This might sound crazy, but putting blush on your nose ~actually~ looks cute

By Anniedoyle

February 3, 2017

By Anniedoyle

February 3, 2017

In spite of being a self-appointed lipstick and glitter expert, blush is an area of makeup where I’m still finding my feet. I enjoy a good a pale-pink, frostbitten chic beauty look, or a lilac tone from time to time, but that’s not really the spirit of blush. The spirit of blush (which is a new term I would like to trademark) is to make people look healthy, pumped up, and full of energy. I tend to favor makeup on the creepy-cute borderline, perhaps aesthetically reminiscent of illness or malnutrition.

Nonetheless, in these sallow-skinned months of eternal grayness, I have found myself wearing blush when I wear makeup. It helps reduce a moon-face without the obvious full contour makeup look. It also does, undeniably, make you look a hint cuter and more feminine. Think about it: every time they need to indicate a cartoon animal is a lady animal, they’ll always amp up the eyelashes and blush. It’s a societal construct that we can’t fight.

And sometimes, when you feel generally un-pretty, a bit of blush can be just the ticket. But, ever the contrarian, even when wearing blush in this conventional, healthy-faced way, I have to add a bit of jazz. Hence: applying blush to your nose.

Here I am with a “full face” minus blush, aka dead in the water.

And here is the blush in question: Milani’s Luminoso, $9.49.

The reason this works well for this technique is because of its total lack of coolness and red tones. It’s definitely a warm light peach — which doesn’t have shimmer — but it does have a bit of dimension. If you put red or blue-toned pink on your nose, you’re going to look like the town drunk. I’m sorry, but you are.

Here’s a swatch of the shade Luminoso.

Here, I’m solely using it for its designed purpose: cheek color. It’s pretty, but not groundbreaking.

This is what the blush looks like on the cheeks.

And now for where new ground is broken: blush on the nose.

Look! It’s cute, right?

I think the reason this works is because of the shade. It has more of a bronzer effect than a blush, and the whole world knows that bronzer on the nose gives an “I just got back from Cabo” vibe.

This is like the cuter, slightly more youthful, sunburned version of that. Or possibly an uber-flattering post-workout glow. I can’t say for sure, though, as I’ve never seen one in the flesh.