How To: Tone Down Your Blusher

by Kirstie, September 30th, 2009 in Eyes, Lips and Cheeks, How to? |

blusher

“Had something in my eye and went to bathroom to see what it was,” said MontyC on yesterday’s Blather. But when she got there, she was in for a little bit of a shock: “all I could see was how RIDICULOUS my blusher looks!,” she wailed, adding “I just stood there thinking ‘I sat through a meeting looking like THIS?!’”

Oops!

Glamazon sympathised with her plight. “Have you ever noticed that blush is the worst thing to get wrong as you can’t correct it?”  But I think I may know how. And I know this because I frequently wear waaaaay too much blusher. It’s BAA time, girls – Blusher Abusers Anonymous.

I loves it, y’see. It’s so pretty and uplifting and nice and I just can’t resist. I am especially adoring Benefit’s Coralista at the moment. Oh wowee zowee, (yes I am a Pavement fan), this is norjus. It’s orange, it’s sparkly, it buffs on oh-so-easily and it even smells good. I amazed myself with my love for it, but there you go – beauty is endlessly absorbing. As are my cheekbones, if my liberal application methods are anything to go by, so I had to develop some tone-it-down strategies.

I’ve got two. Want to know what they are? Check after the cut!

  1. Powder is your friend. Swish a fat, soft powder brush into some loose powder and tap off the excess well, so that there’s barely anything on the brush. Now, take it to your cheeks and semi-firmly buff it over the excess blusher. This tones it down a little and blends it out onto the cheeks, so it’s not so in-yer-face, and tends to work well to take down powder blush.
  2. If you’ve used a cream blush, my fix is to pump a little foundation onto the back of my hand, run my MAC 187 through it and then lightly swirl on my cheeks with a light circular motion. The small bit of coverage you get is enough to take the hookerish edge off your cheeks, without caking your makeup.

Anyone else got any blusher-reduction tips? Dish in a comment!

20 Responses to “How To: Tone Down Your Blusher”

  • cherryred says:

    oooo yes I get a lift in the morning and do my makeup in the car, I’m often disgusted with my friend for not informing me a look like a crazed hooker. Once I had to wash all my makeup off in work and start again. I find buffing with clean brush can take the edge off a good bit if caught earlier!

  • MontyC says:

    Kirstie – Thanks for this!!

    I love blusher but I’m so hit and miss with the application of it, it’s not funny :roll:

    Yesterday I used my pressed powder to tone it down…

  • sweetie1 says:

    Bu bu but I like my blush…don’t want to tone it down!!

    Ah no, for day, I usually use my mac 187 to put on the blush…you never get it to heavy handed then. (Plus it makes my wash the brush every day so i’m not putting on foundation with a pink brush the next day :lol: )

  • MontyC says:

    Maybe it’s the brush I’m using?

    I use my BB face blender brush…(my multi purpose ‘use for everything’ brush)

  • PinkPanther says:

    I just trace some tissue paper over the blush in the same direction that blush was applied. Does the trick for me.

  • lulu says:

    im just crap at applying my blusher, i never know where to start and end. so it doesnt matter how much or little i put on its usually just all over my cheeks. i used my cousins coralista at the weekend it smells fab and very easy to use with the wee brush u get with it.

  • ShellBelle says:

    My name is ShellBelle and I’m a blusher abuser. I’ve often had to use a small bit of powder to tone mine down, I just can#t help myself, they’re just so pretty and sparkly!!

  • Glamazon says:

    Thanks Kirstie…I think blusher really finishes off my make-up but a lot of the time I leave it off for fear of ballsing everything up at the last stage and having to start again!

  • Bee says:

    The only way I can manage blusher is that I put it on after my foundation but before I put anything else on. I find if I whack it on after I do all my makeup, I put too much on to compete with the eyes etc. Doing it first makes you take things handy.

    BTW – was at Creme de la mer counter at the weekend as part of BT FAB thingy and girl used mad crazy orange cream blusher on me. But looked fab on. Really heathly glow.

  • papillon says:

    Kirstie, did your hear Pavement are reforming for a World Tour in 2010?

    Now that’s Wowee Zowee!!

  • Kirstie says:

    Papillion – I did! Have seen the jicks a couple of times in the interim and my love of Steve Malkmus has faded. A lot. That said, I’d say I’ll still go!

  • cailín says:

    blusher is definitely a product you need decent realistic light to apply it in, or else dreaded clown cheeks come about

  • sminkkel says:

    I use a (dry) sponge in order to tone down my blush. The sponge absorbs some color, and helps to blend the blush well. (Sorry for my English.)

  • missmilki says:

    ooo! I love my coralista blush, its smells gorgeous. But i always tone it down with a quick buff with my big MAC brush (don’t ask me the no., its a big one!)that I’ve used to put on my foundation, I find it just takes of any excess and blends it with the tiny amount of foundation left on the brush. Works perfectly every time and its quick and easy.

  • Charan says:

    I blend my blush with a good brush and a setting powder.

  • Flame says:

    If I’ve used far too much i’d rub some off with a tissue. Otherwise I would use a brush to try and blend it in more and failing that I would put some powder on the brush with a bit of coverage (say maybelline mineral powder one that i have) and buff that over it to tone it down.
    For nights out though recently I’ve been finding that my makeup looks better when i go what i think is a bit overboard when doing it at home!

  • Jo says:

    I scrunch up a bit of tissue or use the bobbly side of a double sided cotton pad and just buff some away. My face hates me if I cover it up with more make up!!

  • lille says:

    if i have been too heavy handed with a powder blusher ( usually a pink / peachy coral i use a quick swipe of mac studio fix powder over the apples of my cheeks.. always does the trick

  • Rachel says:

    I use this brush by Prescriptives which is hollowed out so it’s shaped to fit onto your cheek. I find it’s hard to go wrong using that.

  • says:

    Oh man . . . I adore blusher! Not only does it stop me from looking like a zombie, it gives me a lovely flirty flush! I always love trying new ones. However, I do tend to go overboard sometimes. I was using O Glow from Smashbox . . .it’s supposed to turn your cheeks in to the colour of your natural blush. Anyways I was in the bathroom and realised I looked like a clown, not pretty. I had no make up on me so I tried to kind rub it off . . .NOT A GOOD PLAN. My face went a reddishy colour after that. Thanks for the tips I will now be prepared next time!

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