Habanera consists of two eye shadows, a pale minty green and a plum taupe infused with silver glitter. Both are super-shimmery which personally, I love! The texture of both shadows is buttery soft, which makes blending so easy and as you would expect from NARS, the pigmentation is intense. I seriously don’t know how NARS come up with these colour combinations, but they work so well. In fact, I have nothing like these two colours in my entire make up collection, so I’m so glad I’ve got something unique. Habanera looks so good on so many skin tones and eye colours, just have a look at some of the blogs it’s featured on or do a quick search on Google and you will see for yourself.

In actual fact, you get 3 shades, because you can always layer the two colours together to create a new shade, and in this duo the result is the most beautiful silvery-taupe. I’ve been using this hybrid shade in the crease to create some serious definition.There are many different ways to wear this duo, depending entirely on your personal preferences. I’ve just been wearing it with the green in the inner corners and the plum shade all over the lid, and also on the lower lashline. I then use MAC 'Wedge' to blend it out and add some black liquid liner (MAC’s Liquidlast Liner), but I think it would be complimentary to use an aubergine or purple liner. One thing I majorly love about it is that unlike some shimmery eye shadows that lose their lustre and sparkle once applied on the eyelid, the Habanera duo really keeps it’s shimmer on the eyelid – my MAC 239 brush has remnants of shimmer in the bristles!

While I can't see myself ever finishing this shadow duo (or any of my shadows for that matter!) I would certainly repurchase this if I did!

I've been wanting Habanera on and off for ages and finally bought it a few weeks ago. This was actually my first NARS eyeshadow purchase but I can tell you, it won't be my last! Where I live, we're in the middle of a really oppressive heatwave but I have worn this duo, or the silvery blue/green side of it, almost every day. The effect of this shadow, washed lightly over the lid, is so watery/fresh-and-cool-looking, and just perfect for this hot weather. The deep purple balances this shade beautifully. The purple appeared to have quite a bit of glitter when I swatched it on my hand but when applied, the glitter is not a problem at all. And the lighter shade, packed on the inner half or 2/3 of the lid, with the purple on the outer part and into the crease, makes for a stunning and unique look.

I suspected that the lighter shade was probably very close to UD's Money so I took along my Mariposa palette (which contains Money) to test them side by side. And for anyone who has Money and doesn't want to spend on a somewhat pricey new eyeshadow, they are virtually IDENTICAL in colour (even the SA was surprised by this) although the Nars shadow is much more pigmented, applies more smoothly and evenly and gives a nicer overall effect on my older eyelids - it's just a bit more "creamy" in how it applies. But you could certainly use Money as a dupe, if you are looking to save your own "Money".

Habanera is a favorite of mine! The minty blue color is so unique and both shadows paired together are soo beautiful. The quality is amazing. Its a must have if you are an eyeshadow junkie!

Wow, this combo looks extremely flattering with my gray eyes. It makes them turn a cool aqua color. This is definitely one of my favorites. If you have gray or blue eyes, this combo is a MUST TRY! You won't be disappointed! The key to making it work is definitely in the blending otherwise you'll look clownish. I haven't tried it with primer yet and still it lasts (on me at least) all night. Worth every penny although I secretly wish E.L.F. would make a dupe of it ; )

This is a unique combination . I don't understand why some people say the right side is green though, its more of an ashy purple with a lot of silver specks in it (not glitter though) I like the product, but I don't love it. Probably because the left side (silver) doesn't look good on my skintone. Reading the reviews I thought the color would blow me away, still pretty though.

What a beautiful duo for blue eyes. Habanera is a shimmery (very) mint green paired with a brownish plum which is not matte but comparatively so to the green. I'm a makeup risktaker and I love to make artistic expressions but even I would have passed this one up if it weren't for the reviews on MUA. The green by itself is too, too much and I can't imagine it would look good alone on anyone. The plum brown not only anchors it but opposes it which results in a beautiful tension. I use the green all over the lid and then go over all of it with the plum/brown (this layering is important) past my crease, leaving a fourth of the inner corner just green. Blend, blend, blend and continue the plum/brown on to the lower lid. Any liner will do on the upper lid. Sounds crazy but this can be done day or evening if you adjust your application. For evening line the lower waterline with a dark purple or burgundy liner. Potent stuff and it makes out-of-this-world eyes. Fabulous for blue and probably would give brown eyes a spark too.

I, too, have a hard time justifying these kinds of purchases due to usually only wearing them on the weekends. But I honestly love this duo and wear it all the time. It strikes the right balance of dark/light, fun/sexy, work/night.

I haven't found the darker shade's sheerness (and it's not even that sheer) to be an impediment. In fact, I think it's better as it makes the shade buildable and more versatile. The green is sooooo pretty. I thought it would look awkward on my dark features, but it looks awesome. I wear with and without primer. Sometimes it's hard to blend/looks crepey with my UDPP underneath, but I'm still working out the ratio of primer to shadow...and it lasts all day. Good indulgence purchase. I think it will look delicious on all shades of eyes...but especially nice on brown :)

The light minty teal steals the show in this duo. It is so buttery and smooth. Such a gorgeous colour. This duo reminds me of the eighties but it's a lovely duo on the eyes.

The smokey plum with rainbow sparkles is beautiful but is a little sheer. It requires a base (cream eyeshadow) or some building up to show true pan colour. The sparkles does tend to get swept away and find it's way down your cheeks but scotch tape gets rid of that.

I got this in a swap but I would not probably have bought it my self (perhaps much, much later after I bought the other duos on my wishlist). The colours don't attract me as much as the other NARS duos do. I took off a lippie for the sheerness of the plum colour(but it's workable and still pigmented).

HG material here!! I read tons of reviews before I had the chance to take a trip to the UK and actually see this in person at Selfridges (NARS doesn't sell in my country). I was so excited I went there with no makeup on my eyes and asked the SA to apply it. URGH. It looked horrible, as if someone had just punched me in the eyes. However, I did believe in the two beautiful complimentary shades so I bought it anyway. Turns out I was right, and the SA had probably missed her morning coffe or whatever, because when I tried it at home with my brushes and my hands, it looked FABULOUS!! seriously, one of the best eyeshadows I've seen on my eyes. The trick is blending, as always.
It really makes BLUE eyes POP even on an uber-pale skin like mine!! It looks extremely polished and sophisticated. The intensity is buildable, you can easily go from a classy wash of colour during work hours to a bold smokey eye for nighttime.
I could go on for hours: excellent colour payoff, no fallout, beautiful blendability, and THE SHADES!! who would've thought those two colours would be so sexy and sophisticated together??
It is extremely expensive at £23, but honestly I don't care, it will last me a long time and I will definitely repurchase when I finish it.

I love this combination of colors on me (NC42, MUFE153). I can wear it sheer for work or make it a little darker for a smokey look. The only thing I have a problem with is the sparklies. It gets on my cheeks and I have a hard time brushing it off so I have to put this on before my foundation.