Toile de Jouy

Wazzup peeps!? Haha (the endless hunt for varying greetings), today I come to you with the review of one of my favourite blushes as of late! It is the The Balm Instain Blush in the shade Toile. Also, I do apologise for the shoddy lighting in these photos, it was quite a dreary day out! Leggo!

The packaging on these blushes is absolutely precious! I seriously love all of The Balm's packaging - it is too cute! It comes in a thin and compact cardboard case with a mirror inside and magnetic closure. As you can see, the front looks like a little magazine - ADORBS! The header matches the colour of the blush inside. Also the blush is bordered by different fabrics and patterns, corresponding to the name of the blush. After some googling, Toile or Toile de Juoy is a repeating decorative pattern (usually quite elaborate) on an off white background. 

The premise behind these Instain Blushes is that they are actually powder stains that are extremely long wearing. I can't exactly say they STAIN the cheeks, especially not to the degree that I imagine a liquid stain would (not that I've tried one - yet - but I can only imagine). They remove fine with makeup remover/cleanser. From what I hear, working with a liquid stain is quite troublesome and requires quick blending as it stains rather quickly. This blush is very pigmented (but not as pigmented as Sleek or BYS) and it's not difficult to go over the top. Unlike a liquid stain, it is very easy to blend. It blends out to a really diffused, soft look - depending on how much you apply. The formula overall is very soft, but not powdery or chalky and applies and blends wonderfully. Even if you do apply too much, you can blend the product away with a clean brush. 

The lasting power though is definitely there. It's probably the longest lasting blush I own! I find usually by the end of the day (10 hours) my blush has faded away completely. The Instain Blush though I find even if I've applied it rather lightly, I can still see is after those 10 hours on my face with minimal fading and is still noticeable! Obviously if I've applied more, it's more noticeable. 

Toile is an absolute stunner of a shade! I was immediately drawn to its peachy-pink nature as I always am! It's slightly different to most peachy-pinks in my collection though. It's slightly deeper and with more of a rosy undertone. Despite looking quite bright, it's actually rather natural on me when applied lightly. Although I don't naturally blush, I'd imagine that if I did, it would be similar to this colour! You can build this up to quite a bold cheek if you would like! It is also matte. The shade range in these blushes is lovely - there are quite a few brights, but also a couple more neutral, lighter shades.

Swatched, blended

This is fast becoming one of my all-time favourite blushes! The combination of the formula, the lasting power and the shade make it a real winner in my books. I definitely recommend checking these guys out! It retails for AUD$26.95 for 5.5g of product.