The NARS Hanamichi Kabuki Eyeshadow Palette

NARS Hanamichi Kabuki Eyeshadow Palette Packaging

The NARS Hanamichi Kabuki Eyeshadow Palette is encased in a little pouch.

The NARS Hanamichi Kabuki Eyeshadow Palette comes with a Kabuki Eye Brush

I spied this beauty online a few weeks ago, and it literally took my breath away!  I don't know if I've ever seen such a beautiful eyeshadow palette!  

Made in Italy, the Hanamichi Palette is a limited edition 2011 holiday palette, available for $65, and it includes an eyeshadow brush and a mirror.

The NARS Hanamichi Kabuki Eyeshadow Palette in sunlight

Right now, this palette is still available from Nordstrom and from NARS EU. 

The NARS Hanamichi Kabuki Eyeshadow Palette up-close

Hanamichi is Japanese for "flower path", and the inspiration for this palette was the walkway that extends into the audience in a Kabuki dance/drama theatre. 


The elaborate makeup worn by some of the performers is highly stylized, and this is clearly reflected in the NARS Hanamichi Palette.

The NARS Hanamichi Kabuki Eyeshadow Palette - inspired by a Kabuki Theatre

NARS Kabuki Eye Brush up-close

NARS Kabuki Eye Brush

The NARS Kabuki Eye Brush is tiny, and I'm too afraid to use it!  The handle is hand-spun with wisteria, and the bristles are so short that I'm worried that I'll destroy the brush if I wash it!  Because of the size I don't know if it's going to be the most practical brush, so I'll save it for another day when I have more time to wash and test it.


Something that I don't like about this palette is that it does contain talc as the main ingredient.

NARS Hanamichi swatches

While NARS claims the eye shadows are "highly pigmented", I did not find this to be accurate.  I have certainly used very deeply pigmented eyeshadows that pack a punch, but here even the matte black eyeshadow is a little sheer.  


These eyeshadows are pretty though, and blend beautifully.  It's certainly not for everyone, but I love it.


- The Sassi Wench

Chanel Holiday 2011 Makeup Brush Set Les Minis de Chanel

Chanel Makeup Brush Gift Set

Chanel Makeup Brushes: COLLECTION OF 6 ESSENTIAL MINI BRUSHES Limited Edition

What Chanel says about this set:

This set of six essential mini brushes for a complete makeup look includes: smudge brush, angled lip brush, angled eyeshadow brush, lash/eyebrow brush, foundation/concealer brush and angled powder brush. Encased in a spacious signature cosmetics bag, adorned with the Chanel logo in festive red.

Chanel Signature Cosmetic Bag

The Chanel intertwined "C's" in bold red are simply stunning!

The makeup bag has the Chanel logo in red

Les Minis de Chanel holiday brush set

The one thing that I do no like in this set is the spoolie brush.  It's flimsy and unnecessary.  I would have preferred another brush.

Chanel Angled Powder Brush, Foundation and Concealer Brush, Lash and Eyebrow Brush

Chanel Angled Eyeshadow Brush, Smudge Brush and Angled Lip Brush

The makeup bag is nice really nice - very practical with a zipper pocket with room enough to store a Chanel eyeshadow quad palette and some other makeup items.

Chanel mini brushes inside a signature Chanel makeup bag

I compared the mini foundation brush with the new Chanel Foundation Brush #6 to give some perspective. 

Chanel Foundation Brush #6 versus the Les Minis foundation brush.

The Chanel logo in red on the brush handles

Because I travel so much, hauling around my favorite makeup brushes has always been a source of stress for me.  I worry about scratching the handles or losing some (or all) of them.  I've known for quite some time that I need to find a compact and efficient travel makeup brush set.


I bought two MAC LE Nordstrom brush sets a few years ago, but the quality of some of those brushes is so bad that they are my least favorite.  In fact, I haven't used them in years.  It was a complete waste of money.  The blush brush in one of these sets has some some thick, scratchy and hard synthetic fibers that I simply cannot use on my face.  


It didn't help that I've been lusting after the 2009 Chanel holiday brush set for years.  But alas, that set is long gone and of course today is nowhere to be found.  When the 2010 holiday season rolled around, I didn't care for the 2010 Chanel brush set.  But when I saw the 2011 set online, I knew that this was the travel brush set that I had been waiting for!


Upon arrival, my first impression was the red Chanel logo is stunning! The second - these brushes are tiny!  While they fit in my medium size hands comfortably, I think that it might be a bit awkward for women with larger hands to deal with some of the smaller brushes in this set.


I haven't had the opportunity to really use these brushes, because I just got the set this week.  Once I use them I'll post a review on each brush.


I ordered this set online from the Chanel website for $125.


- The Sassi Wench