Holiday 2015: NARS X Steven Klein Color Collection.

I cannot hold off on talking about the holiday collections anymore. It's November and the holidays are going to be here before we know it. First up in my holiday postings this year is the NARS Color Collection and for 2015 the brand has collaborated with iconic fashion photographer Steven Klein. The NARS X Steven Klein Color Collection is just as exciting as the season; it's seductive, provocative and perfectly embraces the spirit of NARS.

The color collection includes a Dual-Intensity Blush, Single Eyeshadow, Nail Polish and some limited edition lip products that I am in love with — Killer Shine Lipstick and Killer Shine Lipgloss.

The NARS X Steven Klein Color Collection includes:

Limited Edition Killer Shine Lipstick - $29
Daring color with dramatic luster. An addictively creamy new lipstick formula that glides and gleams.

• Besame Mucho - Deep rose-beige
• No Shame - Red plum
• Redemption - Metallic pink champagne

Single Eyeshadow -  $25

• Mortal - Iridescent pearl white
• Stud - Soft pewter bronze
• Never Too Late - Olive green with gold shimmer

Limited Edition Killer Shine Lip Gloss - $28
Fully-loaded gloss with a new vinyl-finish formula. Saturated shades with a gripping lacquer effect deliver high shine with high drama.

• Provoke - Deep iris-purple
• Fast Life - Iridescent dusty rose
• Special Force - Wild strawberry

Nail Polish - $20

• Black Fire - Shimmering slate blue
• Hard to Get - Metallic bronze gunmetal
• Night Creature - Metallic iris-purple

Dual-Intensity Blush - $45

• Vengeful - White-gold highlight/Shimmering brick-red

I have a few items from the collection and I'm really like them all. The Killer Shine Lipstick in Redemption has been on my lips almost daily since I received it. This shimmery pink champagne lipstick really does have a metallic sheen to it that is perfect for the fall/winter season and looks great with a neutral smoky eye featuring Stud. Stud is the most gorgeous shimmery taupe brown. I love wearing this all over my lid with a darker shade in the crease. The other lippie I have is the Killer Shine Lipgloss in Fast Life. First off, I am really hoping that NARS keeps this Killer Shine formula; it's pigmented with a ton of shine, more so than most glosses and this one really lasts. Fast Life is a full-on metallic dusty mauve rose shade. I also have the Nail Polish in Hard to Get which is a very pigmented metallic gunmetal shade.

There are also some really amazing gifting items (palettes and sets) that feature the photography of Steven Klein on the packaging and some are must have items like the NARS X Steven Klein One Shocking Moment Cheek Palette that I already picked up and featured in my must have palettes for fall post last week. I'll be featuring more of those soon.

Right now, you can pick up the NARS X Steven Klein Color Collection at all NARS counters in Nordstrom, Sephora, NARS boutiques and online at narscosmetics.com.

Must Have Makeup Palettes + Sets.

As if I'm not lucky enough to receive makeup regularly to review, I do go shopping for it on my own. Unfortunately, I don't get the time I'd like to spend in a store like Sephora often enough. I did have the time to spend a good hour or so in my favorite Sephora store earlier this week and I did some major shopping. I picked up a lot of new makeup makeup must haves for fall and winter.

While I won't be reviewing all of these completely on the site because a lot of the items I bought were Christmas presents, I thought I should show you everything that I bought. There are so many great new makeup items and makeup sets out there that I think you will want to know about right now. The deals on the sets are incredible too with the holidays coming up too.

The first thing that caught my eye was the NARS X Steven Klein One Shocking Moment Cheek Palette. After creating my own custom cheek palette and having a certain someone wanting her one, I knew this palette would make a great gift for her. This cheek palette features four perfect blushes, a contouring duo and the best NARS Laguna bronzer.

Also making a great gift is Too Faced Le Grand Chateau. This adorable dollhouse boxed set contains three giftable palettes. Each palette has a cheek products (a blush or a bronzer) and six shadows. It also comes with a mini Better Than Sex Mascara. This obviously makes a great gift but it's also a great way to pick up a ton of Too Face products at a great price.

I can't resist a great lipgloss so I had to pick up the MAKE UP FOR EVER Artist Plexi-Gloss Kit. This limited-edition set contains four of the brands best selling Plexi-Gloss shades. I really like how glossy these lipglosses are and they wear really well. The shades include two nudes (one more creamy beige and one ore pearly nude), a candy pink and a red coral.

I highly debated the Dior Nude Palette for Eyes & Lips. The last thing I needed was another nude palette but I could not resist its beauty. I picked this up as I'm always needed a gift for someone that I seem to forget and I know I cannot go wrong with this stunner. This palette features three gorgeous eye shadows from a light gold to a matte brown (the picture does not do the palette justice) and two beautiful lip colors that will work on anyone. I normally hate eye and lip colors in one palette but Dior is super smart and put a little door over the lip wells.

Bobbi Brown has some of my favorite palettes year round and this holiday she has some great in her line up. One of my favorite is the palm sized Bobbi Brown Bellini Mini Lip & Eye Palette. I'll be reviewing this one in full soon, but quickly this features five wearable shades of classic Bobbi Brown eye shadows plus a shimmery lip gloss. This is the kind of palette that you put in your purse and take with your everywhere. I regret not buying two!

I had to pick up the Laura Mercier Daring By Day Eye & Cheek Colour Palette for me! This palette with six eye shadow shades that range from matte to pearl finishes in light ivory and n pink to brown and plum are perfect for a lot of skin tones and some of my very favorite. It also has the perfect cheek products to complete the look. I know this will be so handy for me when I travel this winter.

Have you been shopping at Sephora lately? Tell me what you picked up or what you are shopping for!

My Quick + Easy 5 Minute Makeup Routine.

If there is one thing that I struggle with more than any other, it is that I am always pressed for time. In this fast paced 24/7 world that we live in, I don’t have time to waste. That holds true every morning when I am applying my makeup. While I certainly do have times when I spend 20 minutes (or more) applying a full face of makeup, most days of the week I spend a quick five minutes on my makeup. Yes! just five minutes! You can too. With the right makeup products and and my tips, you can also be ready in a flash. Here is my super quick and super easy five minute makeup routine.

I start out my five minute makeup routine with a tinted moisturizer (see my top tinted moisturizer post). A tinted moisturizer offers coverage that will blend onto the skin to hide flaws yet look natural. It is also hydrating so it is forgiving. You don’t have to be perfect with this like a foundation, it can be quickly applied and blended in with the fingers. A few really good tinted moisturizers to try include Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturizer, bareMinerals Complexion Rescue and NARS Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturizer.

Next up, I apply concealer (see my top concealer post) to my undereye area and any spots or flawed areas that need extra coverage. I apply concealer over tinted moisturizer in this case because tinted moisturizer does not add in the same amount of coverage as a foundation. The concealers i use will add more coverage and blend out over the tinted moisturizer to further perfect my look. I do use a concealer brush to apply my concealer because it is really the only to get a flawless look. Some really great concealers that are easy to work and cover fast are NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer, MAC Pro Longwear Concealer, MAKE UP FOR EVER HD Invisible Cover Concealer and COVERGIRL Ready Set Gorgeous Concealer.

For the rest of my face, I keep a bronzer/blush palette on hand (see my top bronzers post). I like a palette that is all-in-one meaning that I can blend the bonzer and blush together. I’ll tell you why. First I will quickly stroke on the bronzer, just on my cheekbones then I will apply the blush just to the apples of my cheeks. Remember, we are not going for a full-on makeup look here, just a natural everyday makeup look. I then take a large fluffy eyeshadow brush and run it though the bronzer and blush which will give me a custom warm shade and I dust that right over my lids. It’s so simple, natural and pretty. Some bronzer and blush combination palettes that I like are Urban Decay NAKED Flushed palette, Bobbi Brown Shimmer Brick (there are a lot of shades available) and Smashbox Fusion Soft Lights.

I finish my eyes with a quick coat of mascara. You can use your favorite mascara (see my favorite mascaras post). I go for a good everyday mascara like COVERGIRL Full Lash Bloom Mascara, Lancome Definicils or Tarte Lights, Camera Lashes. Just make sure it is easy to apply, doesn’t clump or smudge and lasts all day.

I complete my look with a natural lipstick color (see my best nude lipsticks post). I like a nude or pink-nude lipstick color for everyday. It’s quick so I don’t have to be careful in applying. I use a long-wearing lipstick that is comfortable on the lips. I suggest Urban Decay Revolution Lipstick, MAC Lipstick and COVERGIRL Outlast Lipstick.