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TED MORRISON

The product

Tom Ford Shade and Illuminate Cheeks, $93 at Holt Renfrew.

The promise

This blush-focused extension of Tom Ford's signature Shade and Illuminate line is designed to simplify the process of colour contrasting cheeks with a universally flattering, sheer wash of colour that balances facial symmetry.

How it works

The pearlescent highlighting shade brightens and draws light to skin to amplify cheekbones, while the blush tone adds a flush of colour. The sheer cream formula is designed to work with exterior light to highlight and shadow with a natural finish.

How to use it

Apply the lighter shade to the high points of the face and the darker blush shade to cheeks. Use fingers or a blush brush (Ford sells a Shade and Illuminate brush specifically for this product) to apply before blending with a cream foundation brush.

The bottom line

Lately, blush has taken a backseat to the much-hyped contouring craze that's caused divisiveness in the makeup industry. Tom Ford has found a way to marry the cheekbone-popping effect of contouring with the warmth of rouge via these two new blush duo palettes in his spring collection. According to the press release, this play of light and dark is integral to Ford's "face philosophy," a glamorous aesthetic that's embodied by his long-time muse, the luminous Julianne Moore; Ford's new blush palettes help you achieve an equally lit-from-within rosy sheen. Because of the formula's sheer finish it's hard to overdo it, so you won't wind up with the streaky look associated with contouring, just a subtly sculpted sheen. I used my fingers to apply, which warmed the cream and made it easier to blend. The end result is the kind of flush that you get when you're in love, and there's nothing more beautiful than that.

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