Blush 101

May 17, 2011

Nykia H.

So I'm still new to the whole makeup deal and need a little help. I love the way blush looks but am soo afraid to get the wrong color. What blush would you recommend for a women of color or whats your favortie blush you love to wear?

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May 18, 2011

Korie S.

Try look for a blush that is brighter and pigmented. If its too light in color and sheer, it won't show up as much but it really depends on your preference. Don't be afraid to buy the brighter colored blushes because they will look differently when applied on your skin. If its applied correctly and little by little, it will give your cheeks the right amount of color you are looking for. Hope this helps!

May 18, 2011

Soma S.

There is NO right or wrong w/ blush!!! You can NEVER have the wrong color, and you can NEVER have enough! =)

I use cool tones and warm tones, and regardless of the choice, it looks great. The only blush faux-pas is using too much in the wrong place. When was the last time you heard someone say, "Nuh, uh... look at that girl... wearing cool-toned blush w/ warm-toned skin..." hahaha...

Have fun w/ it! Blush was actually one of the LAST makeup items I became interested in, and it's been an obsession since!

As for a bold bright - I would DEFINITELY suggest Dollymix from MAC. It looks bold, bright and scary in the pan, but I promise you, it's a color EVERYONE must have in their collection. [It's a sheertone blush, so it won't apply like it looks in the pan] Happy hunting!

ps: Make sure you own a synthetic blush brush and a real animal hair blush brush. I suggest the Ecotools blush brush for synthetic and the MAC 138 for real animal hair. Synthetic brushes will pick up less pigment on the blushes TOO pigmented [ie: NARS, MAC, MUFE, La Femme] and animal hair for the blushes that aren't as pigmented will pick up more because of the hair fibers.

May 18, 2011

Mary P.

Hi Nykia.. Try "Loverush" by MAC! It's a beautiful color that will look great on your skintone. It's a sheertone blush, which means it's buildable from a softer to more dramatic effect depending on how you apply it. It's also pretty matte so that makes it a little more versatile and natural looking (when you do want a little shimmer, you can always just highlight with something else).
I used to work there and remember Loverush and Ambering Rose, another great color (but shimmery) being some of the popular colors for darker skin tones! Hope that helps =)

May 18, 2011

Danielle M.

MAC Peachykeen is a beautiful buildable color! You could also always try some NYX blushes, they are really great and you can't beat the price when trying to figure out what colors you like!  

May 18, 2011

Mandy H.

I would have to agree with Soma, there is no right or wrong blush :) You just have to experiment cause any blush will look different on different skin tones!
My reccomendations would probably be MAC's Fleur Power, Pink Swoon and Well Dressed.

May 18, 2011

Tamara R.

You've got a lot of room to play with when it comes to blushes, you just need to find a colour you're comfortable with. Some people enjoy 'colour' on their cheeks, while others want that tint that is much more natural looking. I personally wear colours across the spectrum, from red and orange to coral, pink, plum and neutrals.

My favourite blushes are Gingerly (MAC), Rhubarb (MAC), Taj Mahal (NARS), Tantone (MAC), Taos (NARS) & Tipsy (Tarte).

I think the major issue when it comes to women of colour and blushes is that the 'safe' looking colours may not have enough pigment to show up properly, or the base of the colour registers ashy on darker skin.

Ben Nye, La Femme, MAC, NARS & NYX all do a nice range of blushes, which should give you plenty of options.

In terms of MAC, I could recommend a massive list.. LOL.. but for the sake of simplicity, I'd say check out Dollymix (pink), Fever (burgundy), Fleur Power (coral-pink), Raizin (terracotta) & Sweet As Cocoa (brown-plum). I'd also highly recommend trying them on too (get the MA's to help you) because often times blush looks completely different applied to the face than it does swatched on the arm or hand.

May 21, 2011

Nykia H.

thank you ladies so much for the advice..i will defintly let you ladies know how it turns out 

May 22, 2011

Melissa ..

I love Nars Angelika blush. It's a bright pink with glitter, but the glitter is not too much and can be blended out nicely.I find that this blush really brightens up my look. I like to also apply Nars Albatross over top to give a glowy look. Can you tell I'm really into Nars right now lol...Also, Well Dressed by Mac is nice too!

May 24, 2011

Nykia H.

thanks

May 24, 2011

Stephanie T.

NARS orgasm and deepthroat i find to work well on ANY skintone. looks beautifully on light, tan, and dark skin. its one of those universal blushes that gives everyone a beautiful flush of color and a gorgeous glow. <3

May 24, 2011

Jamillah H.

i love nars exhibit a! it is like the most have for brown skin, it gorgeous..pretty much the chocolatey-er you are the better!!

May 25, 2011

Rai C.

There's definitely a wrong way with blush, which is applying way too much blush on your cheeks. And being a WOC you want to purchase blushes that have good pigmentation and that aren't too light or they will not show up or appear ashy on the cheeks.

NYX, Milani, and e.l.f. are great brands to start trying out with blush. I wouldn't go out and buy a pricier one until I had a chance to play around with blush and develop favorites. 

Jun 29, 2011

Stephanie F.

As a woman of color, go for the most pigmented colors! La Femme makes amazingly pigmented blushes that rival with NARS but that are way cheaper, like 3$! Check out such colors as Coral, Terracotta (tropical guava color), Cinnabar (cinnamon color, just gorgeous!). Also NARS Taj Mahal which is the blush for women of color (created specifically for Naomi Campbell!), NYX and Tarte 12-hour Amazonian clay blush!