Feeling Flush With Tarte - A Review Of The Tarte Amazonian Clay 12 Hour Blush In Flush And The Bamboo Blush / Cheek Brush

When it comes to beauty brands, I think that we're very lucky in the UK. Not only do we have free and easy access to some of the biggest brands in the world but we also have so many amazing budget brands right on our doorstep.

It doesn't stop us wanting though, and unfortunately for us, some brands just aren't that easy to get a hold of. The ability to shop online though has made all the difference, and through the magic of the internet we can now get out hands on brand as varied as Wet and Wild, Lorac and Milani from the USA, Tony Moly and Holika Holkia from Asia, and Annabelle from Canada.

For years and years one of the brands that I lusted after above all others was US brand Tarte. Alas all the sites that sold it didn't ship to the UK, and ebay prices were quite frankly ridiculous. I lusted though, and years ago I even mentioned the brand in a Sephora lust list post from way back in 2010.

Although the beautiful Louis Vuitton Vernis Fleur esq palette is long gone, this year British beauty junkies prayers were answered and Tarte became a little bit easier to access. Sephora started shipping to the UK, stores like Rose's Beauty Store, and Amazon started selling the odd bit all be it at  often slightly inflated prices, and the biggie for me QVC UK became the only official stockist of Tarte in Europe.

The selection isn't huge but it's ever changing, and shows seem to pop up now every couple of months. Whilst I want to try everything from the brand, I started small and Mummy Lou got me probably one of their most famous products for my birthday way back in May.

Mention Tarte nowadays and more often then not now people think blusher!!! There are a few types blusher and cheek colour in the Tarte range but by far the most famous has to be the Amazonian Clay 12 Hour Blush. These blushers are crammed full of real natural clays, harvested from the banks of the Amazon River. The blushers are baked and are full of vitamins and nutrients. The ingredients benefit all skintones and skin types, minimising oil production in oily skins, and providing hydration moisture to dry skins, all of which helps the blusher to stay in place and look better for longer.

The colour selection on Sephora ranges well into double figures, but currently I believe QVC only stock about 5 shades. I'd already made a wishlist and thankfully one of my most wanted was and still is available on the QVC website - Flush.

Describe by the Sephora website Flush as pink, berry, all of the Amazonian Clay blushers come packaged in tonal packaging, similar too but not identical to the colour inside.

The compact contains a mirror and the blusher itself it embossed with the Tarte logo, and an almost, rain forest type design. Although I love the look of embossing on blushes and eyeshadows, it isn't always conducive to pigmentation, not in this case though. Yes you need a couple of swirls with a brush to loosen it up a bit but after that the payoff is amazing, in fact I would even go as far as to say that you need a really light hand, to avoid overdoing it, and creating a Aunt Sally type look.

The pinkish, berry description is probably about right, it a very neutral pink tone, that I think would work well on a lot of people. I've taken a few picture both with and without flash to give you an idea of what it looks like on me. First here are a couple of with the flash,

and a couple without the flash.

These photos aren't the best, and whilst part of that could be down to my not so good photography skill, I'm not sure that's why. I think the reason why it's so hard to pick up on my skin is because it's exactly the shade that I would blush naturally, and it's the colour that my skin goes when I'm feeling a little bit overheated. Despite all the pretty colours that blusher now comes in, the original purpose of blusher or rouge, was to enhance that sort of coy, natural youthful flush, and this product does exactly that on my skin.

Flush really is the perfect colour for me, it's the perfect colour for my skin tone, and used lightly gives that perfect flushed cheek look. This blusher lived completely up to my all be it very high, expectations,  and the pigmentation and wear time on my combination skin was excellent. Just a small swirl with a blusher brush was enough to create a pretty, pinched cheek look. Of course you can use any blush or cheek brush that you have, but the blusher I received came with one of Tarte's bamboo handled brushes.

Unfortunately the blush no longer comes with a brush on QVC, and I can't find this particular one from any other Tarte retailer but I believe it's just their normal, domed cheek brush.

Like the majority of brushes in their range it come with a sustainably, harvested bamboo handle, a gold tone ferrule embossed with the Tarte logo, and the softest, synthetic hairs, you will ever feel.

Again I have to say I'm impressed, it felt super soft on the skin, picked up the product easily and it washed well with minimal, if any shedding.

Tarte products aren't cheap by means, but based on my first two products I've tried. I'm impressed. The philosophy, and ethics behind the company are excellent and the two products that I've tried are great quality and deliver great results. I definitely want to try more Amazonian Clay Blushers and I already have my heart set on Dollface, and Exposed, and I certainly wouldn't be frightened to try their brushes again. QVC is probably the easiest place to buy some of these shades from at the moment especially with their 30 day money back guarantee, but for some of the other shades I may have to pay a little bit more from Rose's Beauty Store, or even consider a Sephora order, and their scary taxes and duty - eek. This experience has only just whetted my Tarte love and I can't wait to try some things from the brand, in fact thanks to Mummy Lou I already have a few more products to try, but more on that next week, with my September haul. Thanks for reading and if you have any Tarte recommendations I'd love to hear them xx