Marc Jacobs 508 Night Fever and Hot Stuff Air Blush Soft Glow Duo Review

Product Purchased by IMBB

When you have the number of blushes I have, you really don’t NEED another one, right? Because you are pretty much covered in terms of the whole spectrum of shades. Also, you have only two cheeks!At least with eyeshadows, you can work on a different looks with the same mix of shades, but with blushes, you can only do so much. And yet, a blush is something which can bring your whole look together and still, it’s probably the most underrated of products.

After reviewing the gorgeous blushes from Becca – Songbird, Wisteria and Snapdragon, I have for you today a fairly recent release from Marc Jacobs – Air Blush Duos. When I saw these for the first time, I was ready to swoon, but I tried to rationalise – I don’t NEED more blushes! And then when IMBB gave the option of picking up one of these under their Sponsored scheme – I literally threw all caution to the wind and picked up one of these babies. Let’s see whether my recklessness ended with a delight or a dud…

Product Description:
What it is:  An innovative powder blush duo palette with two shades for customizable color that delivers foolproof radiance all day.  Air Blush Soft Glow Duo features two shades that merge together so you can customize your color for a sexy, natural-looking glow. Achieve a dance-floor flush with this blush that’s infused with Japanese air powder for the ultimate cheek look. This ultra-lightweight, radiant powder is nearly undetectable to the touch, and gives your skin a radiant finish. Air Blush is created using a process called soufflage (French for “air-whipped”) for a silky-soft, cream-like texture that blends effortlessly with the complexion. The unique striped pattern on this powder blush is inspired by a Marc Jacobs dress. An innovative process allows every shade band to extend beyond the surface, for even color with every brushstroke. Two glowing shades complement each other: the lighter shade highlights and the deeper shade contours. Customize your color by layering and blending as much as you desire to tailor your look for the occasion or the season. Air Blush delivers 24-hour blush wear, for glowing radiance from day to night. It is formulated without parabens, sulfates, and phthalates.

What else you need to know:  Air Blush is inspired by the first celebrity makeup artist, Way Bandy, a friend of Marc Jacobs. Bandy rose to fame during the era of Studio 54 and he embraced the concept of “color glow” as a way of bringing out the natural “drape” of the face. The sleek, palm-sized compact is modeled after a vintage cigarette case.

Suggested Usage:

-For best results, apply Air Blush with The Blush Angled Blush Brush.
-To increase color payoff, sweep the brush vertically through the lighter or deeper shade. To blend the shades sweep horizontally.
-Use Air Blush for a new blush technique: #draping. Air Blush and #draping let you lift, sculpt, volumize, or balance the face.

For a lifted glow:
-Blend both shades together.
-Place at the high of the cheekbone.
-Blend along the length of the cheekbone.
-Blend at the jawline and sides of the neck.
-For a more editorial look, wrap air blush from the eye to the temple.

For a sculpted glow:
-Pick up the deeper shade of blush.
-Apply it just below the apples of the cheeks, low on the face to counterbalance roundness and create a visual oval.
-Next, swirl the lighter shade on top to blend the edges away.

For a volumized glow:
-Blend together both shades.
-Smile, and swirl air blush on the apples of the cheeks.
-Blend for a full, youthful, and subtle look.

For an advanced, balanced glow:
-Blend the shade of your choice: over the peak of the brow at the temples, bridge of nose, tip of the chin, and along sides of neck, near the ear lobes.
Price:
USD $42 for 8 gm of the product.

My Experience with Marc Jacobs 508 Night Fever and Hot Stuff Air Blush:

Packaging:  Let us just sit and stare at the packaging! *swoon* Apparently inspired by a vintage cigarette case – the packaging is absolutely stunning! Black pebble shaped case with a small stud which when pushed, opens the case clasp. Yes, it’s a fingerprint magnet, but it’s forgiven because it really is so pretty to look at. Once you open it, you see the blush inlay and a fairly large good quality mirror. There isn’t any
applicator or velvet sleeve or something. The product is separated from the mirror with a black plastic shield.

It comes packaged in the regular black and white Marc Jacobs casing.  You know how girls hold up these product mirrors when they are doing makeup tutorials on Youtube… I always used to wonder why they don’t just use a hand mirror instead, till I realized it’s probably product placement. Anyway, well, if I was doing a makeup tutorial, this would be the product I would hold up and display constantly – it’s just so gorgeous! truly Black beauty!

Even though it is definitely plastic, it does have a decent weight to it, not so much that you cant travel with it, but enough to add to the luxe feel of it.

Okay, now first things first, what is the product? What’s the logic behind the strips of two different shades?

There is this whole concept of applying blush – as per which one should put a darker shade to contour your cheek and put a lighter (maybe more luminescent shade) on the apple of your cheeks. It’s termed as “draping.” This technique has been advocated by Bobbi Brown since ages. She even released blush duos for enabling customers to adopt the technique.

My little take on this… yes, as a technique, this makes sense. Absolutely! And I am sure this has been used by professional makeup artists since ages. However, in today’s world, I feel it kind of gets beaten a bit. Why? Because of Kim Kardashian! Okay, seriously, I mean because of the whole “contouring” phenomenon. As per my understanding of makeup – in earlier times, contouring – with contour products was used either for editorial pics – as a means of play on lights or it was used by drag queens – to create more feminine features. However, today, with contouring beaming so mainstream, everyone is anyway contouring their face with a contour shade. So, all you need to do is add the more brighter shade (blush) onto your cheeks.

Having said that, draping still works – even with or without contouring with a contour product. So, we have this new product from Marc Jacobs which has 2 shades in strips – moving from lighter shade on the left to darker on the right. The idea remains the same – use the darker shade to contour and the lighter one to add as a pop of colour. In effect, can you use only one shade at a time – not really – unless you use an eyeshadow brush instead of a blush brush, but yes, it is possible to take more of 1 shade than the other because the strips of shades are broader in the corner. Also note, the blush pan is fairly big – so your brush can comfortably pick up product from any side.

Color:  The shade “Night Fever/Hot Stuff’ is described as cherry and deep plum shade. This is the darkest colour combination in the whole range. Both shades have a luminous sheen to them – no, not shimmer or glitter – just a sophisticated sheen which doesn’t look over the top. The lighter shade is a light pink with cool undertones. The darker shade does not look as dark as it does in the pan – it looks more medium rosy pink. Blended together, they look more medium neutral to warm pink. The colours work well together. They aren’t as drastically different for you to go – I got 2 shades in 1. But they are still distinct enough to be able to use separately. And still cohesive enough to be used together in the draping technique. The shade will work and will show across all skin tones. It isn’t too cool toned or too warm toned to not work on alternative skin tones.

Texture:  I somehow expected the product to have this amazing buttery smoothness like the Kevyn Aucoin neo bronzers or the Tom Ford Cheek blushes. Surprisingly, it doesn’t. It’s very soft, smooth and finely milled, but the butteriness is not there. Don’t worry – it does not mean that the product is stiff or something, it definitely isn’t! It is still silky soft but isn’t creamy in texture, which may be what allows it the extreme longevity it has – more on that later.

The product works very well – it goes on smoothly and there are no patches. It blends well and fairly effortlessly at that. Also, the luminous sheen it has, does not emphasise pores or texture of your skin. It actually is gorgeously luminous – not shimmery – not wham-bam glittery – just this sophisticated sheen. It is not powdery at all – does not kick up any powder!

Pigmentation:  Looking at the colour in the pan, you would wonder whether or not to dip your brush in and here is the beauty of the product. The Company claims – “it is buildable”!! And that is exactly what it is! It isn’t a bold shade instantly, it is more buildable. So, you can layer it up and manage the intensity to almost up to the colour in the pan – though why would you want that intensity on your cheek is beyond me! Anyway! Bottom line – it allows in controlled application. However, do not mistake that with it being low on pigmentation and something you need to work on showing up. One layer is sufficient to work with – you have to remember that as per the application method – you are anyway going to be apply almost two layers to your cheeks – one from each side of the blush pan. If the pigmentation was too high – or blush too creamy, it would end up with too much product on the brush and ultimately on your cheek, especially by the time your were done with the draping technique. So, in that sense, the pigmentation of the blush is just right.

Lasting Power:  The Company claims “24 hours” wear time, which is a really tall claim. Honestly, I cannot test it out because I am not gonna sleep with makeup on! It’s taken me months to work on some kind of skin care discipline – I’m not gonna let that go to test the wear of a blush! However, the maximum I have tried it is for about 12-14 hours and it has pretty much stayed intact – even on my oily face! That really is big, at least for me! So, I really wouldn’t be surprised if the product does live up to a 24-hour claim.

Visibility on skin tone:  The shade will show up easily on pretty much all skin tones. Lighter skin tones would need to go in with a lighter hand of course. The colour shows up easily on my NC30 skin tone. One gentle swipe of the brush gives amazing pigmentation.

Pros of Marc Jacobs 508 Night Fever and Hot Stuff Air Blush:

• Finely milled, smooth and silky texture.
• Easily bendable.
• The product has an amazing sheen/radiance which does not accentuate the pores or texture of the skin.
• Allows you to contour and add a pop of colour.
• Pan is big enough to allow you to use different parts of the pan separately.
• Good pigmentation.
• Lasted well over 14 hours on my combination/oily face.
• The color works well for day and night both.
• Stunning packaging – both to look at and carry.
• Did not break me out.
• There is no shakiness or “powdery-ness.”
• Free from parabens, sulfates and phthalates.

Cons of Marc Jacobs 508 Night Fever and Hot Stuff Air Blush:

• Nothing at all!

IMBB Rating:
5/5
Overall Thoughts:
This is a prime example of what a luxury product should feel and work like – right from packaging, to feel of the compact, to the ways the strips of colour appear to the eye to the silkiness of the product to the blend-ability of the blush to the longevity of it. Literally, everything has come together perfectly. If you have never tried Marc Jacobs products and want to, this could well be your first product from them. I would love to pick more shades, but I wish they had more colour options than the ones they have currently. IS this a need to have product? Not really! It’s a luxury item, more like a splurge. So, go ahead and pick it up if you want to -you will enjoy using it. However, if it doesn’t fit your budget currently, no need to sweat over it!

Do I Recommend Marc Jacobs 508 Night Fever and Hot Stuff Air Blush?
I would recommend!

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