Physicians Formula Butter Blush in Plum Rose

After a massive success of Butter Bronzers, Physicians Formula launched a range of Butter Blushes, which originally only came in two shades, but they later added two more, both in much brighter colours than the original two. I have one of the first two shades, Plum Rose, which is a completely unique shade in my collection. I had these on my wishlist for a long time because I heard some serious raves about the buttery creamy formula and I finally got one as a birthday gift a few months ago. I was so looking forward to trying one of these, but honestly, I felt a bit underwhelmed after the first use and I'm still not sure about it.

Texture: Bronzer from this line is universally praised for its silky, buttery-creamy texture and the blush was described to have the same formula by reviewers, so I expected an almost cream-to-powder super pigmented formula, but this just isn't that special. From the start it behaved like a regular blush with a hard top layer and my thick blush brush barely picked up any colour, so I was quite disappointed and even considered putting it in my monthy post as a disappointment, but I've had it for several months now and I've broke through that layer, which revealed a much more pigmented formula. Regardless it still isn't nearly as creamy as I expected, but it is incredibly smooth and silky, unlike any other formula I own. Due to the smooth texture it blends really well. 

Colour: My shade Plum Rose looks just as bland in real life as you can see it on my pictures. I don't even know how to describe this colour, maybe a muted pinky-peachy-taupe - honestly, it just isn't what I expected based on the pictures which showed it as a more pink. Now that the top layer is gone, it's nicely pigmented and it shows up with one layer on my NC10 skin tone, however, it's such a light shade that even if you layer it, it's very pale and I'm not a fan of it, though I have nothing like it. It looks so blah on the cheeks, it's a grey-ish peachy shade on me and it's draining. It's too peachy too be a contour and it's too grey to be a blush, so it's this strange shade that I feel needs something extra. Other shades are probably better, though I hear Natural Glow is even lighter than this and I doubt Plum Rose shows up on anyone over NC/W15. It's better you go with the two new shades, though both are very basic seen-it-a-million-times shades, one is a cool toned bright pink (Rosy Pink) and the other a bright peach (Vintage Rouge).

theBalm Meet Matt(e) Hughes in Sincere on the lips.

Staying power: Considering how light it is, it actually lasts well on the cheeks. After 7 hours there's still 70% of it on the cheeks and with a pretty rubbish base, so I consider that a good staying power.

Scent: It smells like sunscreen and coconuts, but not like Pina Colada as some say because there is no fruitiness in this. Some might be put off by the strong scent of this one, though it's not as strong as some report it and I find it's just a nice addition (Bourjois blushes have a stronger scent than this). The fragrance is now sold as a part of a palette, which I think is only sold in the US.

Packaging: Like most Physicians Formula powder products the packaging is bulky, but it's because they include both a mirror and a brush in their compacts. This one is the same as at Happy Booster blush and the Argan Wear bronzer, meaning plastic with a too large extra compartment under the blush pan which holds a sponge applicator and a mirror. I do not get what possessed them to add a sponge instead of a brush because it's just completely useless, especially when it comes to blending and this is a very blendable formula, so that says something. The bright magenta hue of the packaging is also not my favourite.

Price and availability: It costs 14.90 € on Click2Chic (Slovenia & Croatia) and $12.18 on iHerb, which ships worldwide.

While I can praise it's super smooth and silky texture, I expected more from this blush. Based on reviews I thought this has the same amazing formula that shade Amber Love in L'Oreal Infallible Paint it palette has, so super creamy, buttery and intensely pigmented, almost a cream to powder when you swatch it with fingers. However, I feel as though the fairness of the shade is dragging it down and it's preventing it from showing its true potential, even though the pigmentation is actually good. Plum Rose is a strange shade that is not nearly as pink as you might have seen it online and I just don't think it suits me. I'm not loving the current shade range and I never wear bronzers, so I don't think I'll be exploring this line (maybe I'll get a bronzer just because my only one is ancient), but I heard praises about the highlighters, so I'm hoping I'll get my hands on one of those.

Have a great day!