BFF (Beauty Find Friday): How to Apply Blush

Pink blush via Shutterstock

In your to-be-wedded world, there are tons of events leading up to the big day. Bridal showers, bachelorette parties, engagement parties, couples’ showers. All this attention is enough to make a girl blush. But if you don’t get that sweet rosy glow on your own, it’s time for a little makeup magic.

General Tips

When it comes to applying blush, don’t go heavy-handed. Instead, have a light touch with the right color in the right place for most beautiful—and naturally flushed—look.

A quick trick to cheek color placement: Take two fingers and place them vertically next to your nose. Where the sides of your outer finger end is where your color goes. Put most of your color there, with just one sweep up the cheekbones.

An even quicker trick: Smile. The little bumps right under your eyes that your cheeks become when you smile are the “apples.” Apply the blush here.

Blush 101

Here are a few tips on how to apply blush:

• Use buildable colors that aren’t too intense right off the bat. If you don’t, you’re fighting an uphill battle from the beginning.
• Try to find a formula you can control—you want something that doesn’t take over your skin with just a tiny application.
• Gels and liquid stain can be tough to manage. The edges can be difficult to blend, and you have to work too quickly. So until you have the blush thing down, avoid these.
• Layer the color on: Use cream blush with a powder on top. That way, if you get too much cream, you can tone it down with lighter powder.
• Go apples to apples (so to speak) with your makeup. In other words, put a powder blush over face powder, a cream blush over a cream foundation.

A Few of Our Favorite Products

NARS’s The Multiple ($39): An all-in-one, cream-to-powder, multipurpose makeup stick, this sculpts and warms the eyes, cheeks, lips, and skin in an array of shades, from sheer accents to mauve and bronze. Try Orgasm, a soft, peachy pink perfect for the blushing bride.

BECCA’s Mineral Blush ($32): This delicate powder blush is infused with micro-fine minerals to impart a soft halo of color onto the apples of your cheeks. The minerals subtly reflect the light for a luminous glow, and it’s infused with antioxidant vitamins A, E, and C to give your skin a boost.

Bobbi Brown’s Blush ($27): This award-winning silky formula comes in several shades, from pale nude nectar to reddish wine. It’s natural and matte, and won’t budge—not even through all that reception cheek-kissing.

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