NYX Orchid Stick Blush vs. Tarte Tipsy Natural Cheek Stain

I've heard good things about NYX's blush sticks, and being a lover of Tarte cheek stains (but not necessarily their price), was curious to see how they compare.

Orchid by NYX is a pinkish coral shade with gold shimmer.  I ordered this sight unseen online and was quite happy with the shade once I got it.  It applies as a sheer wash of color that can be built up in intensity.  I do not have a problem with this settling into my pores and find it easy to apply.  On the down side, just like Tarte's cheek tints, it does have a slight stickiness after application.  I usually apply either a powder blush or a setting powder on top, which helps.  

NYX Orchid

I had gotten a travel size of Tarte's Tipsy not long before, and as soon as I saw Orchid I was wondering if these two were dupes.  Tipsy is also a pinkish coral, but at least in the tube appears to have less shimmer.  Orchid appears lighter in the tube, but surprisingly has as much intensity upon application as Tipsy.  Orchid is more pink than Tipsy and also has more shimmer.  Tipsy is actually slightly more sticky after application than Orchid.  Tipsy has a pleasant apricot scent whereas Orchid is scentless.  If this is a bit confusing, I've simplified it here:


Orchid:  pinker with more shimmer, less sticky, no scent

Tipsy:  coral with less shimmer, more sticky, apricot scent

Top Orchid, bottom Tipsy (taken in shade)

Top Orchid, bottom Tipsy (taken in sun)

The ingredient list is probably where these two will differ the most.  Tarte's cheek stains are water based and marketed as "natural", whereas the first ingredient in Orchid is mineral oil.  Tarte's cheek stains are also supposed to be paraben free, yet I see propylparaben in the ingredient list, so I'm a bit confused about that.  But, you'll also notice that Orchid has pretty much every paraben out there in it, so Tarte will definitely win as far as quality ingredients are concerned, IMO.

The other major difference is also going to be price, as a full size Tarte cheek stain is $30 for 1 oz., whereas NYX's stick blushes are $6 for .013 oz.  This is a bit deceptive though since Tarte cheek stains are approximately 3 times larger.  Tarte's mini cheek stains are even larger at .017 than the regular sized NYX stick blushes, just for comparison.  But, if you like variety and don't want to pay $30 a blush to get it, then NYX could give you five different blush shades for the price of one Tarte cheek tint.

So, these are not complete dupes in color like I was thinking, but both are great shades for spring.  I'm not sure how my skin will react to the mineral oil, but considering I don't wear the same blush every day, I don't foresee occasional use being a problem. 

Tipsy:  Propylene Glycol, Aqua, Nonyl Nonoxynol-150, Glycerin, Sodium Stearate, Laureth-23, Parfum/Fragrance, PVP, Propylparaben. (+/-): Mica, Bismuth Oxychloride (CI 77163), Titanium Dioxide (CI 77891), Iron Oxides (CI 77489, CI 77491, CI 77492, CI 77499),Carmine (CI 75470) , Blue 1 (CI 42090), Red 33 (CI 17200), Red 40 (CI 16035), Yellow 5 (CI 19140).

Orchid:  White Mineral Oil, 2-Ethylhexyl Palmitate, Polybutene, Squalane, Bis-Diglyceryl Polyacyladipate-2, Vitamin E, Beeswax, Ozokerite, Candelilla Wax, Carnauba Wax, Paraffin Wax/ Microcrystalline Wax, Phenoxyethanol/ Methylparaben/ N-Butylparaben/ Ethylparaben/ Propylparaben/ Isobutylparaben, Ethylhexyl Methoxycinnamate. MAY CONTAIN: D&C Red No.6 Sodium Salt (CI 15850), D&C Red No.28 Al. Lake (CI 45410), FD&C Yellow No.5 Aluminum Lake (CI 19140:1), D&C Red No.7 Calcium Lake (CI 15850:1), Titanium Dioxide (CI 77891), Black Iron Oxide (CI 77499), Red Iron Oxide (CI 77491), Yellow Iron Oxide (CI 77492), Mica (CI 77019)