When it comes to makeup must-haves, this bounty of blushers will be your new best friends. They’re compact, convenient and incredibly intuitive to use.
Keep in mind, though, that we’re not talking “kontouring” of the kind favoured by the Kardashians and Jenners – just a wee bit will suffice for a flirty flush of colour. This is when palettes come into play: The continuum of complementary colours means you need only swirl your brush into the pan to score the subtlest of shading on your skin.
To that end, consider splashing out on this terrific quintet of fabulous face enhancers, all of which should suffuse your complexion with a coquettish hint of a tint. For your perusal and purchasing consideration, please!
This right here is honest-to-goodness paradise in a pan. Perfect for bronzing up and beguiling your beau, the duo delight – in two of Nars’ most coveted colours, no less – delivers perfect payoff and the cushiony comfort of a cream formula. The beautifully silky product feels fabulously expensive, too, with the finely milled powders being superbly smooth and spine-tinglingly sensuous to the touch.
Fantastically forgiving when used separately or blended together, try misting your makeup brush before application for maximum “mul-gwang” mileage. (The wetter, the better in this age of K-Beauty dewiness, as a wry makeup sage once quipped.) Swirl up and outwards into your temples for a subtly lifting effect, finish with a final blast of a hydrating facial mist, and you’re done.
Oh, and this dynamic duo works hard for its money, too – in my case, a good eight hours of wear that did away with the need for a topcoat of translucent powder. I experienced no creasing, crinkling or pooling into pores, either, so hurrah for that. Slap this on if you’re one for patch-free and picture-perfect selfies.
And because makeup is an art best practiced with the appropriate apparatus, consider investing in a delightfully dense Hanamichi Kabuki Brush for exceptionally even coverage ($65 and limited edition, unfortch). Earmark both blusher and brush as part of your new everyday essentials!
Chanel’s suite of stratospherically priced purses can cost an arm and a leg and then some. Ease yourself into the luxe life by starting with the brand’s grooming gems – and what do you know, doesn’t the patterning on this particular baby remind you of Coco Chanel’s cache of precious pearls?
Exquisite embossing aside, the carefully calibrated mix of pearlescent pink pigments in this comforting compact is just about the only thing capable of breathing life and light into my skin – better at fending off pallor and pastiness than snatching forty winks, in my opinion.
You can use the shades separately, of course, but a great trick I deploy whenever I’m in need of an emergency pick-me-up is to combine both colours, then sweep the resultant sandy-hued highlighter along the highest plane of my cheekbones for an is-she-or-isn’t-she shimmer.
Leery of looking like a disco ball? I’m pleased to report that the featherweight formula leaves zero sparkly streaks, at least on my combination skin. My “kwali” complexion was also comfortably satiny after an afternoon’s worth of cavorting on a yacht. Make room for this makeup must-have in your 2.55 clutch – and grab it soon because this sensational showpiece is (alas!) strictly limited-edition only.
Mm, lovely. This completely covetable collectible by the fabulous French brand quite frankly beggars belief. There’s the beyond beautiful packaging, for one, with the gorgeous gradation of face-friendly shades stamped with a motif of blooming sakura blossoms.
Wee disclaimer for shine-adverse folks: This particular product boasts a pretty bold pearlescence that may take a little getting used to, but I’ve found the top-most tint to be particularly useful as a luminiser when layered over your foundie on specific focal points on your face.
If you’re angular like Angelina Jolie, swirling the transition shades on the apples of your cheeks will soften any sharp edges. Here’s how: Looking straight ahead in a mirror, smile slightly so said apples pop out, then hold the smile while buffing in your blush along the upper half of the apples. Steer clear of your nose – we want to avoid a Rudolph the ruddy reindeer situation – and keep the hue high up on the face. Voila! You’ve just been transformed into a dewy-faced damsel with cutie-pie cheeks.
Meanwhile, I’ve found that the satiny pink powders at the bottom of the four-shade palette permeates my face with a dewy “day” glow, even in the dead of night – sort of like having a steady stream of sunlight trained on your face 24/7. So yes, this makes good on its promise of imbuing your skin with a burnished lustre, as if you were made of money (which you probably are, if you’re a Dior darling)!
Real talk: At first blush (so to speak) the glittery grains in this two-tone blusher may seem garish, especially if you’re on the greasy side.
Happily, I’ve discovered to my delight that the superbly soothing and incredibly airy pigments – courtesy of encapsulated emollients and hydrating hyaluronic acid in the formula – yields a sun-kissed smoulder that’s very fetching, very flirty and very natural. For the sheerest of stains, simply buff in the pinks and peaches using a fluffy domed brush, then dial up the drama by sweeping on another layer or two for night.
Now for a nifty little insider secret. I’ve found that the best way to apply this particular blusher is to swirl a bit of both hues onto a brush – make it a natural bristled one in this instance, because you don’t want to pick up too much product – then start from the middle of the cheekbones, somewhere below the pupils of your eyes. Sweep the colour out and upwards towards your temples, then blend at the edges for a soft halo effect. Tadah, a flirty feminine flush in a single stroke.
The makeup maverick of the beauty world is one savvy social media machine. To wit, this six-shade palette comes complete with its own hashtag (#UDXGwen, in case you’re wondering), and the press visuals are fabulously #flatlay-friendly – fitting, really, given that the #ForeverYoung Gwen Stefani serves as the celeb collaborator for this hugely hyped collection.
As for the product proper, these powders are well-nigh perfect, really; they slip on like the slinkiest of lingerie, no rough smearing required. Essentially, it does what a first-rate blusher should do, which is to say it gave me long-lasting colour along with a flattering, soft-focus glow. I wore this for a full work day under a setting of translucent powder, and didn’t notice any fading for a good nine hours.
And really, don’t be intimidated by all that colour. I’ve had the fab fortune of test-driving this baby out for myself, and can attest to the fact that these subtly shimmery and easily blendable blushers are very wearable when worn as a sheer wash. The paler “highlighter” hues, in particular, also lend an incredible incandescence that’s just dewy enough to read as “real” skin.
Try your hand at being a makeup mixologist with this custom cocktail recipe courtesy of Urban Decay’s backstage pro and national makeup artist, Eunice: “For an ethereal glow, layer on the pale pink Cherry under the highlight shade Angel, or blend them together on the back of your hand for a tailored fit.”
Want more Buzzfeed-ey beauty hacks? Go for broke by blending any one of the lighter colours above your cupid’s bow for poutier puckers; then finish with a dab in the middle of your chin. The glimmering effect as light falls on your face masks fatigue and imbues your mien with a lit-from-within luminosity that’s very intriguing indeed. Makes sense, yes?
Finally, a quick note on availability: These beauty baubles ought to be rolling out any time soon, so swing by the nearest cabin of each respective brand for a quick consult. Good luck getting your blush face on!