When looking back at all the major make-up moments (and there were many) from this past year, nothing quite matched blush’s reach and influence. Whether you were just aimlessly scrolling, or looking for some beauty inspo on the red carpet or at fashion week, flushed cheeks were everywhere. The experts agree: 2025 was the year of blush.
“[It] has become the modern statement piece,” celebrity make-up artist Misha Shahzada tells Vogue. “It adds dimension, energy and a pop of colour without requiring a full face. It’s an effortless way to look polished and expressive while keeping the overall look minimal and refined.”
“Blush itself has always been far more than decorative,” says celebrity make-up artist Lisa Eldridge, founder of her own eponymous make-up line. “Today, it’s about self-expression, a way to convey mood, drama and personality, and lean into the joy-sparking moments of make-up application.”
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“I think people are looking for ways to reclaim their power,” echoes celebrity make-up artist and host of Backseat Beauties, Vincent Oquendo. “Blush is the great signifier of health – good health. I feel like now more than ever, we really want to feel like our best selves.”
With that, let’s take a very short trip down memory lane over the biggest blush trends we’re taking with us into 2026.
2025’s Biggest Blush Moments
Of the many fun ways to get that natural-looking flush, these six trends defined blush’s biggest moments this year.
Taking its cues from the infamous French royal, TikTok leaned all the way in with bold, Rococo-style rosy cheeks this year. “Delicate yet dramatic – refined, yet full of life,” celebrity make-up artist Pat McGrath previously told Vogue. “It’s not a contour moment. It’s a bloom of colour that radiates from the centre of the face outward, like candlelight or porcelain.”
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One of Shahzada’s favourite blush looks of 2025 was the one she created on actor Daisy Edgar-Jones, where she used the product to warm the entire face. “We went with a sun-kissed blush that really warmed up her complexion and pulled the whole look together,” Shahzada says.
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Offering a softer, more diffused look, watercolour blush gives that faint flush of colour with a painterly touch. “[It] is a soft veil of product applied to the cheeks,” celebrity make-up artist Carolina Gonzalez once told Vogue. “Think of the finish as the difference between oil paint – which is opaque – and watercolours, which are diffused and buildable. You can’t see where the application of watercolour blush starts or ends, because it melts into the skin with no detectable edges.”
With this technique, you apply depth to the face before applying foundation. In his YouTube series Backseat Beauties, Oquendo talks with Regina King about underpainting and how to use blush underneath the skin tint, for a nice glow. “That’s the thing with underpainting,” he says in the video. “You have flexibility and you can really work with it and sheer it out. You see what that looks like when you put that skin tint over it. It looks like it’s coming out from right underneath the skin.”
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Underpainting also helps define facial structure. “I’ve really loved using blush as contour,” says Oquendo. “That’s something I’ve been super into right now.” In general, he recommends going over a cream or liquid blusher with powder to pull colour out and make it look more even. “It gives more depth to it,” he says. “[For example], do a pale pink first and then go over it with maybe a coral. It’s just going to be so beautiful.”
This blush trend uses two cream blushers in different hues to get that contour effect. It’s about “infusing the cheeks with a seasonal glow”, Vogue writer Maria Munsuri wrote. “Think of it as a more playful way to contour. Thanks to the use of two different cream blush colours, cherry-blossom blush adds dimension to your face with a dewy, natural finish.”
The best blushes to try
The right blush is really dependent on your personal preferences, but the experts all have their recs. Shahzada, who contributed to the development of these products, recommends one of Victoria Beckham Beauty’s gems, the Color Wash Blushers. “[They] are truly exceptional,” she says. “I’ve seen firsthand the level of care that went into perfecting them, [and] they’re unlike anything else on the market.”
Other blushes she loves include the Rhode Pocket Blush and the Dior Backstage Rosy Glow.
- Type: cream stick
- Finish: hydrating
- Size: 5.3g
Why we love it: We cannot stop raving about Rhode’s blush launch, and with good reason – they guarantee dreamy, dewy skin. In every shade, the brand’s pocket blush is pigmented, plumping and flattering thanks to smoothing peptides in the formula that get you a seamless blend. Also in the mix is glass-skin giving tamanu oil, which conditions the cheeks and gets you Hailey’s signature glazed doughnut look. A must-try blusher for mature skin, with a gorgeous finish and ingredients we could all benefit from.
Associate beauty writer Ranyechi Udemezue wears the pocket blush in Toasted Teddy.
£24 at Rhode
Oquendo recommends e.l.f. Cosmetics Cheek Stain. He loves to underpaint with them to give a natural-looking lift and glow. If a stain intimidates you (they can often come with a lot of pigment and leave little to no room for error), he says a blush tint is best for novices.
And if you’re looking for a cool blush hack, Eldridge loves using her Insanely Saturated Lip Colours lipstick for her blush needs. “They’re intensely pigmented, available in the most vibrant shades, and perfect for that almost powdered cheek effect.”
Pro tip: she says to mix highlighter into your lipstick for a luminous, blush-like finish, then blend it in an upward motion from the apples of the cheeks to the temples for best placement. “You can create a bespoke, luminous blush that will instantly give you a fresh flush of colour,” she says.
The future of blush
No matter how you choose to wear your blush, or which trend you feel drawn to, what matters most is having fun. “You should cherry pick what you want from [blush trends] and make them work for you,” says Eldridge. “Whether you want to sculpt, volumise, slim, plump, or lift your face, there are so many styles. It’s about making it work for you and your face shape.”
