Friday, July 8, 2011

Tarte Cheek Stain with Swatches

Yesterday I waxed poetic about BeneFit's new cheek stain ChaChaTint but I would be remiss to let my love of cheek stains go at that. The first time I tried a Tarte Cheek Stain I was in love with the formula. At $30 I truly thought these were out of my price range. I'm cheap, plain and simple but I definitely needn't worry. These babies are huge, like Heidi Montag post-surgery H-U-G-E!

Here are swatches of my personal collection. Honestly, I wish I had more and realistically, I probably do, hidden somewhere in my house. I wear these A LOT therefore they're shoved in various makeup bags, boxes of items I wanted to review, the wrong drawers of my makeup chest, you know the deal! These are all slightly scented which makes me love them even more. Even though they're on your cheeks you can get a subtle whiff of it on a hot day or give your sweetie a surprise when he leans in to kiss you on the cheek.
L-R Tipsy, Blissful, Cloud 9, Blushing Bride, Flush

Tipsy & Blissful

Tipsy is a gorgeous sheer coral shade with flecks of silver glitter. The glitter is so subtle that blink and you'll miss it so fear not glitter-phobes. Sephora says it smells like Apricots but this one appears to be more subtle than others.

Blissful is exclusive to Sephora and limited edition so hurry and snatch it up if peach-y, sheer watermelon is your cup of tea. Blissful doesn't appear to have a particular scent but I smell candy goodness.
Cloud 9

Cloud 9 is no longer available but if you're looking for a purple cheekstain (fabulous on darker skin tones) I would suggest tracking it down on MakeupAlley. This one reads really sheer on me and doesn't scream "I'm wearing purple blush!" It's got a tiny bit of shimmer and a very fun grape scent that drives me wild, just like grape Bubblicious.
Blushing Bride & Flush

Blushing Bride is very similar to Blissful on my arm, although on the Sephora website it appears more pigmented and plum. I swatched pretty heavily but I still get a sheer red shade that leans to the warmer end of the spectrum. This one smells like plums!

Flush is a fun purple-leaning pink I'd describe as berry. This one is truly unique as far as blush goes and I can see it working wonders on both extremely fair and extremely dark skintones. Of course, this one is berry scented and has tiny silver glitter.
Doll Face, Brilliant, Cushion, Princess

Doll Face & Brilliant

Doll Face is a pretty Barbie pink shimmer, the most basic of shades that works amazingly on my pale skin. This one is the strawberry Bubblicious counterpart to Cloud 9.

Brilliant is from the Christmas 2009 Collection Three Carats and comes in a fun silver, rhinestoned container. Again, these are a little harder to find but MakeupAlley or Ebay are great places to look. This one's a sheer nude which I think a lot of you bronzer-loving ladies will enjoy. It's flattering on my skin even though I'm quite phobic of bronzers. I'm not sure what this one is supposed to smell like but I get a tropical lemon-y scent.
Cushion & Princess

Cushion is also from the Christmas 2009 Collection. This one looks remarkably like Doll Face on my arm, slightly redder and a little bit darker. This one has a fresh peachy type scent that is amazing.

Last but not least is Princess, a reddish-nude. This one seems like another universally flattering shade. I'm not sure on the scent but I definitely get a hint of candy sweetness.

As for the product itself I love that they go on wet, giving you a chance to sheer them out before they set and fix any mistakes you may have made. Keep in mind that these are heavy swatches to show color and you can go a lot lighter if you so choose. They dry matte so they are absolutely perfect for summer and if you're a shimmer gal like me applying sparkles on top is never a problem once dry.

I feel like I should mention that when you reach for a Tarte Cheek Stain that you haven't used in a while you may notice condensation on top of the product. This is very normal in my experience and doesn't hinder use of the product at all. Also it's a watery consistency, not at all slimy or thick but you may want to wipe it on a napkin before using on your face.

Even though they are a stain they are simple to remove, no scrubbing required, so helpful on those summer nights when you're too exhausted from the beach to scrub off every last ounce of makeup.

2 comments:

  1. I love these swatches! I heart Tarte

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  2. I love Tarte too, I need more of their stuff.

    ReplyDelete