Tarte Amazonian Clay 12-hour Blush

Berry tends to play with my cheek blush, so when she misplaced my Shiseido color stick while we were on vacation, I had to pop by the nearest Sephora so I could put some pink on my cheeks. The first thing I chanced upon was Tarte's Amazonian Clay 12-Hour Blush. Now, I have never really used powder blushes prior to this, but the promise of 12-hours of cheek blush, with no retouching, intrigued me. Plus, it was "natural" and made from sun baked Amazonian Clay (as in from the banks of the Amazon River). Oooohh, exotica.

I couldn't decide on which color to try on because all the pinks and corals looked so pretty. Suddenly, I felt like a teen again and gravitated towards Amused (bright pink). Heehee. Then, I swiped some on my right cheek, and I loved how natural it looked. I put some on the other cheek and I saw how it instantly made me look alive, like I had just come from a good workout and blood was finally circulating through my system.

Let's just say, instead of being a cheapskate and just putting on blush from a tester, I ended up buying one.

Warning though, the coloring is really intense, and once you've dabbed it on, it's not so easy to spread around like a stick blush as it is very pigmented. So you have to go easy on this one.

Anyhoo, here's the 411 on this wonder product that I am currently in love with!

Amazonian clay 12-hour blush comes in 8 shades. The line is inspired by Tarte's best-selling cheek and lip stains, and shades range from soft pink (dollface) to deep berry (flush).

Supposedly, Amazonian Clay, is "nature's most perfect ingredient". It is nutrient rich and skin-nourishing, not to mention, it lasts all day. Hmmm, does sound perfect right? But wait! Here's more! The soft blush is great for all skin types:

Oily skin: Amazonian clay minimizes oil in and around pores to balance skin and keep product in place

Dry skin: Amazonian clay hydrates skin naturally to restore moisture so your blush wears better and longer

Dull skin: Amazonian clay improves the appearance of skin clarity and skin texture

Combination skin: Amazonian clay is completely intuitive; gives skin an overall smooth and even appearance

My verdict? It did last a long time in cool Canada, like I had rosy cheeks the whole day. But then again, my skin gets dry when I am on that side of the globe. Here in Singapore, where I tend to get oily, it doesn't really last 12 hours  - maybe 6 hours? Which isn't so bad since I'm probably out running errands 6 hours a day at most. LOL.

If this product were a stock, I'd still say it's a strong BUY.

Available for $25 at Sephora and at Tarte Cosmetics.