Is Dior Bronze Harmonie Rose Brazilia all that?

So you’ve seen the pictures and you’ve read rave reviews and you are wondering – “Is Rose Brazilia bronze harmony blush really all that?”

My answer: Yes it IS all that… and more! But there is some bad news.

Bad news: The gold sparkly bits along the “stitches” and on the name disappears the minute you buff your brush over the surface of the blush. Poof! Gone just like that. After that, it kind of looks a little bland in the palette. It is also a little smaller than you might imagine. I thought it would be a good largish size, about that of the eyeshadow quint. It isn’t. The case is the same size as a quint but the blush only occupies half the space.

However, I’m not letting a bit of sparkle loss and downsizing get me down. What I’m more interested in is how it looks on the skin. And for this, I’m happy to report that the Dior Bronze Harmonie Rose Brazilia blush exceeded all expectations.

The colour looks peach-rose in the pan. On the skin, its more rosy with only minimal bronzing. I’m happy. I’m not a bronzer girl so this one performs more like a blush for me. Its also a very slightly warm rose-peach shade on the skin that does not look nor turn orange as most bronzers do. I’m happy I chose Rose Brazilia – its my sort of color and just the right amount of warmth.

Here’s a swatch on my hand of all the colours mixed together and how it looks on my cheeks.

I have applied Rose Brazilia with 2 types of blush brushes. One is the regular MAC 213SE fluffy brush. This one picked up a little too much pigment and I was told I had dark patches on my skin when I wore it, even though I used what I thought was a light hand. Undaunted, the next day I used the Lumiere Duo Fibre skunk brush and the result was a softer sheerer better application. I got complimented this time so it works 😛 So, if you are light skinned, I’d recommend you use a light hand when applying this bronzer blush or use a skunk brush. If you are tanned or have a darker skin tone, you can get away with slightly heavier application for a rosier bronzier tint.

The texture of the blush looks matte in the pan but it actually applies with a little bit of shimmer. Nothing overboard. I only really noticed it when I took a picture with a flash and saw bit of shimmer on my cheeks. It adds a lovely glow to the skin. I did not like the brush that came with it – its too small to be of any real use.

Yes Rose Brazilia is worth the RM142 (US$42 in the USA) you will pay for this blush. I’ve worn it everyday for more than a week now and am still not tired of it 🙂 You could use the colors for eyeshadow if you like, but I’m a traditionalist – a blush is a blush for me and eyeshadows have their own purpose and unless hardpressed I don’t mix them. I also don’t quite like pink on the eyes for fear of looking like I’ve been crying all night long.

Have I helped you make up your mind? 😉 Watch it fly off Dior counters soon in May 2009… or better yet maybe make a reservation hehe…

Stay beautiful,

Paris B