All posts tagged: blush

Smashbox Image Factory Air Blush Whipped Cheek Color in Dusty Rose

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This blush by Smashbox is one of the things I bought on a whim but I rarely ever use. Digging it up to review it, I’m reminded of why I impulsively bought it in the first place. For one thing, it is pretty gorgeous. Dusty Rose gives such a natural flush to the cheeks, with such a pretty color coupled with a beautiful texture. If you couldn’t already tell from the name or the picture, this has a pretty mousse-y consistency—a lighter texture than cream blushes. It is blendable and light, though fairly pigmented and is layer-able without much issue. I usually use a stippling brush when I apply it, though it goes on fairly well when used with fingers. Dusty Rose is a warm, rosy color that adds enough warmth and pinkness to the skin. It really looks like you have no blush on. Because it is whipped/a mousse, it dries down to a sort of velvety finish. On the face, it is noticeably natural, too. Does that make sense? I’ll call it that …

shu uemura Glow On Blush in Soft Mauve 225

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Here’s a tricky little bugger. I bought the shu uemura Glow On Blush in Soft Mauve 225 after seeing it on a beautiful blogger, who sang it praises and I WANTED THAT GLOW. I wanted it! Unfortunately, I forgot to take into account the difference in our skintones, hers being quite pale. I am not pale. So. There. I had such a big problem with this blush, because it was so light and didn’t want to show up, no matter what I did. Enter, the Illamasqua Blush-Up Brush: It’s a dense, stiff brush that is just perfect for people like me who insist on wearing too-light colors. Ta-da! Aaaand here is a very heavy swatch: Soft Mauve 225 is a really pale lavender and it looked to be like the impossible dream. I don’t get a “true-to-pan” color on my cheeks, obviously, but I like the effect it lends. I’ve yet to try it under a cream, neutral base, but I’ve worn this mixed with other blushes, to great results. The blush itself is a …

Quickie: MAC Extra Dimension Blush in Fiery Impact

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I have here today a beautiful blush, the MAC Extra Dimension Blush in Fiery Impact. This was an impulse buy that I’ve hauled previously but never properly reviewed. Like most of my online purchases, this one was bought sight unseen, which means that I had no idea what “extra dimension blushes” are, other than the fact that they are pretty. But, because I’m resourceful, here’s what I dug up: Product Description: “A liquid-powder blush with prismatic reflections in five shimmering shades. Impact ranges from sheer crystallized light to a highly polished metallic effect. Lasts up to 6 hours.” So, that doesn’t tell me much, except for the ff: — Extra Dimension blushes come in “five shimmering shades” — color is buildable from sheer to a fuller coverage/higher pigmentation — lasts 6 hours I picked out Fiery Impact, which is a “burnt, red bronze.” The reason for this is that I wanted to try this range and I had no brick red blushes in my blush stash. I rather liked Flaming Chic as well, which is …

Softly Special: Matte Matters

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Since I posted about the NARS Velvet Matte Lip Pencils yesterday, I thought about posting some of my favorite matte products. LIPS Clockwise from the top: NARS Velvet Matte Lip Pencil in Dolce Vita, NARS Pure Matte Lipstick in Montego Bay, MAC Lipstick in Mehr, Revlon Matte Lipstick in Fabulous Fig, MAC Matte Lipstick in Russian Red, and Chanel Rouge Allure Velvet in La Favorite. Here they are, swatched in the same order. EYESHADOW An obvious recommendation for a matte palette is the Urban Decay Naked Basics Palette, which consists of five matte shades, out of the palette’s six. It’s a great companion to all the eyeshadows you have right now, and you can definitely use it by itself. Here are a few of my other favorite matte eyeshadows, from a variety of eyeshadow palettes: L-R: Urban Decay Naked Palette (Buck), Urban Decay Naked 2 Palette (Tease), Laura Mercier Artist’s Palette for Eyes (Plum Smoke, Café Au Lait, Coffee Ground) L-R: Urban Decay Naked 2 Palette (Blackout), Laura Mercier Artist’s Palette for Eyes (Deep Night), …

A Spectrum of Flush: Illamasqua Blusher Duo in Lover/Hussy

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A few weeks ago, I went on an ASOS Illamasqua binge because I couldn’t get my hands on the Speckled Nail Varnish, since they are hard to send over, cross country for some reason (I wanted Freckle or Scarce). “I just want my nails to look like Easter eggs, dammit!” I thought. In a fit of rage and a whirlwind of poor decisions, I ended up ordering a couple of things of Illamasqua, one of them being this powder duo blusher in Lover/Hussy. (You can see the rest of the haul here.) I kind of already reviewed it there already, but I wanted to be a little bit more in-depth because this powder blusher duo honestly deserves a few more words of praise. To recap, I thought it was huge. As you can see, it is. This duo is what I wanted to bring on the trip to Japan, since I could have two blushers in one. Alas, the packaging was a huge (literally) deterrent. The Illamasqua Powder Blusher Duo I got came with Lover, …

Drugstore Finds: NYX Powder Blush Collection

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I’ve never been a blush fiend. I never got it to show up on my face the way I envisioned a certain color to. However, I’d been bitten by a blush bug quite recently and I’ve acquired quite the spectrum. If you’re a bit hesitant to build your blush collection (since some are so pricey), you could start with NYX! Here is my NYX Powder Blush Collection, so far. I have the ff. shades: Bourgeois Pig Desert Rose Cocoa Raisin Taupe I have my reasons for picking up each shade. Bourgeois Pig, just because it felt so defiantly un-me that I had to try it. I got Desert Rose because I’m a sucker for rose in general and it seemed like a nice, wearable and safe option. The last three, Cocoa, Raisin, and Taupe, I wanted to try contouring with. I know. Crazy, right? Here are some swatches on my hand: In terms of pigmentation, the pinks have the power. Cocoa was a bit too red to contour with. I didn’t expect Raisin to be …

Quickie: Chanel Joues Contraste in Frivole

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I can wax poetic about this beautiful peach apricot blush by Chanel, but I won’t. I’ll spare ya. What I will tell you, though, is that infuses a beautiful glow on your face. Prepare for a smattering of warmth, when you put it on. It’s a subtle kind of warmth; the kind that seems like it’s spreading across your cheeks from that special place in your heart. The Chanel Joues Contraste in Frivole ($43) is the kind of thing that I knew I wanted to have the minute I saw it in Spring 2013 promo pictures. It’s just a beautiful orange blush that looks mega-bright on the pan but is actually a) subtle on the cheeks/skin, and b) fairly buildable. Frivole comes with a full-size compact mirror and a slightly stiff and rough brush, as well as a little velvet pouch to keep it scratch-free when you throw place it gently into your bag. When you open it, the air begins to smell strongly like “roses” but it really reminds me of what a lola …