Author: Admin01

By any chance, have you – like me – noticed any changes in your skin over the past few years? For most of us, these changes have meant a few adjustments to our skincare and makeup routines. And for me, a makeup product that I once didn’t give much thought to has become an absolute necessity. And just what product is that? It’s blush!

Since there has been an absolute avalanche of blush products launched over the last several years, I thought it might be helpful to test some of the most highly touted blushes to determine which ones really work best on our mature skin. So that’s exactly what’s on today’s agenda.

First, let’s talk about just how blush helps us.

1. As our skin naturally loses some of its pigment and vibrancy with age, blush helps restore a healthy looking flush.
2. Without blush and with just foundation/skin tint our face can look flat. Blush adds shape and definition to the cheekbones which prevents a one-dimensional appearance.
3. Blus also helps counteract skin dullness by making the skin look more awake and refreshed.
4. And finally, it can help create a lifting effect which makes the face look sculpted and healthy.

Most Important Considerations When Choosing a Blush

There are three extremely important considerations to keep in mind when choosing a blush: First, formula, second, color, and third, blendability.

Since most of us experience drier skin with age, cream and liquid formulas will often work best for us as they tend to blend more easily and don’t settle into fine lines like some powder formulas. Plus, they never look cakey because of our own natural body heat. Liquid and cream blushes offer hydration, glow, and pigment and liquid blushes – especially – are long lasting.

But I know some of us do have oily skin. If that’s the case, powder and liquid blushes can be a good choice. However, if you have oily skin but like the look of cream blush, you can layer it over a powder base and can set the cream blush with a light dusting of powder to further ensure its staying power.

Now let’s focus on color. While we can always choose any shade that appeals to us, lighter skin tones can usually get away with using sheerer formulas in the peach and pink tones. Mango, berry and plum tones look amazing on medium to deeper skin tones.

And we of course need to choose the color that works best for the undertone of our skin. For warm undertones, corals, peaches and orange tones can be stunning. For cool undertones, pinks, violets and berry tones can be gorgeous. And if you’re not sure of your undertone, be sure to check out this article.  

In today’s video I try on 8 blushes. And because there are so many great blush options, this is Part 1 and we’ll conclude with Part 2 two weeks later.

First, let’s go with some great drugstore “oldie but goodie” options.

Blush #1: An Old Favorite

How many of you have Elf’s Luminous Putty Blush? I have the shade “Bora, Bora,” but these luminous putty blushes also come in five other shades. It’s described as a buildable and blendable formula that creates a natural, luminous flush of color. The cream-to-powder texture allows for easy application and a seamless finish. And then of course there’s the fact that it only costs $7.00.

Blush #2: Drugstore Old Favorite

This is another long-time favorite drugstore blush: Wet and Wild’s Megaglow Stick blush in “Dusty Pink.” It provides a very impressive pop of color which you can often find for under four dollars. It has a unique cream-to-powder formula and blends and builds beautifully. It’s enriched with vitamin E and feels velvety smooth.

Blush #3: New Drugstore Option

Now let’s go with a newer drugstore stick blush from Versed which is skincare infused. This blush is a little on the pricier side at Target and on the Versed website at $14.99 and comes in 5 shades. It’s formulated with jojoba oil to deliver a lightweight and easy-to-layer blush that has good pigment and hydrates the skin. It’s also extremely buildable and blends like a dream. Depending on how much is applied, it can look soft and natural or like a bold pop of color.

Be sure to check out Elise’s YouTube channel which specifically focuses on makeup tips, techniques, and product reviews for those of us 50+. Don’t forget to subscribe!

Blush #4: Drugstore Liquid Blush

Next up is our first liquid blush and it’s the Elf Camo Liquid Blush. It’s long-lasting with high-pigment color payoff, a lightweight and blendable formula, and a dewy finish. It’s also designed to be easy to use and suitable for various skin types, including dry, oily, and combination skin. 

Additionally, it’s a 100% vegan and cruelty-free product. The shade range has recently been expanded to 12 and it costs $7.00. And since you only need to use 1-2 drops of this blush at the most, this small bottle will last quite some time.

Blush #5: Drugstore Trio

The last drugstore blush I’m highlighting today is also the newest. It’s Morphe’s Cheek Thrills Multi-Finish Face Trio. I have the shade “Apres Ski” but it comes in 6 other shades and costs $19.00. Each palette comes in a tonal flattering color combination with three different finishes that you can mix and match.

There’s a satin cream, a luminous balm and a velvet powder which makes this product incredibly versatile. You can layer these finishes to create custom color and effects. The luminous balm provides a subtle highlight, while the satin cream and velvet powder offer different levels of intensity and dimension.

Blush #6: Newer Cream Stick Option

Now we’ll move on to three more expensive blushes. The first is the newest stick blush I’ve tried which is Rhode’s Pocket Blush in the shade “Piggy.” This is a cream blush with a natural glow that comes in 6 shades and costs $24.00. The formula isn’t overly pigmented, so it’s very easy to apply. And if you do prefer a rosier glow, it can easily be built up.

Perhaps what’s most interesting about it is how long-lasting it is. I’m not a huge fan of this applicator since the width of it makes it a bit harder to grasp, but let’s give it a try.

Blush #7: High End Cream Stick

The most expensive blush is our next option from the clean beauty brand Westman Atelier. It costs $48 for the regular size. Fortunately, several of the colors come in a mini size which costs $26.00. A nice feature of this blush is that it’s easy to hold and maneuver around the skin. And what’s most impressive is that the creamy balm formula swipes onto the cheeks effortlessly.

All six shades provide a pop of color that isn’t overbearing, but it’s also not too sheer. Sometimes, makeup products can accentuate fine lines and wrinkles, but that’s definitely not an issue with this blush. This is very easy to blend with fingers or a brush, and it doesn’t disturb the makeup underneath.

Blush #8 Newest Cream Stick Made for Mature Skin

The last blush we’re testing today is from Revant Cosmetics. This blush comes in three shades – “Magenta Pink,” “Dusty Rose” and “Deep Merlot” and costs $30.00. It creates a dewy, soft-focus glow that doesn’t settle into fine lines, and it’s specifically designed with mature skin in mind.

It blends into the skin easily with no streaks or cakey texture. It can be applied with fingers for a quick touch of color, or it can be layered for a more defined look. It can also be used as a lip tint. In addition, it’s vegan, cruelty-free, paraben-free, and fragrance-free. (If you use this link and the code ELISE10, you can get 10% off your purchase.)

In the video, I’ll share photos of each blush next to each other so you can decide which ones you feel look the best from today’s testing. And I’d love to hear your thoughts on your favorites in the comment section below.

In Part 2, we’ll take a look at 8 more blushes so we can eventually determine our top choices. And as long as we’re focusing on blush, here’s a video on blush application which I hope you’ll also find helpful since blushes can sometimes be tricky to apply.

Let’s Have a Conversation:

Have you tried any of these blushes? If so, what was your experience with them? What’s your favorite blush?

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Originally posted at: Alexia Echevarria’s Black Foldover Boots and Pleated Skirt

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Originally posted at: Marysol Patton’s Red Bow Dress

When the bowl fell and broke into pieces, I felt shattered into pieces as well. The grief over this little broken object was shocking and completely inadequate. Yet it was real, and it was deep. Looking for answers, here’s what I found:

1. The Bowl Was a Symbol of Loss

It was one of three bowls that I had bought at the De Young Museum in San Francisco, decades ago. Industrial design, nothing precious, nothing unique. But the two years in San Francisco had been among my best years, embracing youth, freedom, optimism and adventure, filled with art and sunshine and innocent joy. The design and the joyful orange colour of the three bowls represented exactly that.

2. It Couldn’t Be Replaced

The breaking of one of the three became a symbol for something incomplete that would never feel whole again. Just like me, who, in the course of a rich and colorful life, had to leave dreams behind and face a reality that sometimes was almost unbearable. What I had lost couldn’t be brought back into life.

3. It Was a Symbol of Unresolved Grief

But there was more to it. My first emotion when looking at the broken pieces surprised me: It was linked to the grief over my mother’s death years ago. It had been dramatic: The vessel that had received, carried and brought my life into this world shattered into pieces by her own hand.

The guilt that I felt for failing to keep my mother from ending her life is the worst a daughter can experience. Just like the death of a child is for a parent.

Now, my mother had been gone for more than three or four years when the bowl broke. I had been to therapy after her death. And now, that broken little bowl reminded me that despite the years that had passed, the pain was still huge. It reminded me that I was still broken and far from feeling whole. Pain was lingering cruelly close to the surface, ready to break out any minute, without control.

4. The Bowl Became a Symbol for Healing

The broken bowl forced me to feel the pain once again, to cry and dive deep into my broken heart. But it held a golden opportunity as well: To experience grief with such force became my gateway towards healing. It became my “wound through which the light enters,” as Persian poet Rumi said.

I collected the broken pieces, even the porcelain dust. At first, I didn’t do anything with them. Months passed. Then, one day, I suddenly felt the urge to put the pieces together, a Herculean act. But I did it, and I found that it made me feel better. I had put the pieces together. Just as I had faced the abyss and somehow managed to conquer it. It did not destroy me. I was alive.

5. It Became a Symbol for Resilience

Again, years passed. The glued-together, not-so-good looking but somewhat complete little bowl sat in my China cabinet. I would never give it away or dispose of it, despite its deplorable looks. Then, I came across an article about the Art of Kintsugi and realized, that this is exactly what I had – instinctively – done: TSUGI meaning “connection,” KIN meaning “Gold.”

How to do it:

First, collect the pieces, then connect and glue them together. Finally, cover the cracks with precious gold. Kintsugi taught me to apply the finishing magic to my bowl: the GOLD.

The gold highlights the cracks instead of hiding them. It turned my bowl into a symbol of reconciliation with the past. My very own hard-earned symbol of resilience.

6. It Became a Symbol for Empowerment

It may not be the most beautiful, but certainly is the most precious, UNIQUE and beloved bowl in my household. This bowl tells my story. It is a witness to my strong will to carry on, to overcome death and say yes to life.

A YES in bright orange and gold.

Today, 11 years after my mother’s death, I feel gratitude when I look at my bowl. I am proud of it.

Today, I have gone beyond my cracks. I have gone beyond the guilt and shame. I don’t hide the cracks. I show them, when adequate or necessary. I write about them to help others understand and heal.

It doesn’t mean that I don’t feel grief every now and then. But I know that it is part of life. It made me who I am: a woman who can, at last, feel the feelings she has and not fear that they will destroy her.

Today, I have turned my cracks into gold.

7. It Has Become a Symbol of Victory

This bowl is a visual reminder of my victory over circumstances: what I couldn’t do for my mother (and what was never my task anyway), I could do with my bowl (and myself): put it (and myself) back together, make it (and me) whole again, and realize that it is (and I am) stronger and more beautiful than ever before.

Trauma sits deeply in our autonomic nervous system. It cannot be “forgotten” or “eliminated” or “overwritten” by positive mantras. The healthy, healing way to deal with trauma is to acknowledge it, then integrate it into our lives.

What we survive makes us stronger. Even if it means a hell of a lot of hardship and pain for quite some time. Eventually, what is wounded can heal into a scar. The scar on our skin reminds us of our vulnerability but also of the fact that we have survived.

8. Broken Things in Your Home

Theories like Feng Shui are strict about broken things in your home. They symbolize something broken in your life; therefore they must be removed from your environment. Also, broken things should not be passed on to others as this would invite bad luck. Broken objects are to be disposed of, period.

I basically agree. I am all for saying goodbye to things that no longer support the person that we are today. We need to be surrounded by resources of joy and wellbeing in our present day. Things without such meaning are a burden. We need to be selective about what (and whom!) we surround ourselves with.

Yet, there may be good reasons for repairing things that are damaged – if they are worth it. Worthiness is defined by the beholder of the object. It is all about a specific meaning on a personal level and has nothing to do with an object’s material value.

Apart from the obvious ecological impact of keeping an object instead of replacing it, there may be another, higher gain. Broken things of personal meaning, if well repaired, can visually “anchor” that you have gone beyond your cracks and moved on.

With all of today’s excitement about decluttering and minimalism, it sometimes seems to me that discarding things has turned into a kind of sport. Does the fast and furious letting go of things really always serve our quality of life or make us turn into better human beings?

Now, although it may all make perfect sense and be helpful – why not give it a second thought? Who knows, there may be a promising case of Kintsugi healing waiting for us, guiding us to uncover the precious gold of our soul.

Let’s Have a Conversation:

When have you last let something go from your home that you afterwards realized you missed? Are there objects in your environment that symbolize unfinished business? What is the most meaningful object (apart from yourself and your pet) in your home?