Let's Talk about Blush! :)

Hi Everybody!!

So today I'm gonna talk about blush! XD

Haha, as you can see these chibis all have blushing cheeks!

Note: All the images for this post are not mine. I do not own them. To those of who who know these are yours, thank you for letting me use them. I hope you do not mind.

What is blush for?
Blush helps give the cheeks a flushed and rosy appearance. In today's culture this is an indication of liveliness, energy, and good health. It often makes someone look flirty and cute if done correctly. Blush can help lift up the face in older people when applied correctly.
Blush can also be used on the face, including the jawline, forehead, and nose bridge. This is done to give the face a warmer glow.

Should I use blush?
This depends on your preferences and your skin color. Most people will put on blush after foundation because foundation tends to wash out a person's complexion making it quite flat and pale. Or if you have rather pale skin overall and you seem to look rather washed out and empty looking, you might want to use blush. If you are like me, and have naturally flushed cheeks, then you don't really need to use blush unless you put on foundation with strong coverage that will wash out your complexion.

What type and color of blush should I use?
There are two different types of blush, powder blushes and cream blushes. I have heard cream blushes give a more natural finish but I have never tried. However, for cream blushes you do need to blend it out well and evenly, which might be difficult for beginners. Powder is more easy to apply and more easy to build.
I'm not a blush user, therefore, I don't think I should recommend specifically what a person should use, especially since we all have different skin tones and colors.
It's really based on your color preference but I personally would go with more natural peachier shades. I don't like pink, I think pink works well on pale skin but not really anything else. Orange based (and remember I said based, I didn't say orange color) blushes would be better for more darker skin tones, darker than just tanned. Also, I did not mention red at all here, because I think that red is too much. It can stand out too easily and can give u the appearance of I-got-slapped-in-the-face look or bug bite look, both of which are unpleasant =P.
It's an experimental thing, you can go to makeup stores and try on blushes to find the color that works for you =)

How to apply blush!
Alright so this is where I think people make worst mistake. X( It gives me an omg wtf moment everytime I see someone apply blush incorrectly. I will post images of incorrect blush application at the end of this post.
As a pre-note, remember I'm not telling you what to do. This is personally my preference and ideas on what I think looks good on a person and why I think it makes sense. If you like applying your blush the way you do and it makes you happy then it's totally fine. Do what you like and like what you do =)

Ok, this is how blush should look:

Notice how natural it looks, how it blends well into the skin and giving her a glowing fresh look. It's not heavy, not cakey, not everywhere, and sits higher on the face.

For tools you would apply with a blush brush of course. There are many kinds of blush brushes, some angled some round. Just choose which one you like best and works for you!
So, First: apply lightly and build up to your preferred intensity. This is very important, because the problem I see is that most people overdo it =( and it looks really really really bad.
Second: Blend the edges well! Especially if you are using a darker and strong blush, it needs to blend well because the point is to look natural. There are some things that you want people to see when you apply makeup but I think blush is not one them.
Third: Please, do not apply to your entire cheek and not to the apples of your cheeks. I personally think where you apply blush is supposed to be on the cheek bone, or if you really want it on the apples of you cheeks then apply a bit above the apples of your cheeks when you smile. This is very important and I will explain why and post a video too!
When you smile, you see the apples of your cheeks right? And you think that's where you should apply it, but you are not smiling all the time okay, unless you have botox in your face or something, lol. When you are not smiling, the apples of your cheeks drop naturally, so the blush on the apples would also fall, which gives a strange, disproportional appearance.
If you go back to the first picture, the 3 animation girls, look at how the blush is drawn on the faces. It is higher, most likely on the cheekbone.
To apply, put blush on the cheekbone and spread it out in an upward motion.
If you still don't quite get is, here is a perfect blush tutorial by Gossmakeupartist (thank you!): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aIYwe7OW5xQ
While Gossmakeupartist, says this technique is for older people, to help lift up the face. I think it makes sense for younger people as well. Because the apple of the cheeks still drops when you don't smile. Fact of nature okay XP. Your cheekbones will always stay in the same spot!

Okay, so, incorrect blush application pictures:

So, I personally think that this application is too heavy. I can tell it's blush, I dunno about you guys. It seems a little too concentrated to me, a little too red, and it's also applied to the apples of the cheeks which might look okay here but I'll show you a picture when a person does it and it's not good.

So, I could not find a picture with a person with blush on the apples of the cheeks who is not smiling, so this is as close as it'll get, sorry. But as you can see, she's not smiling much, the blush is applied to the apples of the cheeks, and it looks saggy. I also think the color is too heavy.

This is a case in which there is too much blush everywhere. While the color may be nice and it's borderline too much for me, blush does not need to be put on the entire cheek. It doesn't look good, makes a person look red-faced.

Just a clarification: these pictures are not to insult people, the people in the picture or people who like putting their blush on in that way. I am using these pictures in order to clarify and point out what I personally do not think is necessary for blush application.

Very long post, I'm sorry if you thought it was dragging or boring, but I wanted to cover as much as I could! I hope this helps explain any thoughts or questions on blush!
Have a nice day!!!