All Tarte-d Up

I never thought I'd go for cream-type blush. It always seemed too....creamy. Old lady. Overly pigmented.

But non-powder blushes have really improved in the last few years, so much so that my Mac powder has been abandoned altogether for Tarte cheek stains.

The stains come in these cute chubby sticks, kind of like if the super-sized Bonne Bell Lip Smackers went on a Twinkie bender. The stains go on pretty sheer. The most famous — and popular — is Blushing Bride, which gives this lovely, plum-y spot of color. I got a little tester of that sucker years ago — years — and still have it. Use it pretty much every day, that's how long it lasts. Well, I'm guessing I might die before using up the full-size Tarte in "Ten," a special limited edition color to celebrate the line's 10th anniversary.

OK, OK, the special blingy packaging first grabbed my attention. But the shade — a pure pink that gives a natural flush like you've just been exercising — is quite lovely. It'd work on a lot of skin tones, too.

The stuff is also free of nasty parabens, phthalates and other things I can't spell. Nor did I see any mention of troll spit.

It's $30 and available at Sephora. Since it's a limited edition, snap it up while you can. Seriously, though, you'll be using it — and loving it — for a long time.