SKIN looking dull and tired? Turn around your complexion with a blush-up.
A pop of colour on cheeks immediately makes the face look alive. Cream formulas are my favourite, and these are three of the best.
BUDGET
17. Melting Cream Blush, £4 for 4g, boots.com
I tried this because the shade “Coffee Love” was dubbed as a dupe for the viral “Toasted Teddy” shade from Hailey Bieber’s Rhode Beauty.
On the outside, they look nothing alike, but the TikTok make-up fans were right that the terracotta-pink shades are remarkably similar. What won me over, however, was the creamy consistency and buildable nature of the bargain blush.
It’s super easy to blend out with both a brush or fingers, depending on how you prefer to apply your make-up.
The packaging reflects the price point, but the product inside far out-performs it.
MID-RANGE
Charlotte Tilbury Unreal Blush Healthy Glow Stick, £30 for 9g, spacenk.com
Cream sticks are my make-up format of choice – nothing is faster or more fool-proof.
You can draw them straight onto skin and then buff out with a brush, which means less product gets wasted than if you were applying it from a palette.
I usually shy away from anything touted as glow-boosting – my oily skin doesn’t need any help in that regard – but my love of Charlotte Tilbury (and sticks) tempted me to try this and I’ve not looked back.
The glow comes from the balmy texture, which effortlessly glides across skin and the pigmented formula means a little goes a really long way, and the colour lasts all day which is a rarity.
LUXURY
Westman Atelier Baby Cheeks Blush Stick, £44 for 6g, cultbeauty.co.uk
This blush has been my go-to for nearly five years and I still love it as much as I did the first time I used it.
It has almost a matte finish, which is music to my ears, but that doesn’t make it at all chalky to apply or hard to blend out.
It’s easy to blend if you want to up the intensity of the colour, but on initial application it’s the most sheer of the three.
It doesn’t disturb the make-up underneath, or go patch on my skin.
Yes, it’s expensive, but even with daily use, a stick can last me a couple of years (which I probably shouldn’t admit – don’t tell the hygiene police).
PICK OF THE WEEK
IF you’re TikTok algorithm is anything like mine, chances are you’ve been inundated with videos of The Ordinary Volufiline 92% + Pal-Isoleucine 1%, £19.50 which launches nationwide on Thursday, but is available to shop through TikTok right now.
Dubbed as “filler in a bottle” it’s the clever, ingredient-focused brand’s first targeted solution designed to visibly address volume loss at its source.
For less than £20, the needle-free fix is certainly worth a shot.
