All About Blush

Blushers
For cheek color, blusher is placed directly on the cheeks starting at the center or fattest part of the ‘apple’, and blended out then up towards the temple area or hair line (smile big to find the fattest part of your ‘apple’). It you have applied cheek contours (or lowlights-see article on “Professional Photography Makeup” in the “Model Tips” category for how-to’s), you want to blend your blush back and up meeting the contours so they blend together. Never apply blush closer to the nose than the outer rim of your iris or below an imaginary line from nostril base to the bottom of your ear, and keep color away from underneath the eye area which could look more like a sunburn or skin irritation than a healthy glow. Since we generally want our cheekbones to look full and defined, avoid getting blush up too high on your cheekbones-you want the cheekbones to be lighter so they appear full. If you apply your blush high on the cheekbones into your temples it looks very unnatural. When foundation is applied, its purpose is to even out skin tone and eliminate any redness in the center of your face so you don’t want to put that redness back in with blush-you only want a little soft color with the correct placement. Using a smaller brush to apply blush will get a better placement of color than if you use a large fluffy brush that deposits color in a large general area. The brush should be larger than the one they give you in the compact, but smaller than your large face powder brush. To get a soft, warm, healthy looking flush to your cheeks, avoid brownish shades and choose colors in your ‘Season’ that match or coordinate with your eye shadow and lip color or that have slight reddish pinky/rose (for cool complexions) or peachy/coral (for warm). Be sure to blend the edges of blush well so there are no hard lines and the effect is a very natural glow.
Types of Blushers
-Powder: the boldest color and good for all skin types except dry skin.
-Cream: is sheerer than powder and good for dry to normal skin.
-Liquid: has a matte finish that stains skin and lasts a long time. Good for all skin types except possibly dry or flaky skin since it can cause blotchy color.
-Gel: is the sheerest color and can be used as lip stain as well but is not the best for dry or flaky skin. Be sure to exfoliate first since it leaves dry flakes darker.
Blusher Tips
-To look more awake on a bad day, try using a blush color a shade brighter than your normal blush or dab on some lipstick in a bright sheer color and blend well.
-Never use dark bronzer or brown shades as your blush if you have fair skin. It will be too dark and too warm appearing unnatural and dirty looking.
-Don’t apply blush too bright or heavy-it will look clownish, and if your eyes or lips are emphasized with dramatic color, go very soft with the blush so they don’t compete.
-For dry skin, cream blushers work best. To apply cream blush, dab a little blush on your pointer and middle fingertips, smile big and starting in the center of the fattest part of the apple, make a big ‘check mark’ on your cheek and blend in.
-When applying gel blush which can dry quickly and streak, get a good finish by dipping fingertip lightly first in moisturizer then a tiny bit of gel blush on top of it, mix them and then blend into cheeks.
-If your face is long, and you want to make your face appear rounder, apply blush straight across the cheekbone. Avoid placing blush high on the cheekbones or on temple.
-If your face is round, and you want it to appear longer and more oval, apply blush diagonally on the cheekbone, angled toward temple.
-Soften and subdue a too bright or heavy application of blusher with loose face powder.
-Heat and oils from your finger will help blend cream, liquid and gel blushes and other makeup (wash hands first).
-Your blush should match and compliment the rest of your make-up but especially your lip color.
-Don’t use sparkly/iridescent blush or bronzer over acne since it will highlight zits. It’s best to just forgo blush and contours all together when you have acne so you don’t call attention to the bumpiness. Play up eyes or lips to divert attention away from areas that are broken out.