Review -- elf Studio HD Blushes

Over the past year or so, I've gotten really into cream blushes.

I suppose that it makes sense because they have such a fresh, dewy look on the cheeks that I really appreciate now that my skin has become drier.

Of course, some days, I use a cream blush as a base and layer a powder blush on top of it to really make the color last all day.

However I'm using them, cream blushes really rock my world these days.

But I was still a little reluctant to try the elf Studio HD Blushes, which have been around for a while now. That's because a few years back, Makeup Forever had a similar type product and I got a deluxe sample with purchase at Sephora and just wasn't particularly impressed.


I found it difficult to apply the right amount so I wound up looking pretty much like a clown.

I figured that I'd have a similar experience with the elf Studio HD Blushes because they're the same kind of thick, creamy formula that comes in a pump dispenser.

elf Studio HD Blush pump dispenser

But then elf was having one of their 50% off sales and I just decided to bite the bullet and give them a try.

I chose the two lightest shades to play it safe -- Headliner, which is a bright blue-based pink, and Superstar, which is a bright coral pink.

elf Studio HD Blushes in Superstar and Headliner

elf Studio HD Blushes in Superstar (l.) and Headliner (r.)

The shades are both beautiful, and despite the fact that these blushes are pretty intensely pigmented, they're surprisingly wearable even on my fair skin.

The trick, of course, is blending, blending, and blending -- and fortunately, the formula on these blushes is creamy enough to blend into the skin like a dream.

While you can use your fingers, I find that it's best to use a synthetic brush to blend the blushes in -- I love the elf Studio Small Stippling Brush for this and pretty much all my cream blushes.  I'll squeeze out a small dot of the blush (because that is seriously all you need for both cheeks) on the back of my hand or my Crown stainless steel palette (I really need to talk about this in an upcoming favorites post because this little tool has seriously made my makeup-related life so much easier!) and then dip the brush in and apply to my cheeks.

Sometimes, I need to wipe the brush off a little before blending the blush in, but that's only if I've gotten too much blush on it.

The end result is a gorgeous dewy flush that looks so natural on the cheeks.

And these babies last a good long while too -- I typically get six to eight hours of wear out of them, which is pretty amazing in my book because my cheeks seem to eat blush up like crazy.

These blushes work well on their own, but also play very well with powder blushes.

I really love them, and best of all, they're only $3 each -- and since elf is always running a sale (like right now, everything is 40% off until midnight PST tonight with the code LABORDAY), you can get them for an even better deal.

I definitely recommend picking up one or two -- I'm thinking about getting a couple more, even though the other shades are all kind of dark and scare me a bit.

Have you tried the elf Studio HD Blushes? Which shade is your favorite?