Hourglass Ambient Lighting Blush in Diffused Heat

Is there anything new left to say about these blushes? No. But I’m going to talk about this one anyway. I skipped the fuss about the Ambient Lighting Powders when they were launched and even though I don’t normally get sucked into hype around new makeup releases (I think I may be the only beauty blogger on the planet who couldn’t give two shits about the Naked palettes) I jumped straight in and pre-ordered one of the Ambient Lighting Blushes.

The Ambient Lighting powders are subtle powders that supposedly give different effects - subtle glows and refined finishes - and the blushes follow on from that with each shade being mixed with a different Ambient Lighting powder. Hourglass says ‘the airy, lightweight powders contain optically transparent particles that amplify the colors to a multi-dimensional level—effectively reinventing the way you view blush…The result is a natural radiant finish with seamless, soft-focus and buildable color. ’ I decided could live with that, so I went ahead and ordered.

 

As pretty as the gold compact looks, I don’t love it. If feels kind of cheap and very lightweight – for a £28.00, I have to say I expected a little more heft. While I know it’s not all about the packaging, the reality of high-end products is very often the opposite – you’re paying a lot more money for the packaging. So I kind of wanted it to be a bit nicer feeling. Anyway, the blush itself is beautiful looking in the pan with a lovely marbled effect. Hourglass says this is a a ‘vibrant poppy blush combined with Diffused Light for a subtle halo effect.’ I don’t see where the poppy is coming from – this is a warm, slightly pinky peach to my eyes.  I like that this has a large enough vein of the Ambient Lighting powder running through it that I can put a small brush into for a subtle, glowy brow highlight if I want.

 

Swatched, this looks pretty unimpressive. I have to say, I was really disappointed when I went to swatch it on the back of my hand – I could see shimmer particles, and the colour wasn’t that impressive. I thought I’d spent a whole bunch of cash on what I could have gotten out of a £5 baked blush. But a hand swatch is not the same as a face swatch.

 

 

Ah, on the skin it is *such* a different story, friends. Somehow when you apply it with a brush, it just looks a lot more refined and less flat. It is a very lightweight powder and does kick up adust when you sweep your blush in the pan, so I was expecting to  have to apply a couple of layers, and you don’t need to, at least with this shade. Hourglass say on the site that ‘the cutting-edge formula means that its full potential is only displayed on application.’ You guys – I think this bullshit might actually be true. I don’t know what sorcery it is, but it looks much better on the face than I ever thought it could on the skin. Yeah, it's pretty subtle. But subtle blush is *good*, especially when it's got such a lovely finish.

 

 

 

I have to say that it is really a seamless blush – despite the shimmer particles I saw in my swatch, it almost melts into the skin and the finish looks, dare I say it, very natural. I’m always wary of foundation, blush and powder formulas that claim to be natural/seamless/subtle – are they so sheer looking they’re crap or are they so sheer looking they’re genius? I have to say with this one, it may be the latter. With that in mind, good formulas like this aren’t going to be something other people are going to really notice, and that’s a good thing or a bad thing, depending on your view. This is definitely one of those products that makes you look better but it’s really hard to put your finger on.

And just for  the record, a couple of other poorly-lit photos of me wearing it:

 

 

I…. don’t know how to gather my feelings for this blush properly. Do I think it’s bloody expensive? Yes. Do I think it lives up its claims? Yes, it actually does. The finish is  great, it’s really pretty, and I’ve been wearing it straight for two weeks. Would I spend £28 on another one? Well…. yes, but I probably couldn’t justify it to you! If you’re interested in a blush with a beautiful, subtle finish and you don’t mind paying the prices, Diffused Heat is great, although I have heard it’s one of the more pigmented colours in the range. If you’re not overly fussed, you prefer stronger pigmentation and/or you can’t get to somewhere where you can try these on your face, I would say you could probably skip them. I got mine online because I’m an impatient idiot, but if you are interested, I’d really, really recommend getting to a store to try these – because these are all differently swirled and are meant to be subtle, make sure you look at the one you’re actually physically buying to check the powder-blush ratio is right for you.

Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powders cost £28.00 and I got mine from SpaceNK.

Sleek Blush By 3 in California

I hadn’t purchased a Sleek product for a very long time, but this cream blush trio from Sleek was always going to come home with me. I love peachy coral tones and I love cream blushes, but I’m also a big fan of Sleek’s powder blush formula and wanted to see if their cream formula stood up to that.





Housed in Sleek typically, er, sleek packaging, the palette is about half the size of Sleek’s eyeshadow palettes. You’re getting a pretty decent amount of blush here, kids.

L-R, The Surf, Newport Beach, The O.C

The Surf and The O.C are straight-up cream textures, while Newport Beach has shimmer to it – it’s somewhat-but-not-quite akin to NARS Orgasm with it’s pinky-goldness. Considering the other tones in the palette, it’s probably not going to suit most people who will buy it as a highlighter, but I like to apply it first and then add another colour in the centre to help give a softer, more diffused look.

Wearing Newport Beach with The Surf in the centre.

As you can see, pretty subtle on the skin. If you want craycray pigmentation, these aren’t the blushes for you. Generally that’s not what anyone wants from a blush and I love how these look on the skin.

These aren’t the most long lasting cream blushers – they don’t set like some do (probably for the best, given the packaging) but they’re decently pigmented, allowing you to work them nicely into the skin.  You’ll probably see a fade during the afternoon, but if you’re into the lovely natural look you can get from cream blushers, it’s not a biggie, plus it takes seconds to reapply with your fingertips.

All in all, there are better cream blushes out there – the Inglot AMC Cream Blush formula is pretty much the bomb – but if you’re into these shades, you could do a lot, lot worse for a tenner and the palette will last you forever.  This also appears to be a permanent addition to the Blush by 3 line up, so no need to stalk your Superdrug, where they’re available  for £9.99

Need tips on how to apply? Check out my ‘How to Apply Cream Blush’ post!

Quickie Review: MAC Modern Mandarin (Satin) Blush

Modern Mandarin just came out with the Trés Cheek collection, which I merrily skipped down to MAC to swatch on Thursday.  I was expecting to come away with Immortal Flower at least, if not more, but Modern Mandarin ended up being the only one which excited me.

L-R: Mac Modern Mandarin, Sleek Pan Tao, Darling Girl Fantasia, Sleek Aruba, MAC Springsheen.

Isn’t it pretty? I love the satin finish and the pigmentation is just right for a blush – not too much, not too little. I was worried from some swatch pictures I’d seen that it would be too ORANGE, but on the skin it actually has a bit of coral to it, perhpas, there’s very little yellow there to my eye which is fantastic as blushes like Sleek Aruba just look awful on me!

I really love how it looks on! I’m really pleased with it – I normally try and steer clear of MAC blushes unless they’re on Fragrance Direct or Cheap Smells or similar as £17.50 is pretty expensive. I’ve no complaints at all with this product though, and I can see it being a favourite over summer.

Top 5 blushes

This post is sort of cheating, because I’ve lost one of my other favourite blushes, Darling Girl Fuji. So… sorry for lying, but I wanted to write this post anyway, and I probably would have had to do a top 6 if I could find it!

Clockwise from top, Inglot AMC Cream Blush in 88, Almay Blush in Peach 130, Accessorize Baked Blusher in Pretty Pink, Sleek Suede, Darling Girl Boardwalk.

L-R: Sleek Suede, Inglot 88, Almay Peach 130, Accessorize Pretty Pink, Darling Girl Boardwalk.

Sleek Suede:

Sleek Suede was released with the Nude collection (although it’s permanent, whee!). It’s a lovely peachy-brown, great for red heads and a bargain at £4.29. One of my favourites, I tend to use this at least twice a week. I’m also wearing it on the eyes and mixed with gloss in this photo!

Inglot AMC Blush in 88

 

Beautifully subtle colour for when I’m absolutely stuck for a colour choice as it goes with everything! I also use it as a light contour. These are the nicest formula of cream blush I’ve ever tried – they’re dead natural looking on the skin, super creamy and not greasy like some blushes, and a tiny bit goes a long way. I do need to set with a translucent powder or another blush for best longevity, but still an utter bargain at £9.

Almay Blush Peach 130

This, if I had to pick just one, is my favourite blush of all time. Bright without being scary, it goes with almost everything and lifts my complexion. I bought this for the measly sum of a quid in the pound shop and I am devastated that I’ll probably never find it again, so if you can think of a good alternative I will hug and kiss you A LOT.

Accessorize Pretty Pink

I mainly use this as a highlighter as it gives a beautiful glow. Screw all the MAC MSFs (this is supposedly a Moon River dupe) and what not, this costs bugger all at a fiver and is beautiful if you want just a hint of colour (for pale ladies!) and a gorgeous glow. I’m wearing it here with MUA blusher in shade 2 (an honourable mention, I must say) but if you enlarge the picture you can see the Accessorize blush. Laaaaaahve.

Darling Girl Boardwalk

A lovely bright coral – I’ve repurchased the mini size and really need to man up and buy the full size when this runs out. I really like how buildable this is – you can really amp it up if you want – and I’ve got compliments on this blush before, which is quite an odd thing to compliment someone on, I suppose, if you’re not a makeup junkie! Anyway, I love it, the quality is fantastic as with all DG blushes and it’s dead cheap.

 

Honourable mentions are MUA Shade 2, Stila Custom Color in Coral, MAC Springsheen and Darling Girl Fantasia.

 

What are your favourite blushes?

Lip Mathematics: You've got to put more effort in if you hope to achieve an A in this class.

                   Gosh Velvet Touch Lipstick in 'Darling' + High Voltage Lip Candy in 'Take The Stage' =

This kind of pinky peach colour. Hmmm, maths is boring. Maybe I wouldn't have got a D three times in school if we'd added....

GLITTER. It won't get you into college, it might get you into someone's trousers. And who said we needed an education?

Nah, only joking. Stay in school, kids. Tomorrows lesson: Inglot!

Sleek Paraguya Palette Tutorial

I've never done a picture tutorial before, so go easy on me! I've been asked to do tutorials in the past but I don't feel as if I have a structured routine for my makeup, as I am sure you will shortly agree. So with that in mind, here's a really simple look for y'all. Hope you like!

Here's the look:

And here's how to get it:

 Prime your eyelid using your primer of choice. I use Urban Decay Primer Potion.

 Cover the lid in a cream shadow base to help colours look more vibrant. I'm using NYX Jumbo pencil in Milk. Apply it sparingly and pat it in with your ring finger to prevent creasing.

 On the inner half of your lid, apply Sleek Persian Orange, or any bright orange peach, by packing it onto the lid.

 On the outer half of the lid, pack on Sleek Peach gold, or another reddish peach. Blend a little more of the Persian Orange over the line where the shadows meet. I do this by holding your shadow brush vertically and making side-to-side motions where the colours join up.

 Start adding Sleek Stone, or a dark matte brown, to your outer crease using a fluffy brush.

 ...and blend it towards your nose. Apply more to the outer corner, blend, repeat until you've got your desired colour depth and shape. (If your colour is dragging, you might have applied a bit too much primer/base and it will 'grab' the colour. Keep at it!)

 Along the top of the brown colour, add a little more of the darker peach shade.Apply a matte highlight -  I used Sandstone from the Paraguaya palette.When applying the highlight this will blend in that line of the darker peach you just added. You can also add some highlight to the inner corner of your eye.

 Now add some more base to your lower lid. I applied this now rather than at the start, because I didn't want to get dark brown fallout all over it.

 Add the lighter peach colour on the inside...

... and the darker colour on the outside.

 Line your lashlines with Stone or whatever brown you're using, and join the lines up in the corners so it meets the crease colour.

 ...and add a sweep of black liquid liner with a thin brush and white liner on the waterline if you want - I just don't personally have decent enough lashes to get the definition I want with brown liner alone.

 Add mascara and fill in your brows. I used MUA eyebrow pencil in blonde and set it with a medium brown shadow from Sleek Storm palette. You can finish your eyes now if you want...

 ...But I wanted falsies! Clean up your fall out and do your foundation, concealer, etc.

 On the back on your cheeks (or wherever, it's your face), add a light peach blush. I'm using Darling Girl Boardwalk. Buff the blush in circular motions backwards towards your hairline, and then buff it forwards towards your apples to blend it all in nicely.

Add a peachy lip -I mixed GOSH Velvet Touch lippie in Darling and Shiro Cosmetics Intertubes in Rickrolled -  and I then added a wee bit of orange gloss on top of this.

And you're done!

That was fun! Thanks for reading.

Sleek Paraguaya Palette and Pan Tao BlushSwatches

Peachy keen, jelly bean! Lover of bargains and all things peachy that I am, I snapped up the new Paraguaya palette from the new Sleek collection, Avoir La Peche.



(Image property of Sleek.Forgive me for the stock photo, I dropped my palette and smashed Redstone before I could take the pics!)




L-R: Parfait, Blush, Cameo, Persian Orange, Peach Gold, Sandstone




L-R: Bellini, Redstone, Persimmon, Tangelo, Bittersweet, Stone

My favourite shades are Blush, Redstone, Peach Gold and Bittersweet. Blush is a little on the sheer side which is a shame, but it'll make a nice blush. Bellini and Parfait have the old Sleek problem of being a little chunky, but overall, the palette is pretty and excellent value as per usual.



Super quick look using Sandstone on the lid, Blush and Cameo in the crease and Bittersweet and Stone to line/outer V.



Equally quick look using Sandstone, Parfait, Stone and Bittersweet.


I also managed to get hold of the Pan Tao blush - every Superdrug I've looked in since the collection came out just had empty spaces for them but I managed to grab one this morning when I popped in for some painkillers:



I love that the packaging has the print on the front. The eyeshadow palette has the name of the palette and of the collection printed on the front of it also ( the Pout Polish also has a print) which is super handy if you have lots of Sleek makeup, which I do. It can get annoying rifling through lots of black cases! Anyway, I'm a sucker for a peach blush and this hasn't let me down! I can't wait to wear this when my face isn't totally rank!

Anything from this collection tickle your pickle?