Best Cruelty Free Blushes

ByCordelia

Best Cruelty Free Blushes

There are many cruelty free blushes available, but I’m going to share my picks for the best cruelty free blushes out there. These are my favorites. I’ve got some vegan blushes included, too.

Makeup Geek – $9.99 for refill pans, $12.99 compact
Makeup Geek makes the best cruelty free pressed indie blushes. All of their blushes are vegan except for the ones that contain carmine (Romance and First Love). The Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Octyldodecyl Stearoyl Stearate and Stearoyl Stearate are all synthetic and not animal-based in these blushes. My favorites are Romance (soft warm rose with gold shimmer), Secret Admirer (light cool orchid purple matte) and Head Over Heels (light cool bubblegum pink shimmer) and Hanky Panky (cool rosy pink matte). See my review of all the Makeup Geek blushes.

Silk Naturals – $4.50 – $6.50
Silk Naturals makes beautiful HD cream blushes. They also have a ton of loose powder blushes. Almost all of their blushes are vegan. I really like Petal (warm light pink) Lovelace (warm peachy pink), Stellar (light silvery pink), Stardust (light peach), Babydoll (hot pink), Gemini (cool red), and Foxxy (peach with plum undertones).

Tarina Tarantino – $25 – $29
Tarina Tarantino makes both cream and powder blushes. I love both Mr. Pink and Coral Cameo from the cream line. Neapolitan Lane (nude pink beige) is my favorite neutral blush that I reach for over and over again when I don’t know what else to wear.

Darling Girl – $5.90 – $8.99
Darling Girl offers a wide variety of blushes. Blush You is a silky formula meant to enhance your natural radiance. Soft focus blushes are semi-matte. Inner glow blushes give you a luminous glow. Gettin’ Cheeky gel blushes that give you the natural look of a cream blush with the long lasting power of a stain. Finally, Sweet Cheeks Cream blushes are great, especially for acne-prone skin. See my review of powder blushes.

Josie Maran – $18 – $22
Josie Maran makes argan infinity lip and cheek creamy oils, which I love to use on the cheeks. They also make coconut watercolor cheek gelees. Everlasting Honey is a neutral nude pink. Pink Escape is a cool toned pink. The cheek gelees are vegan. See my review.

Notoriously Morbid – $8.50
Notoriously Morbid has several lovely blush shades, as well as contour shades. Necromancy is a cool-toned greige with a matte finish, Cartomancy is a cool-toned matte lilac, and Sadist is a soft rosy mauve with gold shimmer.

Tarte – $26 (parent company is not cruelty free)
I love the tarte Amazonian Clay 12-hour blushes. Captivating (warm peach, vegan), Glisten (peachy pink) and Mirage (soft peachy pink) are my favorite shades. Mirage is available for a limited time in an LE set from Sephora for only $10. I’m hoping Mirage becomes part of the permanent line.

Fyrinnae – $6.50
Fyrinnae makes all vegan loose powder blushes. They have some of the most beautiful and unusual shades out there. Royalty (vibrant violet), Greek Goddess (vibrant pink), Nordic Angel (vibrant pinky-peach), and Mesmerize (berry magenta) are my favorites.

Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics – $20
Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics Colour Concentrates are suitable for the eyes, lips and cheeks. They’re all vegan. I love John Doe as a contour (pale ash taupe). Pleasure Model (pearlescent light pink), Miriam (subdued whitened plum), Newt (pale peach) and District (true yellow-based red), would all make lovely blushes. I would recommend using a stippling brush. Cherry Bomb, Datura, Twirl, or Platonic Loose Colour Concentrates would make nice blushes.

Meow Cosmetics – $8.00 – $16.25
Meow has a lot of lovely loose powder blushes. I especially like the Pink Inc collection. Cashmere (beige pink), Lemonade (lemon drenched pink), Flamingo (bright warm sheer pink), and Dolphin (pale dolphin pink). They also have seasonal blushes like Heliconia (peachy pink with coral iridescence).

NARS – $30 – $65 (parent company is not cruelty free)
NARS makes gorgeous pressed powder blushes. I have invested in a few of their blush palettes. I also have some singles. The blush palettes are the best way to get a good mix of colors. I have the Danmari palette and the Adult Content palette. Desire (bright pink), Deep Throat (peach), Miss Liberty (peach), Silvana (peach), Orgasm (pinky peach), Super Orgasm (golden pinky peach), Unlawful (amber pink) and New Attitude (light pink) are all shades I love. They also have Multiples (cream stick blushes), which can be used on the eyes and lips too.

Cate McNabb – $19
This is a new to me brand but I love the Naked Peach blush! It’s a perfect neutral blush color for me!

Inglot – $11 – $13
Inglot makes a lot of different blushes including the freedom system blushes, AMC cream blushes and fusion blushes. I think the fusion blushes are lovely. See my review.

Don’t be afraid to experiment with blush! Try your favorite eyeshadow shade as a blush. Or try a lipstick! You just might like it.

What brands make your favorite cruelty free blushes? Are there any I should check out?

Cordelia Frost is the creative force behind Phyrra, a treasure trove for cruelty-free indie and goth makeup enthusiasts. She's the author of the game-changing 'Hooded Eyes Makeup Manual' a must-read for hooded eyes makeup.

Cordelia's world is a kaleidoscope of alternative beauty, gothic fashion, and life-enhancing tips, making every visit to Phyrra a journey into a more colorful and inspired self.

42 Comments

  1. Ooo…my blush wishlist just got a mile longer, hahaha! XD I’ve been plotting a Notoriously Morbid haul and am psyched for it! Many thanks for introducing me to this amazing brand!!! Wow there are so many great blushes of every kind on this list… *literally taking notes*

    I wish so much that Illamasqua was sold here (in the U.S.)! Their Powder Blushers are divine!!! They offer so many pretty light shades that are beautifully formulated, pigmented, and don’t look chalky. I adore their bold shades too! They even make a pure white one (Intrigue)!!! *wish list a mile long*

    I’m dying to try Illamasqua’s new Gel Blusher sticks! I love both colors – Charm (pure tangerine orange) and Fluster (perfect rosy red)!!! They look like watercolors on the skin in the images I’ve seen!!! *serious urge to splurge* They also have a product called Gel Sculpt which is the same as the blushes. It comes in a lovely taupe shade that I think might work amazingly for very fair skin tones (though it looks amazing on ALL skin tones!!!)! It also has that watercolor look on the skin! To top it off all of them can be used on the lips! I am in awe of the swatches they have for each product.

    Illamasqua!!! Please come back to the U.S.!

  2. Thanks for this, I really need to get a few blushes to complete my kit since I’ve stocked up on shadows, especially with the Etude, I loved your suggestion for trying an eyeshadow as a blush. Do you think the warm/reddish color in the Etude palette would work. Otherwise I’m glad you reminded me to try the Tarina Tarantino and also Silk Naturals Cream Blushes. I’m with you, I’ve always loved NARS pressed powder blushes. Do you have a recommendation for a good powder/blush brush? I really want to get the COVER FX powder brush but can’t really afford it right now. Also, I’m really eyeing that NARS Virtual Domination Cheek Palette, don’t know if it’s still out though.

  5. OCC miriam is my favorite. I wish I could find a similar color in powder blush(oily skin with pores)
    I really need to avoid the inglot store in order to continue my no-buy.

  6. i lost a ton of my brushes during my most recent cross country move, so i’ll def check some of these out!

  8. Great list! I have tried a ton of Inglot shadows, but never their blush! I’ll have to take a look next order

  18. Thanks for this list. I agree with you about Tarte Mirage: I hope they make it permanent. I’m actually wearing it today. I’ll have to try out more of these. I think I’ve tried only about a third (maybe?) of these brands’ blushes.

  19. You forgot Nyx powder blushes and Milani baked blushes as low-end alternatives that are cruelty free

  20. I have rosacea so I generally don’t use blush but this is a fantastic list. I love all of the brands here.

  22. Thanks for the recs! For some reason, blush is never something I spend much money on. I’ve been using Nyx for years because of the price point, I just don’t see a big difference between the low or high end blushes.

    If you haven’t already planned on it, can you do a round-up of your favorite blotting sheets? I have a hard time finding these in cruelty-free lines. I use Nyx or Sonia Kashuk, which work ok but there might be something better out there.

    Thanks!

    1. You know, the only blotting paper I use is the Nyx Green Tea blotting paper. It’s the only one I like. I can research and do a list for you 🙂 If you want to invest in just one blush, I would recommend a shade like the Tarina Tarantino Neapolitan Lane or Tarte Mirage ($10!!!) since they go with any look, in my opinion.

      1. Haha, that’s the blotting paper I’ve been using! I like it pretty well, just didn’t know if there were any other good ones.

        I’ll try out the Tarte blush next time I’m at Ulta, thanks!

  24. I didn’t realize Inglot was so cheap… I was expecting super high-end prices! That’s awesome to hear. I’m far too clumsy for loose powder blush, I think Tarte would be a great bet for me. Great roundup! xoxo Audrey

  26. What a great list! I recently heard that Inglot is selling somewhat in Boston, and I’ve gotta find out where for my next trip into town.

  27. There are some great ones in your collection, I would also add Swagger Cosmetics, my favourite one is Lolipop, a vibrant hot pink and Geek Chic Cosmetics, I love their blush Nerdgasm 🙂

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