Rare Beauty Nearly Berry Stay Vulnerable Melting Cream Blush Review & Swatches

Nearly Berry

Rare Beauty Nearly Berry Stay Vulnerable Melting Cream Blush Rare Beauty Nearly Berry Stay Vulnerable Melting Cream Blush ($21.00 for 0.17 oz.) is a rich, raspberry red with cooler undertones and a satin finish. It seemed more emollient initially as the texture was lightweight, creamy, and had a lot of moisture and glide, but it was quick to turn to a more powder-like finish once it came into contact with skin, which gave it more of a satin to semi-matte finish in practice.

It had semi-sheer to medium, buildable coverage, but the way the formula worked made it sheer out more readily–and it was designed to be a sheerer product, so this is as expected!–so it was hard to “overdo” the coverage as a result. This particular shade seemed a bit more emollient than others in the range, so it took a little longer to dry down and seemed a smidgen harder to diffuse and blend out evenly for me.

I had better luck applying it a third time using a stippling brush rather than fingers, which gave me a better diffusion of color. If I was able to get it to apply evenly and blend out well pretty quickly, it worked well over bare skin as well as most base products, but if I had to fuss with it when it was mostly dried down, it was more prone to lifting up base products or lifting from itself. This shade lasted well for eight hours before fading visibly on me.

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

Top Dupes

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NARS Aroused (P, $30.00) is lighter, more pigmented (90% similar).
Flower Beauty Bitten (P, $9.99) is darker, more pigmented, glossier (90% similar).
ColourPop Pretty Thing (P, $8.00) is more muted, glossier (90% similar).
Milani Blushing Berry (P, $8.99) is brighter, warmer, glossier (90% similar).
Coloured Raine Damage Control (Blush) (LE, ) is lighter, more pigmented (90% similar).
Surratt Beauty Rougeur (P, $32.00) is more shimmery, darker, more pigmented (90% similar).
Salt New York Raspberry (P, $16.00) is lighter (90% similar).
Chanel Tweed Cherry Blossom (LE, $45.00) is more shimmery, lighter, more pigmented (85% similar).
Rare Beauty Faith (P, $20.00) is darker, more pigmented, cooler (85% similar).
Urban Decay Dracarys (LE, $26.00) is lighter, warmer (85% similar).

View Swatches

Formula Overview

$21.00/0.17 oz. - $123.53 Per Ounce

The formula is supposed to be a "liquid-like cream" that "melts" on skin for a "second skin" look with a "wash of soft-focus color" that is "water-resistant" and has a "satin finish." It did seem water-resistant when I tested it on the back of my hand and certainly didn't move readily after it had been blended out and dried down.

The texture was thin, emollient, and more like a traditional cream in the pan and when initially picked up on a fingertip or a brush, but it was quick to dry down and turn to a more powder-like finish that was satin-like--not totally matte but not dewy at all--when it came into contact with skin. For this reason, a stippling brush was a little easier to work with and more forgiving than a fingertip.

The pigmentation was as marketed; it was sheer to semi-sheer with some ability to build up coverage, but the more silicone-heavy formula was better with one or two layers than more heavily built up as it had a tendency to pill and lift when fussed with too much. I don't know that I'd consider it to be an effortless formula, but once you figure out the best technique, the results themselves, as the coverage is sheerer, are more foolproof.

The formula worked better on bare skin and lighter coverage foundations that were more matte to natural but not overly dewy/luminous. The formula was blendable, but if I didn't get a decent blend quickly, it was harder to correct on its own; it was easier to blend out the edges using my foundation brush (and whatever was leftover on it) to soften any unblended edges. They lasted between seven and eight hours on me before fading visibly.

Browse all of our Rare Beauty Stay Vulnerable Melting Cream Blush swatches.

Ingredients

Isodecyl Isononanoate, Silica, C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate, Isodecyl Neopentanoate, Octyldodecyl Stearoyl Stearate, Methyl Methacrylate Crosspolymer, Limnanthes Alba (Meadowfoam) Seed Oil, Polyethylene, Synthetic Fluorphlogopite, Dicalcium Phosphate, Tocopheryl Acetate, Pentaerythrityl Tetra-di-t-butyl Hydroxyhydrocinnamate, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil, Gardenia Florida Fruit Extract, Nelumbo Nucifera Flower Extract, Nymphaea Odorata Root Extract, [+/- MAY CONTAIN / PEUT CONTENIR: Red 28 Lake (CI 45410), Titanium Dioxide (CI 77891), Iron Oxides (CI 77491, CI 77492), Blue 1 Lake (CI 42090), Red 7 Lake (CI 15850), Yellow 6 Lake (CI 15985), Red 6 (CI 15850)].

Disclaimer: Ingredient lists are as available by the brand (or retailer) at the time of publishing. Please always check product packaging, if it exists, for the ingredient list applicable to the product you're purchasing, or the brand or retailer's website for the most up-to-date ingredient list.