Review: Nyx High Definition Blushes in Crimson and Intuition

Purchased by Me 

A few months ago when Nyx launched all of their new 2015 products, I did some major damage on the Ulta website and purchased several of these new items to review for you (who am I kidding? I also purchased them just because I wanted them!). To date, I've reviewed one of the new Prismatic Eyeshadows (HERE), the new Tres Jolie Gel Pencil Liner (HERE), and today I'd like to share with you my thoughts on two of the new High Definition Blushes that I ordered.

Nyx High Definition Blushes in Crimson and Intuition

(retail: $6.50 each, 0.16 oz)

There are 24 shades in this new blush line, and you can purchase them directly from the Nyx site, as well as at Ulta, both in-store and online (please note that Ulta carries 11 of the 24 shades on their website). 

Safety sealed

Made in Taiwan

I think that the amount of product you get (0.16 oz.) is generous for the price of $6.50. To put it into perspective, the Milani Baked Blushes, which I think are quite generous in size, are 0.12 oz. for about $7.

The compacts are slim and sleek, and they include the signature Nyx bow clasp.

Crimson, Intuition

Intuition

Intuition has a very NARS Orgasm feel to it. It's one of those peachy-pink shades that contains fine gold glitter (hard to see in my photos, but trust me, it's there). I thought this shade was going to be quite shimmery based on how it looks in the pan, but it actually isn't SUPER shimmery on the skin (more of a soft, shimmery sheen):

Swatched over foundation

Swiped vs. blended

NOTE: To date, I have always swatched blushes for you on bare skin. But it occurred to me recently that I never actually WEAR my blushes on bare skin, so why not swatch them over foundation? I'm guessing that most of YOU don't wear blushes on bare skin either, so it makes sense to start swatching my blushes over foundation, from this day forward. That way, you'll have more of an idea of how a blush is going to look on top of your particular foundation, which I think is more accurate than swatching on bare, dry skin. Some may argue that the color may become altered, but I think that's marginal since the color is altered anyway, due to my natural skintone. I hope you agree with me about this decision moving forward, but if not, please feel free to sound off in the comments below (I can always go back to bare skin swatches for blush if most of you prefer that).

Back to Intuition...

This blush is quite pigmented--so much so that I had to blend quite a bit to get it to the level you see above in the "blended" swatch. The sheen of this blush is more visible on my cheeks than it is in my swatches, and it indeed feels very NARS Orgasm-ish on me. 

Crimson

Crimson definitely has a NARS Exhibit A feel to it (I have never owned Exhibit A, so I can't tell you just how close they are, but I believe that the NARS shade has more orange to it than Crimson). In the pan, Crimson looks like it could veer into orange territory but, on my NC20 skintone, this looks more like a bright, maraschino cherry red (pink undertones). This is a matte blush, but in person there is a teeny tiny bit of sparse glitter here (seriously, it's barely noticeable and it pretty much disappears after blending).

Swatched over foundation

Swiped vs. blended

This blush is intensely pigmented and you're going to need a very light hand during application, even if your skintone is deep. I looked like a clown the first time I wore this. Seriously, start with just the tiniest dab on your blush brush and work up from there if you think you need more (you probably won't).

On the whole, I have very mixed feelings about these blushes. On the one hand, the pigmentation is extremely impressive, which I think most of us can appreciate when it comes to drugstore level blushes. Also, the staying power is extremely impressive. I can easily get a full day's wear from both of these shades, even on my oily skin. I've taken a (long) nap while wearing Crimson, only to discover that it was just as bright and vibrant when I woke up, which pretty much never happens for me when it comes to blushes and naps.

I also like that both of these shades blend quite nicely and evenly with a standard blush brush. I have had excellent luck using my e.l.f. Studio Blush Brush, but I do not like how these blushes blend out with a stippling brush. I find that they just don't blend as thoroughly with a stippling brush (they can look a little patchy), so I would suggest using a traditional blush brush for application and blending.

That said, here's what I don't like about these blushes. They are extremely fragile. I'm guessing you've heard this before from other bloggers and YouTubers, so I'm just joining the chorus here. I purchased a third shade when I ordered from Ulta, and it arrived completely shattered. That's why I'm not showing you that third shade today (I waited too long to return/exchange it so I may have to just suck it up and use it in its crumbled state; I haven't decided if I will purchase another or just review it as-is yet). Anyway, I've seen countless other bloggers mention that their blushes arrived shattered as well and, just from daily use, Intuition in particular is starting to look crumbly in the pan, as if it's going to start breaking up into pieces the longer I use it. Crimson, and perhaps the other matte shades in the range, do seem a tiny bit sturdier and not quite as prone to crumbling from daily use.

Also, these blushes kick up a LOT of powder during application. Neither shade actually looks powdery on the skin, but powder does fly everywhere during application. In fact, when I'm blending Crimson on my cheeks, sometimes the color transfers to my hair. If you have blonde or light brown hair, that's definitely something to be aware of if you get the shade Crimson. It looked like I used red hair chalk near my temples the first time I used it!

There is no real fragrance to these blushes--they smell sort of like pen ink to me, but it's faint and I can only really detect the scent if I hold the compact right up to my nose.

FINAL VERDICT: Excellent price, excellent pigmentation, excellent staying power, but the texture of these blushes is quite lacking, in my opinion. They are extremely powdery during application (though not powdery-looking on the skin) and VERY fragile. I would not travel with these blushes or keep one in my makeup bag. Intuition in particular feels like it's going to crumble at any moment, just with regular, daily use. I think that if your top priorities for blush are pigmentation and staying power, and you were only going to use these blushes at home (not for travel), then these might be worth considering. But even then, be aware that they're messy, so you need to use a very light hand and pay attention to your blending (especially if you have light-colored hair, as I mentioned above). Due to their extremely fragile nature, I can't see myself purchasing additional shades. But if Nyx reformulates these down the road to make them less powdery and fragile (and the pigmentation and staying power remain the same) I would most certainly purchase additional shades.

Do you own any Nyx High Definition Blushes? If so, I would absolutely love to hear about your experiences!

The products featured in this post were purchased with personal funds. For more information, click here.