Here is an image of Ava Gardner on the red carpet in 1954 at the premiere of The Barefoot Contessa. Ava one of the legendary women in Hollywood that I am fascinated with as she was a brilliant actress, great beauty, drank & swore like she was one of the boys, hung out with Hemingway & the bulls in Spain & had a stormy relationship with old blue eyes himself: Sinatra. Get this biography about her it is fab. The reason that I posted this is because the makeup although classic Hollywood it still feels fresh & modern to me even though it’s over 50 years later & I love her rosy healthy cheeks & right now we are deep in red carpet season and Ava is working that red carpet! Blush in photos makes everyone look healthy, happy & even more beautiful. I recently discovered my love for blusher. I was always a little scared of blush both for myself & on shoots. I know how to use it & work it but I never really thought that I personally liked it. What can I say: the goth inside of me was more of a pale & interesting a la Winona in Beetlejuice kinda gal. Anyway recently I had an epiphany: blush makes everyone look amazing in photos & in real life. Yup, it’s a fact. I know I am being rather late in coming forward but like I am part of a self help group I must stand up & announce: “Hi my name is Georgina Graham and I am a user. A blusher user” There are 2 ways to apply blush that really count. I mean really count. 1: We all by now should know the tip where you look in the mirror, smile & place a small amount of product on the fullest part of the cheek and blend like crazy outwards & in all directions for a flush but also 2: For those without a super full face try placing blush on the top of the cheek bone or higher part of cheek to accentuate the bones, this is great for anyone over 30 or anyone who doesn’t like the look/ effect of tip number 1! So, ways to do it: blusher brush/ fingers/sponge depends entirely on product. Powder needs a brush but cream/ liquid can use fingers or sponge. I am a massive fan of using my fingers. Skin on skin is good:warms up product, blends & works product in to skin. Blush shoud look like it is coming from within, like you are happy & excited not like you just dumped it on your face! I like to apply blush as the last part of the makeup so you can see how much you need or want to add to enhance the look. Different blushers suit different looks & will depend on your skin tone. How do you choose a blush that suits you? Hmmm this is hard. Way harder than lipstick- I love rosy tones on pale skin & I love peach/coral/ golden tan nudes on olive/ darker skin tones & I love a touch of hot pink red/dark plum or aubergine on dark black skin tones. However I am known for always breaking rules. I experiment with colour, texture & finish eg: try cream over powder & shine over matte. Here are some of my favourite blushers & some cool new products: Tom Ford powder blush in Ravish , YSL cream blush in Velvety Peach MAC Hey,Sailor bronzers as blush in nude on board. Chanel blush Horizon & last but not least from Dior try Pink in Love So have fun with this & get your blush on.