Rare Beauty Happy Soft Pinch Liquid Blush Review & Swatches

Happy

Rare Beauty Happy Soft Pinch Liquid Blush ($20.00 for 0.25 oz.) is a brighter, medium pink with moderate, warm undertones and a lightly dewy sheen. It had a more luminous sheen that seemed to dry down more when applied and blended out on my cheeks–in practice–than just applied and blended out on my arm. The brand wasn’t kidding when it says “a little goes a long way,” as the product was quite pigmented!

With the dewier finish, it was workable to apply product to the back of my hand and then pick up and apply it to my cheeks and blend the product out; this was the most foolproof method for me. The texture was lightweight, more like an airy serum with a lot of slip, though it definitely dried down and set for the most part–it didn’t move readily but transferred slightly if I pressed tissue against it. This shade applied evenly to bare skin and blended out without difficulty, both over bare skin as well as patted over foundation. It stayed on well for eight and a half hours before fading visibly.

FURTHER READING: Formula Overview for details on general performance and characteristics (like scent).

Top Dupes

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Tarte Live (LE, $29.00) is more shimmery, more muted, warmer (85% similar).
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Formula Overview

$20.00/0.25 oz. - $80.00 Per Ounce

The blush is supposed to have "long-lasting color pigments" that last "all-day" where "a little goes a long way." That being said, they also say it "blends and builds beautifully," though when one looks at the "how to" instructions, I could see that being achievable as they actually say to remove excess and then use one or two dots of product on each cheek. The line-up has includes four shades in a true, flat matte finish and four shades in a lightly, dewy finish.

Like a lot of the liquid products in the brand's range, they have a lot more slip and feel more serum-like, but a little did go a long way with respect to pigmentation. First and foremost, to control application, I would recommend dotting (lightly!) once or twice per cheek but I would work one cheek at a time, especially with the matte finish. I also felt using a sponge or brush worked well for diffusing and spreading about the blush better than fingertips when working over a base as fingertips seemed to leave slight imprints and seemed more prone to lifting up product.

When in doubt, use the least amount possible! I liked dabbing a bit on the back of my hand and using a fluffy, duo-fiber brush to apply to cheeks, which gave me a better diffusion with less chance of lifting up base product. This method worked best with the dewier finish blushes as there was enough playtime, but the matte blushes dried down faster and I had to use more product to keep it malleable on the back of my hand.

They wore between eight and nine hours on me before showing signs of fading. Though I haven't been able to find a clip I can reference specifically to it, I've had multiple readers state that the brand owner (Selena Gomez) has mentioned that the packaging was designed to be easier to open. I found that to be true of the flattened, knob-like tops found on the liquid blushes, as it took little pressure to twist open.

Browse all of our Rare Beauty Soft Pinch Liquid Blush swatches.

Ingredients

Hydrogenated Polyisobutene, Hydrogenated Poly(C6-14 Olefin), Mica, Octyldodecanol, Ethylene/Propylene/Styrene Copolymer, Trimethylsiloxysilicate, Isododecane, 1,2-Hexanediol, Disteardimonium Hectorite, Sorbitan Sesquioleate, Propylene Carbonate, Triethoxycaprylylsilane, Aluminum Hydroxide, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil, Gardenia Florida Fruit Extract, Nelumbo Nucifera (Sacred Lotus) Flower Extract, Nymphaea Odorata Root Extract. [+/- May Contain/Peut Contenir: Iron Oxides (CI 77491), Red 7 Lake (CI 15850), Yellow 6 Lake (CI 15985), Titanium Dioxide (CI 77891), Yellow 5 Lake (CI 19140), Red 28 Lake (CI 45410)].