Oh, these little eyeshadow palettes from NARS are just so good. I’ve been testing them out for months now and they are without a doubt one of the most-used (and most useful) eye products in my makeup bag.

I say makeup bag, obviously I mean bags, plural. The cosmetics testing situation is out of control here – I’ve had my head buried so deep in app stuff (download The Night Feed here – it’s excellent!) that I have a massive backlog. Actually the backlog is so great you could probably use the earlier items as a primary historical source. It’s like going back in time, delving through my samples – there’s a stick foundation that’s probably from 1953 and lipsticks that were potentially used in the Roman times.

(Do you remember Primary and Secondary sources in history lessons? Ugh. I don’t know why I used to find it so boring, because I actually love history! How did they make it so dull? If I was a history teacher I would find fun anecdotes, like, I dunno, stories about some of the amazingly inventive instruments of torture they had in the medieval times. Fun maybe isn’t the right word, but you know what I mean. Make it colourful! Medieval torture methods, yay!)

Anyway, from the Judas Cradle (don’t Google it, you can never unsee) to the NARS Voyageur palettes*. I’m sure they’ll appreciate the (completely off-brand) segue I did there.

These diminuitive little palettes are just the best thing since sliced bread – teeny, slimline, compact, they slip into your handbag or makeup pouch and you’d never know they were even there. Unlike most palettes, which weigh the same as a house brick and have bigger dimensions than a carry-on suitcase.

The Voyageur palette comes in two versions; Suede, which is a very wearable selection of cooler-toned shadows and Nectar, which is as peachy as they come. Each palette has matte, shimmer and sheer finishes and, unlike many eyeshadow palettes, there are no duds. I use each and every shade and they look good worn singly or layered up and blended.

Peachy Nectar feels fiery and summery and hot – and actually in the lighting above, I can clearly see what the difference is between the shimmery and the sheer finishes. I as never too sure when I was using them but I think that the top middle and bottom right are shimmers and the top right and bottom middle (good God I feel like a gameshow assistant!) are the sheers.

Whatever, they all look bloody brilliant and they apply like a dream. So pigmented, so easy to blend, the lasting power is exemplary and the colours stay vivid and bright.

But it’s Suede that I use the most – it’s more subdued, I suppose, and you can create incredibly natural looks, whereas the redder tones in Nectar really stand out. I also like that Suede has a deep brown matte shadow, which is excellent for creating a smokey look, for wetting and using as a liner and for smudging into the socket for a more contoured effect.

Ironically, I only have a photo of myself wearing Nectar – you can see how beautifully peachy it is – but if you go onto my IGTV then there’s a video of me applying Suede. Both palettes are utterly divine, but Suede is more versatile, if I had to pick just one. If.

You can find these endlessly useful eyeshadow palettes at Space NK here* – they are £28 each. At time of writing, Space NK have one of their discovery events on – if you spend £60 you get £15 off. Easily done!

Space NK*