The Makeup Box

La Femme Blush Swatches

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This is a very quick post just showing you the swatches for 12 shades of La Femme blushes which I purchased from makeupmania.com a while back.

I was in the US on a work trip and it made a lot of sense to grab a palette and 12 full-size blush pans at $2.50 each (which would not have been quite as logical once you add crazy international shipping fees). 

This is a brand which has been raved about by MANY makeup artists because of the incredible pigmentation and value.

Before you go all excited though, do remember that powderiness and TONS of fallout accompany the incredibly-intense pigmentation. If you know how to work with it, or you are experienced at wielding your blush brush, the shade range is huge and each pan is fantastic for the price. 

If you’re looking for dramatic blush or color that can be used on lids AND lips as well, then these are fabulous.

For those who worry about over-application of blush or looking too dramatic or clown-like, it’s better to stick with conventional brands available in drugstores and high-end counters.

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My favorite shades?

I’m still testing most of these out, but so far, I really love Flamingo Pink and Pink Velvet.

The deeper shades like Framboesia and Magenta would be fab on really deep skins because for once, this range is NOT too sheer to show up nicely against darker tones.

There are also many browns and bronze shades in the range which I did not pick up since I already have those in my personal collection. I went for stronger, less-typical colors.

P.S. Pink Blush is actually a shadow which I included in my purchase as a blush because it’s a great pale pink which can be used as highlight AND to cut other blushes that are too strong.

Velvet Rose: Intense Matte-Pink Cheeks and Lips (feat La Femme Rose Blush)

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For a bit of a change, I’m playing with different textures by wearing blusher as lip color. 

Technically speaking, powder blushers will not cling to your lips very well without a base, so I’m actually using a rosy fuchsia pencil as a base on the lips, and dusting a brighter true-pink bush over just so the color echoes that of my cheeks.

Everything is kept VERY simple and it’s more the intensity of the cheeks and lips that are the focus of the look.

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Eyes:

• Apply a deep brown base (Laura Mercier Metallic Creme Eye Colour in Burnished Copper) and then layer a shimmery beige (MAC Snow Season is limited edition but you can always try MAC Retrospeck) over for a soft neutral wash with depth.
• Apply black liquid liner (Bourjois Liner Pinceau) to the upper lashes and lots of mascara (Maybelline Great Lash).

Cheeks: Strong pink blush

• La Femme blushes, if you haven’t heard, are extremely pigmented which is they work for both cheeks and lips. In fact, they are as intense as eye shadows. (Plus they are super-cheap at US$2.50 each; I’ll do a post tomorrow with swatches of my entire collection!)
• You want your cheeks to be intensely colored but you don’t want to look like a clown. Because the color is so strong, you want to make sure you use a very fluffy/soft brush and that you cheeks are completely dry before application. Then dust off excess powder on the back of your hand before touching your brush to your face. Any moisture or grease and extra pigments will cause the blush to grab in areas and look very patchy and streaky.

Lips:

• To get that very long-lasting, velvety (but lightweight) texture, first apply a pencil lightly over your entire lip area, blending lightly so you aren’t literally coloring in an opaque mouth. I used a deep fuchsia (NYX Fuchsia pencil) and paid special attention to defining the cupid’s bow.
• For that matte rose-petal finish, use a synthetic eye shadow brush to dust a coat of the blush you used earlier, this time all over the lips until you get a dry, transfer proof finish.