Hello there strangers! Long time no speak! We’ll get into a bit about why in a minute, but my goodness… first we have got to talk about the fact we finally have a Pat McGrath Divine Blush Collection! We’ve been begging for a couple of years for blush and they’re finally here. 9 shades from nude pink, to bronze, to coral, to terracotta, there’s something for everyone. Also in the collection, there’s a highlighter, (which I will touch on in this post) an eyeshadow palette, a lip gloss and two lip vinyls.
Now, I have been on a cream blush kick for the last year or so. However, I always have room for new powder blush in my collection because I’m actually just obsessed with blush in general. I am a little embarrassed to admit I don’t know how many blushes I have. But, it’s north of 85. It was 85 8 months ago when I counted for our house move. I know it’s increased a lot since then!
Before we delve into the Pat McGrath Divine Blush Collection proper, a little bit about where I’ve been. I wish I could say I’ve been off having fun and relaxing, but that is not the case. I’ve been stuck on the sofa, unable to lift my head for weeks. My neck has been horrific, the pain out of this world. I’ve been having physio every other week and seeing my Ehlers-Danlos specialist, but because my doctor didn’t send me for a scan first, nobody really wants to do much as they don’t know what’s going on in there.
I’ve been referred to rheumatology as my physio wants to work alongside one. (Plus I need one to help with my EDS). But… what with C****D, referrals are taking ages. I was referred 2 months ago and I haven’t heard anything, so to wait for an appointment and then wait another ??? long for a scan? I’ll be left stuck in limbo, so I’ve paid for a private MRI and it’s next week. Once we know what’s happening in there, at least we can move forwards with physio or whatever I need.
It could be a disc, or instability anywhere in the joints. It’s unlikely it’s full cervical instability, but my EDS specialist thinks it could be that I have instability going backwards and forwards or that it’s something to do with the facet joints. All I can tell you is, it is horrendous and I couldn’t sit up, let alone get out a camera. I’ve had my neck heavily taped for weeks, but I’m allergic to adhesive, so every time I wear it I get hives and blisters. I’ve now got sensitive KT Tape and it’s better. I do still get a reaction, but it’s more tolerable!!
I seem to have lucked out with my physio though. She has heard of EDS and has experience with hypermobility. While I was initially referred for my neck, she said from the start she wants to work more globally with me to help strengthen all of my joints. Because of how funding works though, I had to go back to my doctor to be referred for my hips, wrists, knees etc. I have an hour long appointment next week to go over everything and come up with a game plan. Hopefully if I can strengthen my joints, I’ll get less injuries and subluxations. My wrist and hips are popping in and out of joint more than ever and it’s getting annoying. The hips aren’t too painful, but my wrist is agony.
Anyway, let’s talk blush. I’m going to breakdown cost, packaging, shade range, application, my review and share swatches of the 6 shades I bought. So, let’s get into it!
DISCLAIMER: Product links are affiliate. This means I earn a small commission if you buy through my link, but it costs you nothing extra. Thank you for supporting my blog, so I can continue creating content!
COST
The Pat McGrath Divine Blush Collection has A LOT of options and prices. Each individual blush is £35 for 9.7g which is £3.60 per gram. The highlighter is £37 for 4.6g which is £8.04 per gram.
Then we get onto the sets. There’s three curated sets. These are £74 for the trio. This means each blush is £24.66. There’s also a trio where you can select each blush yourself. Also £74 for the trio.
There’s the whole set of 9 blushes for £220. Each blush would then work out at £24.44. Finally, you can sets where you get blushes, the highlighter, eyeshadow palette, lip vinyls etc. These all vary, (they average around £86) but I would say if you’re planning on getting more than one blush, it’s more cost effective to get a set.
Here are the two curated sets I bought; This set is called Nude Fleurtation and includes the shades Fleurtacious, Nude Venus and Desert Orchid.
Now let’s look at Fleur Fantasy, this includes Nymphette, Divine Rose and Cherish.
I was straight on the website at launch and wanted to get one of the sets where you chose your three blushes. I then was going to get the set with one blush, the highlighter and eyeshadow palette. However, there was an issue at launch and you couldn’t add those sets to your cart. Only the curated sets would work. Since I didn’t want to risk missing out, I ordered two of those and the highlighter. I ended up with 2 blushes that weren’t my first choice (Cherish and Desert Orchid), but I actually liked them when they arrived.
Surprisingly, I was shocked to see the price for all the right reasons! I was expecting them to be at least £50 each! Pat McGrath’s pricing can be a little strange. Sometimes a highlighter is £60, sometimes £45, sometimes £37… So I think for a luxury brand, £35 is a reasonable price for a blush.
PACKAGING
Unlike most other compacts that Pat McGrath does, the blushes and highlighter don’t have a magnetic closure. They click shut and you have to press a button on the front and lift. They can be a bit stiff, but hopefully after more use they’ll loosen up.
Each blush comes in a beautiful purple box. The pattern and raised lettering is truly stunning. I normally don’t keep packaging, but with the Pat McGrath Divine Blush Collection, I’m keeping all the packaging as it’s beautiful.
SHADES
There are nine shades in total. 6 demi-matte and 3 with golden pearl. Of the six shades I purchased, 3 are demi matte and 3 are the golden pearl formula. Neither of the formulas is too much. By saying that I mean, the demi mattes are not flat matte, but they’re also not laden with lots of shimmer. Likewise, the golden pearl formula has a beautiful pearl effect, but it’s not metallic looking or really shimmery. Both formulas are beautiful!
I do think the shade range is quite pink heavy, a few more peaches/orangey tones would be nice. We obviously don’t know if this range will be expanded, but for now there are a lot of pinks. Me personally, I love pink based blush, so I love the range, but I know a lot of people prefer more orangey/peach tones.
The range is good in terms of tone and how deep they go. The shade Paradise Venus on deeper skin is simply gorgeous. It’s a terracotta red and quite a unique shade. There’s also Electric Bloom and Lovestruck which are the more vibrant shades. Electric Bloom is a vibrant coral and Lovestruck is a berry pink. I think the range can be broken down into threes. Three for light skin, three for light/medium, three for medium/deep. When you do it like that though, the pale shades are two pinks that look very similar and a bronzey rose shade. There isn’t a lot of variety. Of course you don’t have to just buy the three shade for your skin tone.
The formula is buildable, so I bought the three shades that are light/medium as well as the light shades and will just use a lighter hand. I still kind of want Electric Bloom as I’m obsessed with coral blush, but I’m not sure I can sheer it out enough for my skin.
SWATCHES
Above you’ll see my swatches of the six shades of blush I purchased and the highlighter, which is called Divine Glow Golden Nectar.
Each swatch is two layers, on bare skin with no primer. Fleurtacious, Nude Venus, Desert Orchid, Nymphette and Divine Rose all feel and swatch the same. Cherish is slightly more powdery and I had to smooth it over with a finger to get rid of a few dots of powder.
One note: in the swatches from the Pat McGrath site, I don’t think it shows Desert Orchid, Lovestruck or Electric Bloom very accurately. I’ve seen lots of other photos and videos and the swatches make them look really red toned, when Lovestruck is definitely a berry pink. Electric bloom is nothing like the swatch, much more of a true coral than it shows. Desert Orchid is also more shimmery and brown/orange than the photo shows. I don’t have Lovestruck or Electric Bloom to show you, but my swatches above show Desert Orchid.
Golden Nectar looks a lot more like a pale champagne in the photos on Pat’s website. However, it’s got quite a strong, warm golden bronze tone when swatched. I was worried it would be too dark for me, but if I dab my brush once and apply it, it’s sheer enough.
Let’s take a closer look as those beautiful pan. I love the design, it looks chic and really adds something different rather than just being a plain pan of blush.
The highlighter doesn’t have a design on it, but here is a close up. As you can see it looks quite light in the pan, but when swatched the golden tones come out.
APPLICATION AND PERFORMANCE
Now, let’s talk about how the Pat McGrath Divine Blush Collection performs. The only two shades I haven’t worn for a full day are Desert Orchid and Cherish. Their time is coming, but I’ve worn all of the other shades (and the highlighter) all day over the last week or so, so have a better idea on performance and wear.
The formula is super smooth, there’s not a lot of kick up in the pan, but they’re pigmented and you’ll get pay off with just one sheer layer. They build up incredibly well, no patchiness or moving of products underneath. You really can go from sheer to a bright pop on the cheeks. I use the IT Cosmetics French Boutique Blush Brush to apply and every colour has applied beautifully. You can stipple, sweep or buff these blushes and all techniques result in one seriously beautiful cheek.
Same goes for the highlighter, if you build it up you can get a beaming cheek!! Because of the fact you can build it so well, I really think it would look beautiful on a wide range of skin tones.
Every shade I’ve worn has been incredibly long wearing. It looks like you’ve just put it on when it’s been on for 16 hours! I’ve been so impressed with how long wearing they are and they don’t transfer to masks or budge either. The highlighter also wears all day long without fading or moving. Every time I’ve worn these blushes I’ve felt like I’ve had a great makeup day. They make you look so put together and like your skin is healthy and flushed. they really are seamless on the skin!
OVERALL THOUGHTS
In case you haven’t already guessed, I’m obsessed with these blushes!! They were 100% worth the wait! The formula is so beautiful and the way they last on the skin is impressive. Even if my natural oils have come through, there’s no effect on the blush.
They somehow manage to apply so easily, but then once you’ve stopped blending they do not move for anything. It’s not like they’ve set, I can’t explain it, it’s like they glide over your cheeks. They don’t settle into pores, they don’t sit on top of the skin either, they are imperceptible on the cheeks. But they do all this while still being budge-proof.
With all the new makeup releases, I don’t often say you NEED a product, but with these I say RUN and buy them because they’re outstanding!
