I’ve had my eyes on Cactus Flower from NARS for such a long time (it must be about a year now.) I finally caved in and bought it whilst perusing the NARS counter in Liberty’s a few weeks ago.

It’s a super bright orange-red with a strong gold shimmer that is simply stunning to look at, but I imagine scares many people off at first glance.

As soon as you swatch it, you can see that it’s a lot more wearable than it looks in the pan, giving you a very natural, fresh look with something of a ‘glow’ (thanks to the shimmer!) You can build it up to achieve an intense red, but it is easy to apply a sheer layer for everyday.

The consistency is very much a cream-to-powder formula, so despite being a cream, it can actually feel a tiny bit drying on the skin if you’re prone to dryness but overall… it’s simply stunning.

As always from NARS, the packaging is divine. Yes, it’s gets a little dirty looking after it’s been hanging around in your makeup bag for a while but I still love it.

I’m so happy I finally caved in to this one! I can imagine this will become one of my make up staples of 2012.