H&M Beauty Blush | Vintage Red

When I love a blush formula I love to own multiples. I already owned and loved two H&M Beauty blushes: Cantaloupe and Tawny Peach. I reviewed them last year and have been raving about these blushes for years. Not enough people are talking about H&M makeup in general and these blushes in particular. They are absolutely lovely and deserve a lot more hype. Because I loved those so much, I wanted to try a new shade. Meet Vintage Red.

H&M Beauty Pure Radiance Blush // Vintage Red Review, Swatch & Look

The H&M Beauty blushes are quite affordable. They are in the mid range price point, so comparable to brands like L’Oreal, Maybelline or Max Factor. They retail for €9.99 and there are 12 available shades. The two shades I mentioned in the intro are no longer available from what I can tell, so I was curious to try this as well to see if these are still as great now that some of the earlier shades have been discontinued. Vintage Red is most definitely still available. So if this piques your interest: you can still get it.

The Packaging

Before you blame H&M for copying this hexagon shaped compact from Fenty, think again, because H&M was actually first to bring this style of packaging to market. But the packaging has been updated too. These blushes now come with a small mirror inside the compact which is something you didn’t get before. I really like the look of this compact: it looks a lot more luxe than you might expect from a brand like H&M

The Blush

What I love about these blushes is that they have a great formula. It blends well, stays put and has a good color payoff. Vintage Red has such great payoff that it can look a little bit crazy if you overapply it. Because it is a bright red shade, it can turn you a little bit clownish if you are not careful. I definitely used this mostly over the summer months, which is when I prefer these more intense red shades on me.

The Shade

Vintage Red is, as the name would suggest, a red blush. Red blush can be difficult to pull off, but it is a lot more wearable than you might expect at first glance. If done well, red blush can make you look like you have a very natural flush. Depending on the time of year and the undertone of your skin and the blush you select, red blush can either give you a sunkissed look or that winter flush just-in-from-the-cold look. Vintage Red definitely falls more in the sunkissed to sunburn look as it has a very warm undertone.

The Swatch

So let’s have a look at what this blush swatches like. Some blushes look horrible when you swatch them, but this one really doesn’t fall into that category. Vintage Red truly packs a punch and a bunch of pigmentation. So you definitely need to go in with a super wispy brush when you wish to apply this. The reason why this can look overdone is because it is so pigmented. I really recommend using a very sheer blush brush with this one.

The Application

Not only does this blush pack a punch when swatched, but it also does so on the cheeks. As you can see here, this is a color that truly stands out. This is not the kind of neutral blush color that goes with everything and just adds a hint of color to your cheeks. This is the kind of blush color that will show up and that does mean you have to put a bit more thought in what makeup you pair it with. That and the fact that you have to be careful not to overapply are the only downsides to me.

My Final Thoughts

H&M Beauty blush in Vintage Red is as good as the first two blushes I tried. These blushes are still underrated in my opinion and I feel more people should be talking about them. They do some great basic blush colors, but they also offer something more unique: this is not the only red blush shade they do! So while they do some good staples, they also do some fun bits as well. What’s more the quality of these is excellent too.

Have you tried any blushes by H&M?