The Beautiful Lancome Cushion Blush Subtil

I’ve always loved Lancome as a brand (see some of my favourites here) and with Lisa Eldridge at the helm as Director of Makeup they’ve become a bit more innovative and fun. First came the release of the Juicy Shakers (which I reviewed here) and now Lancome, rather wisely, have looked to Korea for inspiration in the form of cushion compact technology. If you want the most advanced forms of beauty and skin care you always look at what’s going on in Korea. Consumers demand so much more from companies there and I’m so glad that we’re getting this in the UK now. In fact the Lancome cushion blushers have been made in Korea.

There’s been quite a few foundation cushion compacts this year, all the big hitters have one: YSL, MAC, L’Oreal, Kiko and of course Lancome’s Miracle Cushion. I’ve yet to try them but I definitely love the look of them. What I have been trying out is Lancome’s cushion blush subtil*. And I am pretty damn impressed with it.

Let’s start with the packaging. One thing that Lancome always gets right is packaging. I absolutely love their Rouge in Love lipstick designs. This lipstick also has sentimental value for me. I bought Rouge in Love in the airport on the way home from my honeymoon. So yeah, I have quite a strong emotional attachment to these lipsticks, which in fact is what Sali Hughes talks about in her new book Pretty Iconic. Makeup, skincare and perfume can often be very evocative for us. Anyway, I’m losing the thread of this post. Back to the wonderful Lancome’s cushion blush subtil. The packaging is sleek with the iconic Lancome rose embossed on top (more about that later). The compact clicks open to reveal a mirror and sponge applicator. There’s another flap to open which reveals a cushion saturated in liquid blusher pigment. I’ve tried to make this leak liquid blusher but it just won’t. I’m impressed.

So the Lancome rose on top of the packaging comes in three different shades denoting which blusher is from the three colour families available, and they are: red fruit, rose pastels and corals. There's a total of 6 different shades available. I have two blushers, one from the red fruit category and the other from rose pastels. I’ll start with the rose pastel offering in 02 Rose Limonade. This is a beautiful pale pastel pink, perfect for pale skin tones. I absolutely love the texture and finish of this. On application the blush feels fresh and cool, it’s a lovely sensation. The liquid blusher isn’t especially creamy but it’s not runny either and the pigmentation level is perfect. Rose Limonade gives a semi-translucent finish which imparts a beautiful, fresh glow on the skin. One of the main reasons I love these types of blushers over powder is that it always makes the skin look more youthful whereas powder can make the skin look dry and flat.

The second shade I have is 025 Sorbet Grenadine. Sorbet Grenadine is from red fruit family and is a much deeper shade than Rose Limonade. Despite it looking orange in the compact it’s actually a deep reddish pink that will suit darker complexions amazingly well. Having said that if I go easy on this it gives a beautiful flush of colour on my cheeks; a ruddy angel if you will and goes perfectly with red lipsticks. 

Lisa Eldridge recommends using one side of the sponge applicator to apply and to blend with the other clean side. I find it also works well blending with the finger. It’s a pretty full-proof blush whichever way you apply, just start with small amounts of product on the sponge applicator and gently tap on the cheek. Longevity is pretty good, it’s not as long lasting as Illamasqua powder blushers but I find them nearly indestructible on my combination skin. The packaging is so easy to transport in your bag and touching up doesn’t interfere with other makeup so longevity isn’t a major problem. 

I’m sold on these tbh, I love the technology implemented, I love the colour selection (there should be a shade for every skin tone), and I absolutely love the packaging. Lancome blush subtil are definitely one of the best liquid blushes I have tried. If you’re looking for a fancy new blusher for the coming winter months you won’t go wrong with Lancome cushion blush subtil (shop here). 

What do you think of the cushion compact craze?

*PR Samples

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