Running on empty? A beauty routine might be well down your list of priorities, but there are some quick ways to look well-rested. Want to look healthy and lively in a matter of seconds? Try a quick application of cream blush.
The creamy, dewy texture of cream blush gives skin back some life when it’s looking dry and drawn, and when powder blush can settle into creases or catch on flaky patches.
To use, you can either use your fingers to tap colour onto your cheeks from the apples towards the top of your ears and blend well with your fingers, or if you’re using a stick, swipe a short line upwards toward ears and blend.
One of the benefits of cream is that its easy to apply it slowly bit by bit, layering it into the intensity you want. Accidentally applied too much? Keep blending with fingers and then go back in with a foundation or powder brush without adding any product and use the bush to buff the colour away.
To figure out where the apples of your cheeks are, do a wide smile and apply the blush where the skin makes a soft, round-shaped pad.
It’s a good idea to apply a good moisturiser first and wait for it to skin in. Cream blush can be used over dewy or matte finish foundations.
As blush tends to fade slightly throughout the day, another useful idea is to layer cream blush with powder blush to ensure longevity, just make sure the cream is well blended before going in the powder colour as it will catch on very moist areas.
Best cream blush products to try
There are a number of new arrivals to choose from as well as some faithful best-sellers.
A top-seller for years Bobbi Brown’s Pot Rouge for Lips & Cheeks, $58, has long been the choice of makeup artists to deliver a fresh, youthful pep to cheeks on photoshoots, backstage at fashion week and applying makeup at the brand’s popular department store counters.
Hourglass has added a Vanish Blush Stick in six shades, $78 each, to its popular Vanish stick line up of highlighters and solid foundation. Which means should you want to, you could do your whole face in minutes without a makeup brush in sight!
Known for it’s stick-based line of products, Milk Makeup’s Lip & Cheek sticks are a quick and portable option for blush colour and come in a handy mini size for $32 each.
The under-rated steal of the lot has got to be Mecca MaxOff Duty Blush Stick, $20. It comes in a range of suits-everyone shades and delivers a pretty, blendable semi-matte finish.
Celebrity makeup artist Gucci Westman has the brilliant Baby Cheeks Blush Sticks, $81 each, in her Westman Atelier collection and they have been a leader in the category for a while, but new tawny Bichette shade, is the ideal warm, autumnal hue that can be blended into lips for simple coordinating colour.
NARS Air Matte Blush, $51 has a beautiful velvet mousse texture that is easily blended, and you only need the lightest touch.
