Have you ever tried to apply blush and ended up looking more like Aunt Sally than JLo? We’ve all been there! 😀
The main things to consider when applying blush are to get the shade right (see my previous post on that ) and then use
the right brush and blend well. Once you’ve got that down, you’re laughing (as well as glowing with a
pop of healthy colour!).
Applying blush
Many women don’t know exactly where they should apply blush so here’s a tip if you’re one of them:
To find out where the colour should go, look straight ahead into a mirror and hold your index finger right
in front of your eye over your pupil.
Now, smile and drop your finger straight down to land on the high pointed, fleshy part of your cheek
that pops out when you smile, still keeping it directly under your pupil. This is where you place the
brush to start applying, no further in towards your nose, or it will look unnatural.
Next, lightly dust your brush into the colour, tap of the excess and pop it on, working it into that part and
blending what’s left up your cheek bone towards your temple. You only need to use a light touch with
the brush for this.
Remember, it’s always better to start with too little product, that way you can build up the intensity of
the colour by adding slightly more but if you’re too heavy handed and load your brush with too much
blush, it can be impossible to take it off, ruining the makeup you’ve already done and giving you the
dreaded Aunt Sally effect! Applying it in a thick stripe and not blending the edges is what makes it look wrong.
See below for what NOT to do! And I DON’T just mean with the blush!!!
If you are using a cream blush, it’s the same principal, only, you dot it on the fleshy part of your cheek with your finger
or the small tip of a synthetic brush and blend it well in and up towards the temple. I can’t emphasise
enough that you REALLY need a light touch for this because with cream blush, a little goes a very long
way.
Tools to apply
As a Makeup Artist, I’ve used lots of blush brushes on myself and on my clients in the past and I’ve found
a lot of them awkward to use since they are usually too big for the area you’re working on. The best
blush brush I’ve found by a long shot, is the Inglot 4ss brush, below, I really love this brush, it’s one of
Inglots best and actually one of the best in my kit, I was delighted when I found it as it fits my cheek area
exactly and makes easy work of applying blush:
That’s closely followed by the MAC 187, the smaller version of the 188 which is used to apply foundation. You can use the MAC 187 to apply cream products as well as powder so it’s a great all rounder and again it’s the perfect size for the cheek area.
An angled brush can work great for applying blush or contouring underneath the cheekbone and jawline
with bronzer or a natural shade of blush to make your face look more defined and even slimmer! (Top
makeup artists tip there!)
The only problem I’ve found with using an angled brush, is that I always need another fluffier brush to go over and blend out the edges, just to diffuse the colour.
So there you go! For your next night out, find yourself a nice blush colour and try it out yourself. And be
sure to give me some feedback either here or on my Facebook page to let me know if this helped you!
Michelle x
Kandigloss Blog 