NATASHA DENONA Hy-Blush

Most Helpful Critical Review

Pretty colors, but apparently not cruelty-free as advertised

I am grateful to Natasha Denona for sending me a sample of this product as part of the BzzAgent sampling program in exchange for my honest review, which follows here. This is an interesting product. Both colors in this duo set start as a gel, but turn to a powdery finish on your skin. I don't thi...nk I've ever used a gel blush before, and I was a little concerned that this color wouldn't blend very well or that it might be too strong on my fair complexion. You do need to move kind of quickly to blend it for the more natural look that I prefer, but a little practice helps. The color is more vibrant and noticeable than I usually use, but it's very pretty. The two colors in this set, Nude Muse, are a blush and a highlighter, and they complement each other beautifully. It doesn't feel heavy or stiff or dry on my skin, thankfully, and it actually contains vegan squalene and sunflower wax to help keep skin hydrated. The color is very long-wearing, too, and is still visible until I remove my makeup at night. I wasn't familiar with the name Natasha Denona before trying this blush set. It seems to be a higher-end brand, and the quality of this product is obvious throughout, from the attractive packaging to the pigment and texture of the colors themselves. And I appreciate that all of this brand's products are vegan. However, their website says their products are also "certified cruelty-free". Certified by whom?? Because neither PETA nor Leaping Bunny have ever heard of them, and there's absolutely no certification listed or C-F logo printed anywhere on their website or on the product packaging. Their packaging does say "not tested on animals", but that is NOT the same thing as being cruelty-free! Far from it. The brand may not test their finished products on immobilized and terrified cats and rabbits, but they might test their constituent ingredients on them or work with suppliers who do the dirty work. Either way, not cruelty-free, and that's disappointing.