When I was five I asked my mum if I could have Barbie wallpaper in my bedroom, I can still remember it now, screaming bright pink print with Barbie’s face and the logo plastered all over it. She let me have the vaguely less offensive princess wallpaper, complete with matching pink curtains, in the hope that it would get the pink out of my system and I would outgrow my obsession.
I did eventually get bored of pink -bar some late-teen hair dye experimentation, but it’s the one colour I always come back to for makeup. There’s nothing like a flush of pink on your cheeks to immediately make you look more rested and glowy. I’ve been known (aka I pretty much do this everyday) to layer on four kinds of blusher, powders over creams and bronzers for the best looking cheekbones. I’m definitely a blusher maximalist, my quest for the perfect ‘nacharul’ glow will know no end.
From left:
Smashbox’s Artificial Light highlighter in Flash isn’t a blusher but if you’re creating dream cheekbones this gives you glowing defined ‘bones. Smear around the brow, the centre of your eyelids and the bridge of your nose for a totally ‘I’m a yoga-practising vegan, I’m just holding those tabs for a friend’ radiance.
Topshop’s Head Over Heels cream blush is a wonderful sherbet shade that is surprisingly wearable. I’m a big fan of the Topshop cream blushes, they have good staying power and they’re cheap enough to snap up a new colour each season.
Dior’s Diorshow Powder blush is a sheer rose shade, it’s a bit too pastel for my skintone but works a treat lightly dusted over cream blushes to set them. Plus it makes me feel like Kirsten Dunst in Marie Antoinette when I use it.
Blushwear Cream Stick by Clinique are great all-round cream blushes, just what you want for summer months of low maintenance makeup. I like to use both (course I do), the tawny Shy Blush along the cheekbones, and Peachy Blush on the apples of the cheeks. You can also dab a bit on your lips for matchytimes.
Trucco is a rando gift bag blusher that I got a-aages ago, the candyfloss shade is gross, but the coral shade is just lovely. I think Trucco is discontinued but you can snap up the last few ones here.
Last but not least, Laura Mercier’s cream blush in Innocent Peach is my perfect ‘no flush blush’ for when you don’t actually want obviously pink cheeks, but you don’t want to look like Bela Lugosi either. Use this with the Smashbox highlighter and it’s like some kind of miracle on your face.
In the same vein, I’m not really a lipstick girl but bare lips can be sometimes a bit corpselike, I love a bit of pinkish colour to add a bit of pep and wake up your face. I reserve loud colours for my nails preferring to paint the put with apricot, bronze and tea rose shades.
Clinique’s Almost Lipstick are the perfect product for lipstick-phobics like myself, the sheer, jammy consistency can be layered on for more intensity and they come in a variety of shades from Lovely Honey which a browny, tawny pink to Spicy Honey, a deep bitten-lip stain.
MAC are always awesome, I walked into one of their stores and just said: ‘can you find me a lip liner that matches my lips?’ and they pulled out Dervish, a slightly brownish pink that is great for drawing on a Josephine de la Baume-style pout.
They have also come up trumps with their Lustre lipstick in Sea Sheer; pretty much the only lipstick I would wear, it’s a glossy robust pink with peachy tones.
Benefit’s Cha Cha Tint is mainly for cheeks, but it’s also good for swiping on some colour in the morn and then you can just forget about it, it also looks great with a gloss or balm layered over.
Typically I can’t find my favourite lip colour because it’s in a handbag somewhere. Stila’s Long Wear Lip Colour in Flushed is a really believable ‘lip’ colour and like the name suggests, lasts for ages. Flushed is currently out of stock, but the Coquette is the nearest match. Highly recommended.
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