Urban Decay Bittersweet Afterglow 8-Hour Blush Review, Photos, Swatches
Urban Decay Bittersweet Afterglow 8-Hour Blush
Urban Decay Bittersweet Afterglow 8-Hour Blush ($26.00 for 0.23 oz.) is described as a “bright purple.” It’s a softened, medium purple with subtle, pink undertones and a mostly matte finish. It seems to run slightly cool in undertone, but I think it may depend on what you pair it with whether it will read genuinely cool-toned or not. Make Up For Ever S924 Purple (P, $21.00) is more shimmery, brighter, cooler-toned. Too Faced Ooh la Orchid (LE, $16.00) is warmer (also an eyeshadow). NARS Fashion Rebel #2 (LE, $24.00) is similar (also an eyeshadow). MAC Evening Stroll (LE, $22.00) is a cream product. Get comparison swatches / compare dupes side-by-side.
According to Urban Decay, the Afterglow formula is supposed to be an “extremely blendable, finely milled formula [that] goes on sheer that provides eight long hours of wearable, buildable color.” The texture is very, very finely-milled and silky-feeling, and it goes on smoothly, though it is a thinner texture that is prone to kicking up excess powder–it reminded me of the Hourglass Ambient Lighting Blushes to a degree, but I would say Urban Decay’s formula is a bit thinner still. It never looked powdery on the skin, and as I worked the color into the skin, the finish seemed more satin-to-matte than a true, flat matte. The formula of Bittersweet is best described as buildable; the color goes on noticeably in one go on my medium skin tone, but it can be built-up to richer, truer-to-pan color if desired, or it can be blended (or applied with a lighter hand) for even softer color. I would say this is semi-sheer to semi-opaque in color payoff, and then buildable from there. This shade was fairly blendable, but it seemed to take a little extra effort compared to the average blush (as well as compared to other blushes in the range). On me, it lasted for eight hours and started to fade.
Bittersweet
DCDiscontinued. $26.00.
Urban Decay Bittersweet Afterglow 8-Hour Blush
Urban Decay Bittersweet Afterglow 8-Hour Blush
Urban Decay Bittersweet Afterglow 8-Hour Blush
Urban Decay Bittersweet Afterglow 8-Hour Blush
Urban Decay Bittersweet Afterglow 8-Hour Blush
Urban Decay Bittersweet Afterglow 8-Hour Blush
Urban Decay Bittersweet Afterglow 8-Hour Blush
I’m so glad that Bittersweet did well – purple blushes are my favourite, and this one looks fantastic on you!
Yay! 🙂 Thank you, Evelyn! I was surprised this didn’t look too bad on me, since cool purple blush is one of the hardest shades for me to wear!
Very pretty on you Christine! Too bad they’re not released yet. This treat would look very nice in my Easter basket.
Soon enough! 🙂
I just picked up the MUFE blush but I still want this lol. It just looks so beautiful! I think it’s going to look amazing on WOC
lol! Purple blush is SO good on WOC!
Word. I’m a MAC NW15, NC20 myself, but my main makeup model is a MAC NW50 and this blush made me go “Oooohhhh yyaaasssss.”
Unusual but very pretty! MUFE proved before that purple can really work on the cheeks.
Agreed!
Very nice!
Glad ya liked it, Mandy!
Oh yes!! I’ve been looking for a purple blush that’s wearable, and this looks gorgeous! I hope Sephora gets it in time for the sale
Hopefully!
WOW — I can’t believe how beautiful this looks on you, Christine. I never thought of this shade of purple as a blush color.
Thank you, Kelsey!
Looks great on you but I am a MAC N2. I think it might look dirty on my skin color. How does it compare to Clinique ‘s Pansy on fair skin?
http://www.temptalia.com/submit-dupe?sbs=1&pid=191472&dupe=193360
I don’t have fair skin, so it’s hard for me to weigh in, but I would expect this to be more intense and run cooler-toned, whereas Pansy Pop will look a little pinker, plus Pansy Pop is more luminous/less matte.
I had the very same question and I am more like an N15 with an olive undertone and my skin tone is so neutral my face kind of eats blush. I am thinking this might be better than the Pansy unless it is too dry because my skin is more on the dry side.
I don’t think it is dry, but it is so silky that it can kick up excess product a little bit (this shade doesn’t do it as much as some of the other shades in the range). Have you tried the Hourglass Ambient products? If you can wear that texture, I think you should be okay with this!
Thanks, Christine. That is helpful. I do have the Hourglass and find that I don’t reach for it that much but that may be because I got it right before this cold winter and have been using a lot of moisturizer and my Chanel cream blushes play better with that skin situation. Now that we are getting warmer weather, I will revisit the Hourglass and see what the verdict is.
My pleasure, Alison! 🙂
Well, they didn’t lie about the blush wearing for 8 hours 😉 I LOVE this colour. I’m eternally on the hunt for a purple blush that won’t make me look like I got hit on the face. So pretty on you too!!
It’s such a realistic claim, I think! I can definitely see +/- variability based on skin types, bases, lifestyle, etc., which you’d see in any formula, but it’s pretty rare I get 10+ hour wear out of a cheek product with normal skin that’s inside most of the day, lol!
So exciting to see a genuinely unusual blush shade! I feel like it would work really well as a soft cheek contour with or without a softer pinker blush as well.
It might! 🙂
I like this! I do wish the wear was a little longer. Maybe some primer will help. I just got Rain in my ColourPop order. I don’t remember seeing that in your reviews? It looks pretty close. I have not had a chance to wear it yet. So, maybe it will give me a chance to see how I like purples on my cheeks. This looks great on you though. At first I though it may look like a big bruise,lol!
I’ve not received an email or mailer regarding the Sephora VIB sale. Did you get some sort of communication Christine? I know they are usually last minute and I am definitely VIB rouge. I am wondering if I should call. I don’t want to miss that sale!
Hey Nicole,
I have it, but I haven’t reviewed it yet, so it’s not in the database yet! 🙂 They’re similar, though Rain is pinker and warmer. It’s a 50/50 shot that I receive anything in the mail from Sephora, but I haven’t received anything in the mail yet.
Sephora’s admins posted the sale details on BeautyTalk: VIB Rouge Info & Dates, VIB Info & Dates, Beauty Insider Info & Dates.
I’m glad you got rain. I got Fox and Yes,Please,too! I wore Fox last night..I fumbled with it a bit and wound up using two types of brushes. So, I’m not sure which was the best. I used a Hakuhodo goat and a Mac duo fiber. It came out pretty fabulous though. For sure is a learning curve, suppose like the shadows..they are so worth the $8 though (actually more) IMO.I kinda added Rain last minute so I didn’t have to pay shipping,lol!
Thanks for the links but it’s not showing anything. I actually wound up calling and the SA tried to get me to the invitation online where you can print it under the FAQ section(under advice) . But it wouldn’t pull either. So she said the code was:ROUGELOVE for vib rouge’s. She said they don’t mail to everyone(which is BS IMO) and they were still sending emails.
Glad you were able to call and get help! You might have to be logged in (if you aren’t) to see – they seemed to be up for me though!
Nicole, I didn’t get the email either, but I got the invite thru snail mail, and the code for VIB Rouge is ROUGELOVE
Happy shopping!
Thanks Katherine T.! 🙂
Do you have Colourpop’s Rain blush? And how do you think it’ll compare?
Hi Reiko,
I do, but I haven’t reviewed it yet so it’s not available in the Swatch Gallery or on the Dupe List at this time! It is pinker, less matte, and a bit lighter 🙂
I have a lot of purple tones in my skin so purple blushes look really natural on me. I love this and will check it out.
Nice! So glad this might work for you.
Wow, that’s much nicer than I thought it would be…
YAY!
Yeeeeeeeeees! I have been looking for this exact shade for a while now. The few I found performed so poorly that I almost gave up. So glad you like the formula, it gives me the little nudge I need (who am I kidding, I never need a nudge) to give this a try. Can’t wait to get my hands on this! It looks beautiful on you.
Woohoo!! 🙂 Let us know how it works for you!
Love! I was worried it would be too blue/cool, but it has a touch of pink to it.
It is justttt on the side before it will be harder to wear for warmer skin tones!
Since I’m neutral, I’ll be good to go. I do wear cooler blushes, too, but I’m not sure I could pull off a more violet blush shade.
Glad to see this one did well! We are lacking in purple blushes. I have Sephora Radiant Orchid which looks to be pretty similar (but discontinued)
We most definitely are!
So pleased it performs well! (I was going to get it anyway, really, but it’s good to know I won’t be wasting my money, lol.)
That whole look at the end is a really lovely pastel bright springtime look. Love it.
Haha! The lure of purple blush is strong.
I’m actually really surprised by this rating, in a good way. I’m loving the colour!
Me too 🙂
This is just the kind of shade UD used to excel at as the “offbeat” mainstream brand. It’s nice to see some of those returning to the forefront. It’s not a color I’d have use for, but it’s lovely. I can see it looking really good on darker skintones.
Hopefully they’ll keep pushing out these cool shades!
I am just DROOLING over this blush! It’s like the blush gods heard my pleas for purples and they’re answering me!! I don’t know what it is about purple blush that just has my eye and I can’t wait to swipe this one up!!! It looks so pretty on you!! I am going to have to do some major damage to my blush collection during my declutter otherwise blushes will be taking up two drawers like eye palettes already do… LOL!
LOL! I can’t wait to see everyone rocking purple blush!
Purple blush, contoured up, super bronzed skin, and clumpy lashes (there’s a new Miss Manga mascara coming out that clumps your lashes ON PURPOSE!!!!) – the cosmetics company sure loves to make us all look crazy! Haha!
I think one of the things I love about this is that UD described it as purple and it’s honestly purple. Not a fuschia purple or a reddish-purple, it’s straight up purple! Personally not the blush color for me but I love how it looks!
It really is purple!
Looks so good on you Christine! I have very fair skin but I do really like purple blush on me; I feel like it makes my skin look LESS pale and takes away some of my redness that peeks through my base! I have a purple YSL blush that I love so I might have to check this out when it’s in store and see if it’s too dark for me. Thanks for the great review as always 🙂
I think purple blush works so well on fair skin!
Christine, you must have psychic powers. I remember you saying a short while back that you wished UD had a good line of blushes, and here they are! If only your reviews and input controlled all cosmetic companies… Keep working on those magic powers and we’ll get there. 😉 Hahaha!
I definitely wished for blushes! They’re not quite the texture I wanted, but they are better than I expected (I prefer richer, denser textures!) so far! And I’m still really glad to see them put out a real blush range. Now the brand’s offerings are much more complete!
Uh oh I think I’m going to have to get this one! Unique and pretty!!
Uh oh!
This shade would look SO great on darker skin! <3
Agreed!
Do you know how close this is to Illamasqua Thrust?
I don’t! 🙁
I would never have considered this colour as a blush before but it looks great on you Christine.
Thank you, Sarah!
How does Bittersweet compare to Vintage Grape? I love this one and I need it badly! <3 Looks awesome on you, Christine! <3
Vintage Grape is a lot darker, more plum than really purple.
I like it but I’ll have to swatch it. I might be too pale for this to work well.
NO wayyyy! I think it could totally work!
I really like the look of this. Time for a purple blush? Oh yes! 🙂
YES!
Gorgeous! When does the collection release
4/15 is what they told me!
I am definitely picking this up. Will the sephora sale Include a code or something?
Sephora’s admins posted the sale details on BeautyTalk: VIB Rouge Info & Dates, VIB Info & Dates, Beauty Insider Info & Dates.
Some of these colors are so unusual but I really love them on you. I may have to try or buy them.
Thank you, Rah!
I really like this blush! Any opinions on what to pair it with? (on lips and eyes)
You could get away with pinks, lavenders, or even peach!