When it comes to most things in life and in beauty, at heart, I am a simple gal. I see pink blush, I want to buy it. There is something about the candy coloured goodness that sucks me in every time. And as you can imagine, my collection is quite sizable.
So, for a little bit of fun, I wanted to chat about the pink blush formulas that I genuinely think are worth it at every price point. And because I’m trying to reform my gatekeeping ways, I’ll also shout out my personal favourite pink shade in that range. I’ll be talking powder, liquid, and cream formulas for this post. The main thing is that they’re pink! Let’s get into it.
SAVE (Budget up to $25.00)
When I think about an affordable pink blush, my first thought will always be the FLOWER BEAUTY FLOWER POTS POWDER BLUSH – $13.99. I was gifted the shade Sweet Pea from a friend a while ago and I’ve always seen it as my gateway shade to baby pink blush. Very soft formula, super easy to blend. And it wears pretty well throughout the day.
For an affordable cream blush, I have to shout out the AUSTRALIS DEWY + DARING CREAM BLUSH – $15.95. I did a swatch series on the Dewy + Daring range earlier this year (you can find that here). And while there are a few gorgeous pink shades in this range, My pick has to be Pixie Dream Girl. It’s a cool pink lovers dream and it really makes my cheeks pop.
While I’m not the biggest liquid blush fan, I’ve really grown to love the Mecca Max Liquid Blushes. And their standout shade is the MECCA MAX OFF DUTY LIQUID BLUSH in ROSY – $24.00. It’s a soft, rosy pink shade that gives a more natural pink flush to the skin. I sincerely hope that they expand the shade range of these. Because they are amazing.
SPEND ($25.00-$50.00)
I won’t lie, I actually had a hard time picking a powder blush for this category. Mostly because I haven’t tried a lot of powder blushes that I loved at this price point. But then I remembered the KOSAS BLUSH IS LIFE BLUSH in BUTTERFLIES – $48.00. I’ve had this in my stash since October and I haven’t been able to put it down. Because it’s a baked formula, you do have to build it up a bit, but the glowy pay off is 100% worth it. I love it on it’s own obviously. But it’s also gorgeous as a blush topper to really add a glow to any pink blush.
You knew this was coming. The TOWER 28 BEACH PLEASE LIP + CHEEK CREAM BLUSH – $33.00 has to be my top pick for a cream blush. Dream Hour is that bright, bubblegum pink that makes my heart so happy. And they have such an impressive wear time for a balmy formula.
Staying with predictable choices, the HUDA BEAUTY BLUSH FILTER – $37.00 has been another go to for me this year. The shade Cotton Candy has that candy pink that I love, but a bit more muted. Making it another great option for those who want to dip their toe into this colour story. I also did a swatch series on these which I’ll link here so you can see how it looks.
SPLURGE (Budget over $50.00)
If Flower Beauty was the brand that got me into pink blush, then Too Faced was the one to kick the door down. The TOO FACED CLOUD CRUSH BLURRING BLUSH in CANDY CLOUDS – $51.00 is really the shade that got me hooked on bubblegum pink blush. Yes, even more than the Dior. This was basically my obsession for 6 months straight last year. And it’s still my favourite powder blush formula. When they said blur, they weren’t kidding.
For my cream blush pick, It had to be the NUDESTIX NUDIES ALL OVER FACE BLUSH – $61.00. And the shade I keep reaching for is Sunkissed Pink. This shade went viral last year for two reasons. One, Sophia Richie wore it on her wedding day. Two, the Nudestx formula is freaking amazing. This is the closest they have come to a true baby pink shade and it wears spectacularly on me. And because I’m a smart lady, I also have a swatch of this shade here.
So, I didn’t have a liquid blush for this category. But the Rare Beauty liquid blushes, I hear you ask. They’re good. Everyone knows they’re good. And I really wanted to highlight a blush that I feel doesn’t get enough love. That of course being the MAC MINERLIZE BLUSH – $54.00. And for a baby pink shade, you can’t go past Dainty. This is also a baked blush formula. But there is no building up required. They are straight pigment, straight glow. I will always take the opportunity to shout this shade out.
SKIP (No budget)
As you can see, I am a bit of a easy lay when it comes to pink blush. I’ve literally written over 700 words about my love of pink blush. So, as you can imagine, it can be slightly devastating when a blush doesn’t work out. And I do tend to declutter/give away the ones that don’t work out. The Tarte Amazonian Clay blushes spring to mind for me. Because you could look at them funny and they would hard pan. But I know that they have recently been reformulated. So I’m not sure that it’s an issue anymore. Another that got sent over was the Maybelline Cheek Heat cream gel blush. I just found them really hard to use.
One blush that I still have hanging around though is the MAKEUP BY MARIO SOFT POP POWDER BLUSH – $53.00. The one I have is in the shade Desert Rose. They have good pigment and they swatch easily enough, shame I can’t blend it out to save my life. It’s almost like the formula stiffens when it hits my face. It’s really strange.
Because I know someone is going to ask, here are all of my Save, Spend, and Splurge blushes swatched.
And that is a wrap on pink blush heaven! What is your absolute favourite pink blush shade? Let me know in the comments.
Cheers and love
Emily xo