Sheer Berry: Fast Ride by NARS

Hi All!

Alright, I have yet another sheer berry lip color to show you! This one is called Fast Ride, and it's a lipstick from NARS, one of my absolute favorite cosmetics brands. Their products are consistently high quality, and Nars' eye for color never ceases to amaze me; most of his colors are spot-on flattering, at least for me, and he knows how to create bold but still wearable colors; the reds are vibrant without looking clownish, the bronzers look like natural shadow and tan on the skin, his concealers sink into the skin, the eyeshadows blend like a dream, the blushes never look dirty or patchy on the skin, the eyeshadow base is TO DIE FOR (Urban Decay Primer Potion, who?), and the lipsticks... The lipsticks are amazing. The way the formula hugs the lips, and delivers just the color you're supposed to get on the first swipe is divine. They stay where you put them, wearing considerably longer than many other lipstick formulas not formulated specifically to be long-wearing,  and glide on easily but are waxy enough that they don't migrate on the lip. They never settle into lip lines or bleed, and the smell is subtle and vaguely herbal; I've seen them described as "scentless", and although the scent is faint, I don't quite find that to be the case. . There is no taste that I can discern. And, while I wouldn't call these lipsticks moisturizing- they are light, to the point where you can barely feel them on your lips- aren't drying, either. They keep your lips in just about the same condition they were before you put your lipstick on. While these lipsticks retail for a relatively pricey $24, they are my favorite formula, and my go-to lipstick.

Fast Ride is one of NARS' sheer formulas, described on www.narscosmetics.com as a sheer mulberry. It is a pretty cool-toned berry color, sheer enough that your natural lip color will affect how it looks on you quite a bit, which is great if you want something suited to your skin tone that will impart a noticeable color, but not look overly dramatic. The case is matte black and is a slightly rubberized plastic with white font spelling out "NARS" across the cap. The one I'm photographing for you is well-loved, so the white has gotten stained and dingy looking. This will happen to all of the cases after awhile; they begin to look dirty. It's not a great thing, but the cases are functional, stay shut without being difficult to open, and are relatively lightweight. Also, because they are square with flat tops and bottoms, you can set them down any which way, and they won't roll away. (This isn't relative to the lipstick cases, but as a side note, all of the compacts, no matter what their size, include a mirror. This is awesome and has come in handy so many times.)

So, here's the tube, cap on.

Fast Ride! Well-loved and dingy. 

And here's the color in the tube with the cap off. The case really does look very chic, I just wish that it stayed cleaner looking and didn't hold stray makeup-powder the way it does.

Fast Ride! 

 And here's the uncapped tube in my hand, to give you an idea of scale.

Fast Ride, again! 

And this is a swatch of Fast Ride on the skin. You can see that it's pretty sheer, and a pretty shade that leans cool, but is still more burgundy than purple.

Swatch of Fast Ride

And a blurry picture of Fast Ride on my lips without flash. It adds color, but isn't incredibly dark or bright.

Fast Ride, no flash

And here's a similar up-close shot of Fast Ride with the flash.

Fast Ride photographed with flash 

Here's a full-face shot of Fast Ride, taken with the flash on. I love this color, it's a nice compromise between something really subtle and something with more color. It looks put together without becoming overwhelming, and can straddle polished day looks and dramatic night looks, depending on how you do the rest of your makeup.

Fast Ride on my lips, with flash. 

This next photograph shows Fast Ride on my lips without flash.

Fast Ride on the lips, no flash. 

Rating: 9 out of 10

I'm giving this product a 9/10. It's a wonderful formula, and the color is great. It's not super glossy, but has a nice touch of shine. This being said, I really wish the case didn't get as dirty looking as it did. However, the wear is great, it feels wonderful on my lips- I consistently forget I'm wearing lipstick when I have these on- and it goes with everything.  At $24 a pop, these are an investment for most of us, but for a color that is wearable (as most of theirs are), and for such a great formula, I think it's well worth it. If you want to play around with a sheer berry color like this but don't think you will use it enough to invest in it, check out some of the other colors I've been showcasing in the Sheer Berry series; this color isn't too far off of Night Out, by Hard Candy, although I think this color looks more sophisticated and the formula is heads and shoulders above the Hard Candy lipsticks, making this worth the investment if this shade is a new favorite of yours.   Even if this color or finish isn't for you, I urge you to try out some of NARS' lipsticks if you haven't already. They are awesome.

If you have questions about the rating system, there's a basic explanation at the bottom of this post.

Thanks, dolls!