Tom Ford Beauty Sublimate Shade & Illuminate Cheeks Review, Photos, Swatches
Sublimate
Tom Ford Beauty Sublimate Shade & Illuminate Cheeks ($80.00 for 0.49 oz.) includes a cream highlighter and cream blush. The formula is touted as “super sheer,” and that’s what you get: incredibly sheer, almost translucent color. Both shades are sheer and barely-there with a dewy finish that never sets or dries down, and as a result, the wear was between three to four hours. Despite never setting, they didn’t feel tacky, just a little emollient to the touch, and can handle a powder being patted on top (though the dewiness went away completely). I wish they lasted longer, but as they have such short wear, it’s not a very practical product for most. I think this will be best for someone who doesn’t need their makeup to last long, has drier skin (perhaps it would last longer), and/or wants a sheerer base for their powder blushes.
Sublimate
LELimited Edition. $80.00.
Sublimate (Illuminate)
Sublimate (Illuminate) is a translucent pink base with barely-there pearl. I couldn’t really see the pink base once I applied it to my skin, though someone with pinker undertones or a fairer complexion might see it. The consistency was smooth, creamy, and had moderate slip, so it applied easily to the skin and gave my skin a dewy, wet finish. The product did not dry down, and it had slid noticeably on the skin after three hours of wear.
Top Dupes
- Kevyn Aucoin Starlight (P, $52.00) is more shimmery (90% similar).
- Giorgio Armani No. 08 (P, $62.00) is more shimmery, warmer (90% similar).
- Algenist Rose (PiP, $38.00) is more shimmery, more pigmented (90% similar).
Sublimate (Illuminate)
LELimited Edition.
Sublimate (Shade)
Sublimate (Shade) is a muted, medium-dark rosy plum with subtle, cool undertones and a natural sheen. It looked like a cheek stain when applied, as it was translucent but very even. It did not dry down, so it remained glossy, a little wet on, though the wear time was only four hours. The cream blush was easy to blend out and impossible to overdo, as it didn’t layer or build-up pigmentation.
Top Dupes
- Cle de Peau Cranberry (P, $60.00) is more shimmery (95% similar).
- ColourPop True Romantic (LE, $7.00) is less shimmery (95% similar).
- Merit Cheeky (P, $28.00) is more shimmery, cooler (90% similar).
- Too Faced Peach Berry (P, $30.00) is less glossy (90% similar).
- MAC Love Thing (P, $29.00) is more shimmery, more pigmented (90% similar).
- ILIA A Fine Romance (P, $34.00) is less shimmery, cooler (90% similar).
- Bobbi Brown Island Plum (P, $36.00) is more shimmery (90% similar).
- NARS Ferocious (LE, $30.00) is more shimmery, more pigmented, cooler (90% similar).
- Patrick Ta Oh She's Different (Crème) (PiP, ) is darker, cooler (90% similar).
- Cle de Peau Pale Fig (P, $60.00) is more shimmery, lighter, cooler (90% similar).
Oh man! These Tom Ford cheek products aren’t getting the love at all! really hard to justify the price when the quality is that poor! I’d get the same kind of colour payoff as the drugstore products so this is something that I think the brand needs to look into re-doing!
I really wonder if these S&I cream products actually get tested by real people before they go to market. I really like Pink Sand & Pieno Sole and wonder why these blushes aren’t as good. I don’t expect all day wear time for cream blushes but this is an expensive item to perform poorly.
Wonder how these compare to Bobbi Brown’s recently released cream blush and highlighter compacts.
I would LOVE the second shade in like, a lipstick bullet? Like a nice sheer, glossy wash of plum!! But I’m sure if I wasn’t so lazy I could find a dupe in my own collection! 😛
I bet you could find a dupe, haha!
IMO, a total miss for Tom Ford. The first swatch looks like clear Vaseline petroleum jelly. As for the 2nd swatch, save your $80, mix some Vaseline petroleum jelly with a powder blush, and you’ll get the same product —never dries down, can’t build up, and fades/slides
I’ll say it doesn’t seem to slide quite as much as true petroleum jelly, but it doesn’t last long at all, nonetheless!
I really feel like these cheek duos are an insult to our collective intelligence and a gigantic rip. Considering that I still have 2 of Nyx’s cream blushes that have a dewy effect, but have more pigmentation and last more than 3-4 hours. It’s a shame because this particular duo could have been a winner.
It reminds me of like, a glossy, beachy goddess look that is pretty in ads but leaves me wondering how many actually rock that look to the beach!
Do you have recommendations for other dewy blushes with more staying power? I like the idea of a cheek color that has a dewy finish. There are some interesting looking Bobbi Brown “Cheek Glow” palettes on Sephora now too.
MAC’s CCBs wear better though not all day for all shades, and I like MAC’s Casual Colours (just as blushes, though, not so much as a lip product). Becca’s Blush Tints and Bobbi Brown’s Pot Rouges are also worth checking out, too. I’d say the Bobbi Brown Pot Rouges will offer greater pigmentation whereas the Tints will have more of a translucent look on.
Ooh thank you!! I think I might start with a MAC one then.
Hi! You can mix those cream blushes with silicone or jojoba oil (plus skin benefits). Make fun for a while and don’t spend extra money, why not? 🙂
This is incredibly similar to the new Bobbi Brown Cheek Glow Palette in Pink Opal / Homecoming Pink, which is $50. The Bobbi shades are more pigmented than the Tom Ford, the BB highlighter reads a little more pink and the blushes have different undertones, but they’re…twins!
Does the Bobbi Brown formula last for little time as well then?
Thank you so much Christine for helping me dodging this bullet! I was totally gonna buy it. You kNow? It’s TF. Quite disappointed.
I have this duo from the last season and it’s one of my favorite highlighters/blush sets. It’s subtle but gives you the prettiest glow. Kind of like Nars Orgasm but more refined. I guess the new version is different. I just ordered a cream blush highlighter trio from Hourglass. Looked pretty promising.
Oh my – how disappointing is this? Very ordinary for Tom Ford.
Crash and burn..
I bought this and have found that it gives me a nice kind of sun tanned look. It warms up my skin but not in an obvious way. I use the blush color under my cheekbones, a pop of regular blush on the apples and the high lighter on top of cheekbones. I have super dry skin and this gives me a natural moistened look, like young skin. I like looking not so flat and dry. Maybe this is a good product for us older ladies for a bit of glow in a very soft natural way. I can see how a young woman wouldn’t need or perhaps like this look since young skin already looks moist. Also, probably not a good product for anyone with oily skin or too much natural shine.
It sounds like you are layering a powder blush on top? I think I mentioned that would be one way to use it, but my issues with wear was from wearing it on its own, not with powder on top, which would definitely help it wear better!
I’m so dry that I use cream blush on the apples, the darker TF shade under cheekbone and the high ligher, which is pretty sheer, on top of bones. I don’t use powder. You’re probably horrified but my skin is so dry that this look gives me some dewy-ness which is good! Don’t need any powder.
Not horrified at all, just curious! 🙂 I have drier cheeks but could not get this formula to stay on long, unfortunately!
🙁