Tarte Amazonian Clay 12-Hour Blush: Blushing Bride, Flush, and Natural Beauty

I was so impressed with the first three Tarte Amazonian Clay Blushes I bought that I went to Sephora with Mary last week and snatched up three more shades because I had a $20 off coupon through their VIB program. (Liz, it looks like we may start that circus tent, after all!) They are housed in mirrored compacts with the corresponding blush shade, and are imprinted with what I imagine is the Amazon River flowing through tropical rainforest. Each blush contains 5.6 grams of product, and retails for $33 in Canada.

Clockwise from bottom: Blushing Bride, Flush, and Natural Beauty

Tarte's Amazonian Clay 12-Hour Blushes are solar-baked and, as implied, are infused with Amazonian clay, which Tarte calls "nature's most perfect ingredient." They are supposedly "nutrient rich and skin-nourishing" because of the Amazonian clay, and promise to "restore harmony for a flawless finish that lasts all day." It promises to balance out all skin types, so it absorbs oil for those who are oily, hydrates and restores moisture for those who are dry, etc. The shades are "inspired" by their Cheek Stain shades, and most of them are actually named correspondingly.

Flush (close-up)

Blushing Bride, Flush, and Natural Beauty

Blushing Bride is a medium raspberry-plum with gold micro-shimmer. The shimmer looks very obvious in the pan, but it's much more subtle in execution, so it gives off more of a sheen than full-on shimmer. I believe this is the only non-matte shade of the range. It has a very smooth, silky texture, and has amazing pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. A little goes a long way here, and it's very easy to over-do considering the intensity of the shade. It's much brighter and less brown than MAC Flirt & Tease, and less pink than MAC Breezy.

Flush is a medium-dark magenta-berry in a matte finish. It has a very smooth, silky texture, and has amazing pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. A little goes a long way here, and it's extremely easy to over-do considering the intensity and brightness of the shade. It's slightly less violet than MAC Rhubarb.

Natural Beauty is a medium bright strawberry red with pink undertones in a matte finish. It has a very smooth, silky texture, and has amazing pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. A little goes a long way here, and it's extremely easy to over-do considering the intensity and brightness of the shade. It's slightly more pink than MAC Salsarose.

These blushes are absolutely gorgeous, from the texture to the wear to the shades. All of them are so smooth and silky and blendable; they go on like a dream! I've never personally had a problem with the wear-time of blushes because I always wear it on top of primer (MAC Face Protect SPF 50) and powder foundation (MAC Studio Fix Powder) rather than on bare skin, so I can't actually say if this has a longer wear-time than my other blushes. Theoretically, though, because they're so pigmented and finely milled, they should wear longer. Given the intensity of these three shades, they are extremely easy to over-apply, so I recommend using a very light hand or a duo fibre brush.

I have combination skin where I'm very oily in the T-zone and normal in the cheeks; I will agree that these blushes do give my cheeks "an overall smooth and even appearance," but most blushes look like that on me, so I'm not sure I really notice a difference with their "Skinvigorating" ingredients. Moreover, a lot of the skincare-like claims with these blushes ("improves skin clarity, elasticity, firmness, and texture") would require using these blushes everyday, like skincare, to really test their efficacy. In the end, I would recommend these for how they look and wear as blushes, since at the core, that is what they are. I actually see these shades working really beautifully on darker skintones because of the intensity, though those with light to medium skintones who are looking for more dramatic blush shades should also check these out. They will, however, end up looking quite severe on fair skintones. Regardless, Tarte's Amazonian Clay Blush formula is probably one of my favourites to date, and I would check them out either way, 'cause there's a shade for everyone!