Best of the best: blushes

Happy Tuesday folks! I hope you all had a fantastic-o valentine's day. Jason and I saw Deadpool, it was BOMB.

Today, I'm starting a new series. You remember my New Year, New Traditions post from the start of 2016? I talked about how I wanted to start some new things weekly, monthly, etc. on the blog. I thought, another great series like this would be "The Best of the Best" where we talk about one category, and my favorite things within that category. A majority of the time, this will mean beauty products. Today, it's high-end blushes! I'm sorry that I don't have drugstore items, but I can't stand buying something without being able to swatch it first, so I tend to gravitate towards Sephora (okay...I don't tend to, I always do). Since I don't want this post to be a million pages long, I am talking about the brands that carry my favorite formulations and quality of blush. I grabbed one of mine from that brand from my makeup drawers, but we aren't talking my favorite colors! So, the color I grabbed just happens to randomly be the one I grabbed. All those seen are swatched in the corresponding video below!

Hourglass Ambient Lighting Blushes // Pictured: Dim Infusion // Hands-down my current favorite formulation of blush! The Hourglass blushes are beautiful in texture and to the eye. They are all marbled with a corresponding ambient lighting powder (i.e. Dim Infusion pictured below is marbled with the Dim Light ambient lighting powder). The powders marbled within the blushes give these blushes a finish that no other blushes compare to in my opinion. The shade range is beautiful, the staying power is beyond impressive, and the finish they give to the skin is flawless. The texture of these is much like the lighting powders in that they are finely milled and extremely smooth.

Tarte Amazonian Clay 12-Hour Blushes // Pictured: Dollface // This is my second favorite of the bunch! I don't doubt for a second that these blushes last for 12 hours. Of course, I don't wear makeup for 12-hour days, so I can't attest to that. However, I've worn these blushes for an eight hour work day and they haven't budged or faded even a tad. The texture of these blushes is very different in that they are very hard to the touch, but the pigmentation and lasting power of these blushes are incredible. They come in a great compact with the packaging matching the color of the blush, so you don't have to rummage through your makeup drawer opening compacts trying to find the shade you're looking for. These are also easy to de-pot because the pan is in a magnetic compact.

NARS Blush // Pictured: Impassioned // NARS was my first-ever high-end blush, and remains one of my top picks. The NARS blushes are gorgeous on the skin, and they give a beautiful finish to the cheeks. There is also something irreplaceable when you pair it with a NARS highlighter (like Albatross). The staying power is great, and the texture of the blushes is wonderful. However, I don't recommend traveling with these, because one little drop and your blush is ruined! I learned through experience :( The shade range of these blushes is incredible, so finding a color that suits you is easy in the sense that they'll have something for you no-doubt, but difficult in the sense that there's way too many to choose from! Bonus, NARS always hits packaging right on the nose!

Bobbi Brown Brightening Brick // Pictured: Cranberry // Not technically a blush - we're breaking the rules! Wait, there are no rules to makeup, PHEW. These brightening bricks are great because they are dual-purpose. You can use the 6 shades individually, or together. I like to use them all together on the days where I don't want to fuss with my makeup. It gives the skin a beautiful sheen, to the point where I don't need a bronzer or highlight! This is great for those "I want to look like I gave a crap, but I don't really give a crap" days. We all have those.

TheBalm Shadow/Blush // Pictured: Frat Boy // First, let's talk packaging. TheBalm always creates the cutest, funniest packaging, which is a huge plus. They are a higher-end brand, but compared to some of the brands mentioned above, their products are very reasonably priced. Their blushes can be dually used as eyeshadows (I haven't tried this yet). They are very soft and pigmented, with amazing color payoff. Frat Boy pictured below is the perfect shade for this upcoming spring (come on, spring)!

Too Faced Love Flush Long-Lasting 16-Hour Blush // Pictured: Baby Love // This is one I have mixed feelings about. I think that the shades in this range are gorgeous, from nude to peach to deep pink. The finish of these is beautiful, and the way they apply to the skin is lovely. However, for the price I'm disappointed by the amount of powder kick-up, I think it leads to a lot of lost product, especially if you use a dense blush brush like myself. However, the packaging of the blush and the way it applies makes it a great buy. The packaging is cute, super sleek and easy to store, and they even went to the extent of engraving the name of the brand and a little scene into the product itself.

Bobbi Brown Blush // Pictured: Apricot // This is a blush I heard about through Estee Lalonde a long time ago when she did a brand focus video on Bobbi Brown. She raved and raved about this blush, particularly this color, Apricot. But, I find all of the Bobbi Brown blushes to be an amazing formula. I don't think I will ever hit pan on this because the pigmentation is so insane. Just a tiny tap of your brush in the pan and it gives your cheeks the perfect natural looking flush, and stays all day long!

Becca Mineral Blush // Pictured: Flowerchild // Becca mineral blushes are packaged just as the pressed shimmering skin perfectors, in stainless steel look-alike packaging with brown rubberized edges. The blushes are just in a smaller package than the highlighters. Just like their highlighters, the pigmentation of this product is stunning. They are very soft to the touch, and just like the Bobbi Brown blushes, you just need one tap of your brush and you're set for application on both cheeks.

Becca Beach Tint Shimmer Souffle // Pictured: Lychee/Opal // My perfect no-makeup-makeup-day blush! The texture of this is so interesting and weird to get used to because it's not like most cream blushes...it's almost like a gel? It is described by Becca as a whipped formula, which is exactly what it feels like. You dip your fingers into the pot and tap lightly onto the apples of your cheeks over a tinted moisturizer or BB cream, and you're set to head out the door. The colors are gorgeous, and they are marbled with the shimmering skin perfectors. The one seen below is Lychee, marbled with Opal. It gives a beautiful natural sheen to the cheeks which eliminates the need for a highlighter (unless you're a total highlighting fiend, then just go and highlight your little heart out)!

Urban Decay Blushes // Pictured: Urban Decay x Gwen Stefani Blush Palette // The Urban Decay blush shades and formula are both wonderful. I don't have any single blushes, but I've been obsessing over the Gwen Stefani blush palette from UD. The shade range is gorgeous, and the texture of the blushes is perfect. This palette I highly recommend, especially to those fair - light skinned, like myself. To someone of my skin tone, this palette works almost like a blush/contour/highlight palette. Tip: if you are someone with larger pores, I may steer away from this palette because majority of the shades within it are shimmer shades, meaning it may appear to enlarge your pores.

I hope you guys enjoyed this new series type of post! Let me know what you think in the comments down below, and if it's something I should continue on with. What are your favorite drugstore and high-end blushes? What is your favorite makeup product to pick up when you're shopping?