I’m really into my little Bourjois cream blush at the moment; portable, easy to apply (just use fingertips) and with a smooth, velvety finish that looks natural and low-key. It lasts really well and the colour (shade 01, Nude Velvet) is just the right side of peachy. It’s also a really affordable way of updating your entire makeup look for spring – it’s very youthful and the perfect antidote to the overly-sculpted, contour-chiselled winter face. (Find it online here.)

I have quite a few cream blushers in a similar peachy shade and I decided to do a little comparison post with my other current favourite, the High Definition Second Skin Cream Blush from Make Up For Ever. I tested half my face with Bourjois, half with the Make Up For Ever (MUFE).

Straight off the bat I can tell you that the MUFE blush has more pigment than the Bourjois (I’m looking at a picture of my hand zoomed in to a ridiculous degree!) but we’re not talking a shocking amount. The extra pigment in the MUFE gives it, I think, a slightly creamier appearance on the skin, though still velvety and far from dewy or glossy. In the picture below I have applied the Bourjois Nude Velvet to the right side of my face. (You might recognise the hairband/jumper combo from a few weeks ago when I tested the Soap & Glory highlighter stick – if I’m photographing I’ll usually do quite a few different products at a time!)

It gives a really healthy little flush. I’ve just done one “coat”, quickly buffed out with my fingertips, but it’s very easily blendable and the blush sets quite quickly so it doesn’t end up sliding about all over your face. You can probably tell from the next picture that the MUFE is a little stronger in pigment, though obviously it’s unblended:

The MUFE shade (225, see here) is very slightly brighter than the Bourjois Nude Velvet – almost “semi-neon”, if that’s a thing… I’m really splitting hairs here, because they are incredibly similar, but the MUFE is more conspicuous, more of a colour “pop”, even though I want to prong myself in the eyes for using that word.

And above, both cheeks. The gorgeous, healthy flush is virtually the same on each side, though referring to my notes that I took at the time, the MUFE was ever so slightly more juicy looking. But we are talking so slight that really, in the photograph above, it’s impossible to tell them apart.

The staying power of both is excellent – perhaps the MUFE is a smidgen longer-lasting, but only just. I think that the MUFE requires less product to get the same effect, but it’s very expensive and so if you’re looking for a budget version then the Bourjois is just brilliant. I have to say that the creamy, smooth texture of the MUFE blush has really piqued my interest in the brand – I must do some more investigating. I know that their foundations have something nearing cult status, so perhaps I’ll start there. Let me know if you have any recommendations..

Bourjois Cream Blush in 01 Nude Velvet is £7.99 here, Make Up Forever’s Second Skin Cream Blush in 225 is online here.