Sephora Colorful Ink Gel in Orchid

Disclaimer:  I purchased this.

Sephora's Colorful Ink Gel blushes ($14) are described as "translucent, long-wearing, buildable gel stains" to give cheeks a natural flushed look. Available in six different shades, I chose #03 in Orchid, a warm pink.  

I apply a pea sized dab on the back of my hand and then use my favorite brush for cream blushes to apply.  It's a small but dense brush that does a great job of blending cream or gel based blushes without disturbing the underlying foundation.

Orchid does indeed stain the skin, and my arm swatch lasted through a night of sleep and some sweaty yard work before starting to fade.  The Colorful Ink Gel formula includes hibiscus extract, which is supposed to both calm and smooth skin.  In fact, it's known as the botox plant.  Who knew?

I find Orchid to be a very realistic and natural looking blush.  It's definitely on the subtle side as I tend towards one layer only.  It does take a few minutes for the gel to dry down completely, but once it does, it wears for a good 8 hours on my oily skin.   Very nice!

Pink Escape Coconut Watercolor Cheek Gelée by Josie Maran

I've got another coconut water infused cheek gelée by Josie Maran to show you, this time called Pink Escape.  I acquired this deluxe travel sized cheek tint via Sephora's Summer Stash Favorites set, which is currently on sale at Sephora for $30. 

The Coconut Watercolor Cheek Gelée formula contains 50% coconut water, and the bouncy gel texture can be applied with either your fingers or a brush (I prefer using a brush).  It feels slightly cool when applied, and leaves behind a realistic but subtle flush of color.  I like how natural it looks, and color can be built up in intensity with multiple layers, but be careful as too much product will result in visible and uneven buildup of the product.

Pink Escape is close in color to Pink Island (full review here), but leans slightly more pink with Pink Island slightly more coral in comparison.  

Is the difference between the two colors enough to justify both?  Probably not.  I also find the smaller pot a tad more difficult to use, as the opening is just large enough to get your finger into.  However, if you want to give the formula a try without investing $22 for a full sized pot, the Summer Stash Favorites set would be a good option, provided there are other products in the set that you will use. 

Island Pink Coconut Water-Color Cheek Gelée by Josie Maran

Disclaimer:  I purchased this.

This coconut water-infused cheek gelée is supposed to provide up to  14 hours of color and hydration, making it a hybrid cream blush and cheek stain.  The firm but bouncy gel is a cool formula, and indeed it feels slightly cool when applied, no doubt due to the drying of the 50% coconut water formula on the skin. 

Island Pink ($22), described as a "soft cherry pink" gives a natural and realistic flush akin to walking briskly in cold weather.  Which we rarely experience down here on the Gulf Coast, so it's nice to have something that mimics the effect.

While color can be built up, I find Island Pink to be on the subtle side, making it one of my more natural looking blushes.  I apply with a small but dense brush, as that seemed to deposit smooth color without disturbing my foundation better than with my fingers.  While it does wear well on my oily skin, I'm not sure it's a true stain, as I was able to rub off the arm swatch fairly easily.  Regardless, I've been reaching for Island Pink all week, really like!