soon the pigmented glossy shine fades away leaving behind a semi -matte stain, thereafter fading into a subtle berry pink stain after some hours.  Somehow, it also tends to fade from the centre of the lips and then settling into fine lines thereafter which might need touch ups, especially for beauties with pigmented lips. Overall, I feel it might be great for light/medium/dusky beauties, but fair skin beauties might like to wear it occasionally or during weddings. I am saving it for my upcoming trip to India to pair it up with my heavy bridal sarees and I would like to get this shade again for Indian get togethers and bridal occasions exclusively, but it would not be NARS Palais Royal.

Let’s sum up pros and cons:

Pros of NARS Satin Lip Pencil – Palais Royal:

• Gorgeous deep berry red lip pencil with no shimmer.
• It goes on smoothly on to the lips.
• Intense enough to work well on pigmented lips while it gives slightly translucent and glossy pigmentation on my lips.
• It works well on dry lips provided they are scrubbed and moisturized well.
• Does not provide intense hydration, does not dry out the lips either, but it may settle onto the dry patches of the lips.
• A very favorite shade among medium/dusky Indian skin tones I believe.
• It will work best on medium/dusky skin tones because of the intense berry stain which stays put for a good number of hours.
• A must-have shade for Indian women as it goes well with almost every Indian wedding wear.
• Can be worn as a stain by lightly patting on the lips, the color can also be intensified.
• Does not bleed or look cakey even with several swipes.
• Stays on for 4 hours to maximum 8 hours depending upon how we choose to wear it.
• User friendly, travel-friendly packaging.

Cons of NARS Satin Lip Pencil – Palais Royal:

• The shade is between gothic/vampy and intense pigmented berry shade which is tricky on most pale/fair and light skin tones.
• Even if we wear it directly from the lip pencil, it gives a slightly uneven finishing which fades away from the center of the lips.
• It tends to settle into the fine lines of the lips after a few hours.
• Lips should be well scrubbed and softened prior to wearing this shade or it might accentuate even the slightest dry patch.
• I prefer retractable lip pencils over these messy pencils which need to be sharpened.
• Considering this tricky shade, limited utility and the sharpening factor, I feel it’s too expensive for my liking.

Well, I am saving it for upcoming wedding parties as this is an universal berry shade which will compliment almost all my Indian outfits including bridal wear. However, I would not like to wear it other than for wedding parties or festivals. Moreover, I feel matured ladies might pull it off gracefully irrespective of occasions unlike young gals and ladies. So, as of now, for its overall performance, staying power and color payoff on my skin, I give it 3.5/5! I would not like to get it again though I might purchase this particular berry shade from some other brand.

NARS Satin Lip Pencil – Luxembourg
NARS Satin Lip Pencil – Lodhi
NARS Satin Lip Pencil – Hyde Park
NARS Satin Lip Pencil Yu
NARS Satin Lip Pencil – Rikugien
NARS Satin Lip Pencil – Golshan
NARS Velvet Matte Lip Pencil – Never Say Never
NARS Velvet Gloss Pencil in New Lover
MAC Lip Pencil Cherry
Colorbar Lip Pencil
NYX Lip Pencil in Ever
NYX Jumbo Lip Pencil Hot Red