We are onto week six of my affordable beauty series and this week is all about blusher.
The drugstore has some really great blushes at great prices and there are a few that I really like. I will start off with the most affordable one which is the Natural Collection Powder Blusher for €2.79.
I use the shade Peach Melba, which is a gorgeous neutral shade and goes with pretty much every makeup look.
It’s such a versatile blush. Although the name suggests it is a peach blush, to my eye it is more of a neutral shade, especially on my skin.
Another shade I really like but don’t currently have is Rosy Glow.
The formula is lovely too. It’s not as finely milled as some of my other blushes, but it’s still lovely to work with. It applies nicely and blends out well. It doesn’t emphasise any pores, dryness, texture etc. It’s long lasting, and it wears well and it comes in six shades.
It’s sheer but buildable, which I like. I don’t like my blushes to be too pigmented because you can very easily end up looking like Bosco or Aunt Sally. It’s easier to add more if you need to, but it’s harder to take it away if you add too much.
There is quite a bit of kickback from this in the pan, because it’s so inexpensive I don’t mind that too much, however I think if it was a more expensive product I’m not sure how I would feel about it as a lot of product is wasted because of the amount of kickback from it.
Natural Collection blushes used to come in a more bulky and flimsy compact with a screw on lid but last year they changed the packaging on them so they’re sturdier, although still plastic and they are more compact so they are more travel and handbag friendly too.
Despite the kickback this is one I have repurchased time and time again because I really love it. You can purchase this in Boots.
No.7 Powder Blush in Honey is another gorgeous blush. This is a slightly warmer blush than Peach Melba, but it’s not orange or muddy.
Both the No.7 and Natural Collection blushes have similar texture. Honey applies nicely and blends out well without emphasising pores, dryness, texture etc. There is some kickback in the pan from this, but it is nothing major.
The downside to this blush is that it fades very slightly throughout the day. I usually apply my makeup in the morning and it can be on for up to twelve hours depending on the day and by the time I’m taking my makeup off (after a usually long and busy day) I notice that my blush has faded.
As you can see in the above photo, Honey and Satin Coral are quite similar. Honey is a touch warmer than Satin Coral and has a matte finish.
It’s €12.50 which I guess isn’t bad considering how little you need and how long it will last. It is one of the more pricier blushers, but I have noticed that No.7 products are generally more expensive than other affordable brands. This can also be purchased Boots.
I recently got the Essence Satin Touch blush in two colours. I got Satin Coral and Satin Love. Both of these are actually quite similar, more so than I realised when I purchased them.
Satin Coral is definitely more of a coral which the name suggests, but it’s not a straight up coral by any means. It’s still very much a neutral coloured blush. Satin Love is a darker neutral shade, which I quite like.
Both of these are very pigmented, so a very light hand is needed otherwise you will end up looking like Bosco or Aunt Sally.
As you can see they are very much a satin finish, again, as the name suggests. I barely touched the pans and yet I still got excellent pigmentation from both shades, so a light hand is definitely needed.
These have an absolutely gorgeous texture. The powder is silky smooth. They apply nicely and blend out well without blending away to nothing.
I haven’t found them to emphasise pores, dryness or texture. They wear well and are long-lasting.
These don’t look patchy, look orange or muddy and because they have a satin finish they have a beautiful radiance once applied. They look gorgeous with pretty much any foundation I’ve worn them with but particularly a matte foundation due to their satin finish.
Satin Love also makes a great eyeshadow,. On days where I don’t want to wear a lot of makeup or if I am in a rush I will apply Satin Love to my lid and blend up towards my crease, apply some mascara and I am good to go.
These are unavailable in Ireland (at least I cannot find them anywhere), I purchased mine from EssenceMakeup.com and used a forwarding service to get them to Ireland.
Last but not least is this Milani blush trio in the shade Floral Fantasy. This is absolutely gorgeous.
Milani describe the shades in this trio as “Warm Matte Peachy Coral, Warm Shimmering Medium Dusty Rose, Warm Shimmering Bronzy Rose”. I definitely agree with that.
These, like the Essence blushes, have a really lovely texture. The powder is silky smooth and very easy to work with. The blushes apply nicely and blend out well without blending away to nothing.
They don’t emphasise pores, dryness or texture, they don’t go patchy or look orange or muddy. They wear well and they are long-lasting and they don’t fade throughout the day either.
This is one of two blush trios that was released by Milani in May of this year. As I said this one is called Floral Fantasy and the other one is called Flowers of Love.
The only downside is that these trios are not available in Ireland. I purchased mine from Milani.com, however they are also available from Walgreens. You will need to use a forwarding service to get them to you here in Ireland
Although the trios aren’t available in Ireland you can in fact purchase other blushes from the Rose Powder range on Milani UK, Beauty Bay, Cloud10Beauty, Amazon UK and Beauty Joint.
As you can tell I have a penchant for neutral coloured blushes, I have very few non-neutrals as I feel that neutral blush suit my complexion best.
They also go with pretty much every eye makeup look so no worries about clashing eyes and cheeks.
Thank you for reading. I hope you enjoyed this post and find it helpful.
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