I hit the bar last Thursday night — and I’m not talking about a Washington Corridor hotspot. Clad in stilettos and a trusty black ensemble, I attended the “Beauty Bar“ launch event at Palais Royal’s Cinco Ranch store celebrating their new in-store beauty concept with makeovers, giveaways, sips and bites and a special appearance by celebrity makeup artist Napoleon Perdis.

There to promote his new line “NP Set,” Perdis offered more than 100 shoppers tips, tricks and makeup applications (he even popped into a photo booth set up at the event to take pictures with adoring fans). Known for working with celebrities Hilary Duff, Gossip Girl’s Leighton Meester, Evangeline Lily and many more, Perdis had just completed working several runway shows at New York fashion week.

Perdis talks as quickly as he applies makeup--- I learned this as he whisked me away from our interview spot to a makeup station where he effortlessly applied a myriad of products to my face. I was in awe of how fresh and pretty my makeup looked when it literally took him less than a few minutes to finish. Perdis’ looks are all about being fast and easy.

“At fashion week we have to do 30 models in an hour and a half, we have to be quick,” he said.

One thing he doesn’t compromise on is starting with a clean slate. He swears by makeup primer, calling it a “must” to keep makeup even and making it last all day. NP Set offers a pore-minimizing primer and one with a touch of bronzer added to achieve a glowing, bronzed look no matter what the time of year.

With a back-to basics approach, Perdis boasts “a woman’s makeup routine should be simple.” He recommends applying mascara before any other eye makeup, as it will help gauge how much more you need to add--- and sometimes, it’s nothing at all. He also added that women should use foundation only where they need it and let their natural skin shine through for a fresher, more youthful appearance.

When asked what five products a woman should use to look polished without spending a lot of time, Perdis says primer, powder foundation, mascara, a blush/highlighter duo and a lip stain are must-haves. The NP Set blush duo he used on my cheeks created a soft glow on my skin. He applied the blush to the apples of my cheeks and used the highlight on the tops of my cheekbones to create subtle, pretty definition that looks downright glow-y when photographed (a red carpet trick, no doubt).

He lined my eyes with a forest-green liner from his collection called “Dubai” (all of the products are named after destinations) which he swears helps brighten red, tired eyes when applied to the upper and lower waterline near the inner corners of the eye — a tip to remember when you’ve had a particularly late evening! A lover of the smokey eye look, I adored the “Amsterdam” eye shadow trio Perdis applied to my eyes. The palette, containing three pretty purple shades has a highlight, lid and crease color to make this sometimes tricky technique a cinch.

When discussing the “Beauty Bar” concept, Perdis said, “Women cherry-pick---they are no longer committed to just one brand and this concept allows women to conveniently shop for products and be able to play with them without the pressure the beauty counter can sometimes carry…it puts the customer back in power.”

The line’s price-points are right on target too, from $12.95 to $32. The multi-tasking palettes which offer lip, eye and cheek colors all in one easy-to-tote sleek case offer incredible value and allow a woman to create an array of looks from daytime polish to nighttime drama.

With only lovely things to say about Houston, Perdis said it reminds him of his native country Australia, where “the people have very traditional values .”

You can purchase NP Set products at select Palais Royal locations and online. The Palais Royal Beauty Bar, located in select stores, features products by Kiss My Face, Crabtree & Evelyn, Burts Bees, Emani Minerals, Juice Organics, and Bremenn Labs (the makers of popular anti aging products Stri-Vectin).

Veronika Javor Romeis writes a fashion and beauty blog, Veronika’s Blushing