Shade & Illuminate Blush

The formula is supposed to be "silky-smooth" with "semi-matte and highlighting hues" for a "light-reflecting" glow. I'd describe the finish was matte, and it'd be a stretch to even say semi-matte, but the powders were silky, smooth, and blendable and sat well on bare skin without emphasizing texture or dryness. I was actually going through a real dry spell with my skin when I swatched and tested this range!

The brand didn't make any claims regarding coverage, and my experience with these showed they were fairly pigmented--usually semi-opaque and buildable--but could be used with a lighter hand or less-dense brush for sheerer, more buildable coverage if desired. The coverage was versatile and seemed like it would be plenty for those who prefer more pigmentation but nothing that required a very light hand to start off with.

The most impressive part about the formula was how well it applied over bare skin and still-damp foundation; more matte finishes tend to "stick" and go on more patchily and often have to be applied over a mattified base. I didn't have any of those issues with the shades I tested; they applied beautifully over bare skin and blended out with ease.

They lasted between eight and nine hours on me before fading a little.