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NARS Douceur Blush Review, Photos, Swatches (Fall 2010)

NARS Douceur Blush
NARS Douceur Blush

Douceur… aka Softness!

NARS Douceur Blush ($26.00 for 0.16 oz.) is a new and limited edition shade of dirty neutral pink-brown. This is a hard color to describe, because I think it’s going to take on a lot of the natural tones from each person. It’s not pink on me, at all, and it doesn’t even swatch very pink, but it almost looks pink in the pan. On my skin (warm, yellow undertones, medium in color), it adds just a touch of flush but almost just darkens my cheeks. I love a product that challenges me to describe it, but simultaneously, I get very frustrated since I’m almost at a loss for words. (Almost!)

According to my good friend Google Translate, Douceur means softness in French.  (Thanks for the lessons!) Foreign language, by the way, was never my strong suit (I took five years of French and yet I can’t even translate “douceur” on my own)!

Beyond the dirty neutral pink-brown shade (which is about as close as I think I’m going to get here), this is one of NARS’ least pigmented blushes. It is surprisingly subtle and light; it does not build to something more intense. I think those with medium to dark skin tones may want to try it out in person first. It’s very barely-there on me, so while I think paler beauties will love the near matte finish and subtler coloring of the blusher, darker beauties will find it less useful and maybe even invisible on their skin tone.

By the by, while the NARS imprint is gorgeous, it will disappear within one or two uses!

Don’t forget — use code TEMPTALIA for a free mini lipgloss trio featuring Turkish Delight, Gothika, and Greek Holiday at NARS.

If you want to know more about how products are evaluated, read out Rating System FAQ! 🙂

  • Product: 26/30
  • Value: 8/10
  • Ease of Use: 4/5
  • Packaging: 4/5

RECOMMENDATION: For those with light to light-medium skin, I think this would be a lovely shade to add depth without strong color.

AVAILABILITY: NARS

NARS Douceur Blush
NARS Douceur Blush

NARS Douceur Blush
NARS Douceur Blush

NARS Douceur Blush
NARS Douceur Blush

NARS Douceur Blush
NARS Douceur Blush

NARS Douceur Blush
Wearing NARS Douceur Blush (Look Breakdown)

97 Comments

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Angélina Avatar

“Douceur” means “softness” or as you translated it “sweetness”.
“Soft” means “douce” in french so “Softness” means “douceur”.

I think this color is really pretty by the way.

Musing On Beauty Avatar

Here comes the French lesson (and I do love this blush, which does show up on my NC15 skin): Douceur means sweetness, in the sense of a sweat treat, too AND it also means softness and gentleness or ‘with care’ indeed. One word for a lot of nice things 🙂

Gisele Avatar

Je suis d’accord! Douceur also has the sensibility of a soft touch within the sweetness. Yes, the French do alot with a word. And I’m very tempted to purchase this one for my NW20(winter)25(summer) skin. I’ll have to test it first though, but it is almost Chanel-like with its complex hues.

Amber Avatar

Oooh that looks like a perfect neutral shade for my super-fair skin! Very pretty! And I love NARS blushes – need to check this one out! Thank you Christine!

Alisha in WI Avatar

Been eyeing up this blush, but I haven’t seen it in person yet. If that is the case, I have to wait for your review! Thank you Christine…:-)

FlyingBuffalo Avatar

Douceur does indeed mean softness or gentleness, although I wouldn’t use sweetness as the first definition. If mildness is a word, then that works, too.

jenn Avatar

Christine I’m surprise you gave this such a low grade. It looks sooooo nice on you! I have it & love it! (My skintone is paler than yours so you are right about it being great for paler tones)

Julia Avatar

As much as I love how pigmented NARS powder blushes are, it can make them a lot of work to wear sometimes as a pale woman (NW15). I’m actually quite happy with this blush and will definitely check it out!! Do you think this could work as a contour color?

Cathryn Avatar

It actually looks like it would be a great contouring blush for very pale skin tones. MAC foundations are too dark for me, but I’d describe my skin as a super light cool-neutral, and this seems to have just enough of a fawn brown colour to be a natural, healthy-looking shadow.

snm Avatar

i thought this might be a nice natural contouring color on my nc15 skin but based on the swatch,I am not sure now.however i like these kind of natural blushes,every pale girl needs them.i surely will check this out

Yumi Avatar

It looks lovely but I don’t think it’s a must-have. BTW what are you wearing on your lips? I think I saw something similar in another look but I can’t quite put my finger on it.

Vicky Avatar

Christine, how would you compare Doucer to MAC’s Margin? Margin is a neutral peachy color with some pink in it, do you think it’s similar to Doucer?

Meredith Avatar

It looks beautiful on you. It doesn’t look like you had issues building the color — it shows up very well (even looks heavy-handed)

Desiree Avatar

Christine, you recommended this blush for light-to-light-medium skin but the color (in the pics) makes me think of MAC Blushbaby.

I’m an NW40-43 and I can pull off Blushbaby really well; it shows up on my dark skin. This color is really nice, too, and I think darker skintones would be able to pull it off as well.

Tricia Avatar

I hate it when products have the logo imprinted on it – it always feels like a tragedy when it disappears, LOL! It is a gorgeous color though, too bad about the pigmentation (or lack thereof) :-/

Cherie Avatar

Yes!!! Just the review I have been waiting for and could not be happier 🙂 Thanks Christine! I am ordering today with Temptalia code!

Annamaria Avatar

I’ve loved so much MAC ‘personal style’ blush (i’m an nw15)and I’m so scared to finish it! THis could be something similar maybe?
🙂
But it really looks lovely on you Christine!!

Michelle Avatar

how does it compare to korres 15 natural blush I was looking at swatches/on your face pictures and they seem very alike? are they? thanks.

Laurence Avatar

Hi, Christine ,
I’m Laurence (lady despite my name similar to Lawrence !), from France.
I’ve been regularly visiting your blog since end of Year 2009, and I love it !
I confirm : “douceur” in French means softness…
Just to let you know I am very fond of make up but I think I am a very careful consumer…I do not purchase anything without having a look at your nice swatches and comments…As Nars is a very expensive brand in France, (I carefully read and take information before any decision even if I love such or such colour),I purchase Nars products and others only if I can find a 20 % discount available for orders at Sephora’s (France) web site. Nars also sells its products direct on their site (no discount available except if you are a registerd Professional). I do not know if this new shade of blush would be nice on my face, as it should be available at Sephora as per September… Impossible for us in the south of France (city of Montpellier)to have a try before purchasing. So not convenient at all !
Congratulations again for your wonderful job you do for us all on the Net !

Lucia Avatar

Hello! I’m from Brazil, and I like too much your blog!

I’d like to ask you some questions … here in Brazil does not sell Nars, and I am obliged to buy in foreign websites without test before …
So, do you think this blush is good for a NC15?.
Another thing, do you think the blushes Orgasm and Deep Throat are very similar? I do not know what to buy!
I also want a pink blush without glare, would be Amour (or Gilda) good choices? How about MAC?

Thanks!

Cendana Avatar

It looks like a gorgeous dusty beige rose… however, somehow it looks rather ‘bleagh’ upon application… hmmm I better try it out in person to see whether it works for me =) Thanks for the review!! You’re awesome!

Ally Avatar

I am an NW45 but sometimes a NC50 and i just purchased this blush, I like it. Its very subtle and IMO has a small hint of purple in it. It is a very toned down blush from NARS when they usually pack alot of shimmer and color pay off into their products. I use this on top of my NARS LoveJoy Blush and it gives it a very nice kind of springy look, I find it refreshing. I saw brown girls give this a try, I dig it alot.

Shelley Avatar

This blush looks nice but I’m not sure how it will look on me. I’m approxiamtely a NW25 but I do have broken capillaries and sensitive skin. Pink blushes tend to bring out the above more. I do wear foundation, concealer but sometimes if my skin is overly sensitive it peeps through. This blush looks pinky-brown. The only blush I currently own is TheBalm Hot Mama (peach-pink tone) NARS Douceur also a good choice? Thanks!

Jessica Avatar

I thought I was the only one who had this porblem! When I apply blush I always end up rubbing of some of my makeup and the redness shows through. I must have a million blush brushes trying to find one that won’t rub and I have finally found one that is ridiculously soft and doesn’t pick up much color at a time so when I apply my makeup stays intact better.

Sandy Avatar

I received this Nars Douceur Blush for Christmas from my daughter, she really surprised me with this gift! I own MAC’s Blushbaby, which I really like but I am in love with this limited edition Nars blush! It is a perfect neutral blush for a soft look. My skin tone is NC35 and I find it shows up pretty well on me. I also have MAC’s Personal Style Beauty Powder and although I like it, I have a hard time getting it to show up on me. It’s great as a highlight powder though. Just wanted to share! Thanks for this post Christine.

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