On TikTok, thousands of women are panicking over a new type of illness. “I’m kind of scared to ask this on the internet, but I want to know,” content creator @niessaxoxo_ said on TikTok earlier this month. “Do I have red face blindness?”
To understand “blush blindness,” one must understand “brow blindness,” a term coined on TikTok to describe the thick, overdrawn brow trend of the 2010s. Last month, users began reminiscing with embarrassment and regret over the makeup of that era. Now, with blush emerging as the latest makeup craze, many online makeup enthusiasts are starting to worry about other cosmetic trends that may be overdone, especially cheek pigmentation. Now, women are debating whether they look good with an explosion of reds and pinks painted from cheek to temple, or if they’re just another sheep for another trend.
You could say both. Since the “strawberry girl” and “cold girl” makeup crazes of the past three years, blush has become a must-have beauty product. According to Circana, blush sales in the U.S. premium cosmetics market reached $462 million in the past 12 months, up 36% from the previous year. On Amazon, blush sales were $59 million. This year saw the emergence of numerous blush trends, including “boyfriend blush,” “sunset blush,” and “glazed blush.” Some consumers are looking for a more natural tan, while others are inspired by singer Sabrina Carpenter’s thick, doll-like blush. Forget about blush blinds!
This is a stark difference from the previous decade of beauty, where there was little emphasis on creating a warm, rosy complexion. For the past decade, blush has been a product associated with mature women. But that perception is starting to change. “Growing up as a millennial, I was scared of looking like my mom, who was born in the ’80s and ’90s, when blush was really trendy,” says Stephanie Penn, a writer for the Beauty Unhyped newsletter.
Today, Gen Z is even more likely to purchase blush than previously reluctant millennials. Why? For starters, blush has become a staple of popular girlcore style, alongside bows and ballet flats. Blush imparts a healthy, fresh, youthful glow. But beauty forecasters are linking the current blush boom to something a little more rebellious and experimental than a pursuit of youth. Blush may have become the ultimate form of feminine self-expression.
Blush is the new highlighter
In the 2010s, blush seemed like an afterthought. Contouring and highlighting were finally going mainstream after years of being practiced by drag queens. The aim was to make the face look as angular and “toned” as possible with little emphasis on vibrant color. Instead, consumers prioritized shimmery, metallic finishes with bronzers and translucent highlights.
“My makeup routine in my early 20s was definitely bronzer-heavy,” Penn says, “and if I did use blush, it was very minimal, with a little bit of glow but no bold color.”
Coming into the 2020s, this neutral, pop look was here to stay, with highlighters expected to become even more popular: In February 2020, engagement tracker Cherry Pick reported that highlighters were “by far” the product with the most consumer interest. Additionally, highlighting and brightening products were “edgy.”[ing] “Blush and bronzer fall totally into the blush category.” But it turns out the pandemic, like everything else, has caused major upheaval in the makeup world. Especially since quarantine seemed to have everyone prioritizing the health and appearance of their natural skin, putting this Kardashian-esque heavy glamour on hold.
Kim Kardashian at the 57th Annual Grammy Awards. Steve Granitz/WireImage
“No-makeup” makeup has existed as a somewhat modest trend since the early 2010s, thanks in part to Glossier, a brand that specializes in makeup and skincare hybrids. Korean beauty was also popular in the Western world for its skincare-first approach. But the desire for “clean beauty” seems to have reached new heights in the post-pandemic years, with Hailey Bieber kicking off a series of natural, dewy trends (think “glazed donut skin,” “latte makeup”) with her popular skincare line, Lorde.
One such trend is “strawberry girl” makeup, which involves applying blush to multiple points on the face, including the cheeks, nose, brow bone, and, in some tutorials, even the forehead. “Tomato girl” makeup is another blush-heavy version of this look, designed specifically to resemble holiday blush makeup. But over time, these natural looks have become more daring.
Mackenzie Nelson, artistic director at digital marketing firm Helen and Gertrude, said the pieces have inspired “further Blush creativity going into 2024.”
Similar to the 2020s “lipstick effect,” blush has emerged as a relatively affordable and collectable makeup option. The current blush craze was largely sparked by Selena Gomez’s makeup line, Rare Beauty’s Soft Pinch Liquid Blush, which launched in early 2020. With a light, creamy texture and intense color, the product quickly became a word-of-mouth hit. Since then, other makeup companies, including Saie, Milk Makeup, elf Beauty, and Huda Beauty, have also launched new blushes that emphasize versatility and a skin-like finish. Not surprisingly, Lorde launched her own pocket blush line in June of this year.
Blush-and-highlighter hybrids like Charlotte Tilbury’s Pillow Talk Matte Beauty Blush and Hollywood Blush & Glow palette have become popular online. Founded by the celebrity makeup artist of the same name, Charlotte Tilbury has managed to capture the zeitgeist nearly a decade later, thanks in part to her viral tutorials during the pandemic. By 2023, Cosmeticify ranked it the second-most popular makeup brand in terms of Google searches and social media engagement, behind only Rare Beauty.
The company’s success seems partially tied to the trend war that has emerged since Glossier’s rise and is seen in the various applications of blush: natural vs. glamorous aesthetics. Tilbury’s shimmery blushes offer a happy middle ground between old Hollywood glamour and natural, skin-flattering makeup. Overall, the brand represents the evolution of glamour with Gen Z, which prioritizes dewy, light, shimmery finishes. (Think Euphoria’s minimal but eye-popping makeup.) Still, beauty forecasters predict that this year, young consumers will crave even bolder, brighter makeup looks, with statement blush becoming their go-to tool.
Blush is a ‘natural’ beauty staple that could be back in style
Social media has shown that blush consumers use these products for more than one purpose, one of which, of course, is that cream blushes provide a skin-like, invisible texture that mimics healthy, hydrated skin.
“I think consumers are looking for makeup that flatters them,” says beauty influencer Dani Nichols. “Natural blushes are used in ‘clean beauty’ or ‘no makeup’ routines to give the illusion of looking fresh-faced, like you just woke up, while still looking tidy and healthy.”
Glowing, warm skin is a key sign of youth, a preoccupation that’s fueling Gen Z’s, and even Gen Alpha’s, recent obsession with skincare products. Penn says youthfulness and vitality have always been blush’s main selling points; she uses blush to combat her “fears of getting older.” “I often think, ‘Okay, if I add a little bit of pink blush, I’ll look more vibrant and youthful,'” she says.
Our culture’s obsession with youth has become even more pronounced lately, but the motivations for using blush aren’t always so dark. On TikTok, for example, not everyone is treating blush as a gateway to youth or a long-ago girlhood. People are looking for something bolder and more artsy. C-shaped blush or “blush draping” sees users framing the top of their face with blush, creating a dramatic, colorful look reminiscent of ’80s looks from Debbie Harry, Annie Lennox, Whitney Houston, and Grace Jones. Layering different blush colors has also become a popular technique.
Similarly, some TikTok users reject the notion of “blush blindness,” or the idea that blush should be applied in a subtle, natural-looking way. “This reflects a cultural shift away from expectations of ‘delicacy’ for women and towards embracing bold self-expression in all situations,” says Helen + Gertrude’s Nelson.
Beauty forecasters predict that makeup will take a more maximalist turn throughout the year, with some linking this to the slow rise of the “weird girl” aesthetic, which emerged as a counterbalance to the “clean girl” and ultra-pink Barbiecore aesthetics. In contrast, the weird girl look includes bright colors, clashing patterns, and bold makeup, including bright lipstick and deep blush.
Writing for Dazed magazine, journalist Ellen Atlanta draws parallels between the current evolution of beauty and the British New Romantic movement of the 1980s. Just as those young people embraced punk and goth aesthetics in reaction to Thatcherism, Atlanta sees young consumers as rebelling against a political and cultural climate that promoted traditional gender roles and disenfranchised women. “New Romantic 2.0 as an aesthetic subculture embraced bows and exaggerated hyper-femininity, adding to them a commitment to politics and gender that was lacking in approaches to girlcore,” she writes.
Whether or not consumers are applying blush with a social conscience, it seems young people are simply ready to experiment again and stray from bland trends. “I think people are just having fun now,” Penn says. “Blush is less utilitarian than it was before. Blush can be a statement product in the same way that eyeshadow was a statement, experimental makeup product in the 2010s.”
While more natural-looking blush trends like “sunset” and “tan” are associated with a summer aesthetic, Nelson sees consumers exploring the possibilities of blush for a long time. It’s one thing for a particular makeup routine to feel like an obligation, but it’s another thing for women to genuinely enjoy it.
“For now, I think bold blush is here to stay,” Nelson says. “The pendulum will eventually swing back to neutral looks, but with a maximalist sensibility and a focus on skin health, I think we’ll see consumers experimenting with vibrant blushes for a while longer.”
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