I may write regularly about beauty but without proper study and keen focus, my head spins when walking down the make-up aisle.  If left to my own demise, I'd be wearing blush on my lips and teint on my temples.  So when James Boehmer, International Lead Makeup Stylist for NARS cosmetics, held court at Hotel Le Germain, I sat in rapt attention.

James was in Montreal to present NARS's new summer line, made up of seven must-haves in pretty colours like brandy Coup de Coeur lip gloss ("dab it on with your fingers so it lasts longer"), golden Versailles nail polish and Cayenne cream eyeshadow that can be layered or worn solo.

Best of all is the Multiple Tint in Turks & Caicos orange, Cadaques fuchsia and Beverly Hills red.  Each hue is so subtle, even a make-up malaprop like me can't cock it up.  According to James, it's "the fast food of make-up" because it can be use on lips, eyes and cheeks. (And just like summer, these babies are fleetingly avail. at Sephora.com for three months only.)

I also got a sneak peek at what's coming along for fall:  A slim line of matte-but-moisturing lipsticks in colours like Bangkok (ballet-slipper pink) and Vesuvio red, inspired by Francois Nars' jaunts around the world.  Tempting as it is, I promise not to wear them all at once.