Lakme Cheek Artist- Kiss of a Rose - Review and Swatches

Hola! Sorry I have missing in action for a while.Exams, and job have been keeping me busy, not to mention that stomach bug last week...blah.No matter on ward to the review.....
Product: Lakme Cheek Artist  |Shade : Kiss Of A Rose  |Price : INR 395 

    

Shelf Life: 3 yrs  |Weight: 6 g  

Let me state this right in the beginning: this is a really great product.It covers all the requirements of what I think consider must in a great blush:

• Colour wearability - a beeeyooooootiful pink shade with plum hints, it does NOT have any shimmer, making it a great choice for day wear or even for office.
• Ease of Application - its in a cream stick format which allows you to just swipe it directly onto your cheeks and blend.Otherwise there is ample choice to apply using a sponge, brush or fingertips.I personally use my middle finger to blend.
• Blendability - super blendable! its soft and spreads easy, in case of a mistake you can wipe off with a towelette and it won't leave a tint.Its easy to work with and leaves no sharp lines.
• Buildable - Yep! One can easily apply a couple of layers and still make it work. In fact I do 2 layers reaaaaaally well-blended for office. The stick form gives you a lot of control in the quantity you apply by just varying the pressure you put while gliding it onto your cheeks.Super easy right?

• Staying Power - Being a cream blush, it stays for a while on dry skin but on my combination/oily cheeks it barely stays for an hour. I need to build it up with 3 layers to get it to stay for a decent amount of time.And that means a LOT of blending!! Sometimes I just use a similar blush in powder form over it and that also helps in increasing its stay on my cheeks.
• Versatility - I can turn it into a shimmer shade by simply brushing a gold bronzer over it for the evening look. Super cool when you have to go from office to party look without no stop at home :)
• Price - at INR 395 (approximately 4 USD) it allows you to not feel guilty about buying one more blush after the last time you promised yourself that you wouldn't buy one more :P
• Portability - Easy to carry while travelling, office or leisure trip, this li'l baby goes everywhere!
• No breakouts - I love that this blush has caused no breakouts or itching on my cheeks. ( Had a really bad scare 2 yearsback with a blush causing pimples that left marks on my cheeks :/ )

What I don't like: 

• Staying power on combination/oily skin is very less (barely an hour on my cheeks!)
• No mention of ingredients on the box or stick.
• The plastic container stick is a little flimsy and I know some ladies have had problems with the twisting mechanism being faulty but no such problems in my product.

This blush has a definite place in my vanity kit because of its versatility and matte look.Suits all skin tones, specially dusky ones like me (I'm an NC 40-42).

Buy again: Yep! Once I finish this stick.

I give it : 3.5/5 (-1.5 because of the staying power)