MAC Cosmetics Powder Blush- Melba

Had to finally try this blush after seeing so many positive reviews, and I’m glad I did. My skin tone is NC25-NC30 (light medium tan with yellow undertones) This is a beautiful light peachy beige on me. I actually felt like I had to give it a few swipes for it to really show up on me, but when it did it was a very beautiful warmth to my cheeks. Brightens the face. I actually like that I had to give it a few swipes because I don’t think I can go overboard with this color. Very soft and natural looking. Highly recommend.

Okay so i hopped on the melba hype bandwagon and i am never looking back. I was always a mac warm soul girl until i felt it doesnt lasts very long on the cheeks. I wanted something similar effect but with great longevity. Melba is a coral peach that makes me look healthy and flushed but a bit red if i go overboard. Its a bit streaky because it is highly pigmented and It doesnt apply as well as warm soul. Its a flushed cheek type of blush for my skintone. I am nc20 c1. Warm soul is the shimmery sister thats more toned down but same color family. Def give this a try if you like warm soul but dont like how it dissapears. I will wear warm soul on days where i have a darker smokey eye and melba when i want my skin and cheeks to stand out.


edit- as i start to wear melba and warm soul on and off i feel melba is harder to work with than warm soul since its so pigmented. I don't think id ever finish this since i only use a tiny amount on a stippling brush. Warm soul is still my HG because you can go crazy and pack on color but it won't look clown like. If i go heavy hand with melba id look like i have a sunburn. Its less beginner friendly. I am on the pale side so this is pretty intense because i tend to have a heavy hand. This is still very pretty for a flushed look but i still gravitate using warm soul because its more of a glow from within type of blush and its less harsh than melba. Its just a softer and more natural version of the same color. Maybe i just like mac mineralize line but it blends a lot better too. i wouldn't repurchase this.

Final edit- returned melba and got mac peaches! it reminds me of melba but work better/blends better and is lighter. I like the sheertone formula a lot more. If melba is too much for you then try peaches, you wont be dissapointed! Peaches might even replace warm soul as a favorite! :o

+++Oh and Margin is the sister of Melba but with a beautiful sheen. Margin def REPLACED warm soul in my heart! Margin and Peaches is all i need.

I think this boils down to personal preference but it was just too pigmented for a face product. I know everyone looooooves super pigmented items, but I find them artificial, hard to control and usually patchy. Not something I loved for me, or my kit. Shame, because it’s a beautiful colour!

I love this blush on my nc20/25 (I am exactly in between them) skintone. It makes me look healthy and fresh. I like the fact it is a mix of rose and brown, it is so natural. I also like to use melba as an eyeshadow, oh! So versatile!

MAC blusher are my holy grail blisters amazing quality price and pigmented colours good range and choice of colours. For £19.50 here in the UK you get a good amount and I sometimes use the darker brown shades as a contour and bronzer. The really light pink and pearlised shades can be used as a highlighter you can't go wrong. Light enough to carry when travelling multi purpose love these! I have the Melba shade it's a lovely subtle peach tone looks good on my Asian olive skin tone and is great for a daytime flushed look.

I’m NC20 & this blush is the perf blush for looking glowy in the winter! It doesn’t have sparklies like NARS “O” which sparkles enlarge my pores. This is 1 of my go-to’s #winning

A very flattering peachy-pink blush for olive undertoned people. It does oxidize a bit, which is annoying. Papaya by City Colour is a good dupe for this shade.

Update: I've found that this oxidizes significantly more when you apply MAC Fix Plus. It becomes several shades darker :( disappointing. I wish it stayed the same shade as when you swatch it.

I’ve been wearing MAC Melba every day for the last two months - I am that obsessed with it. It is the perfect shade to add a natural flush to warm skin. I have NC15 skin and it looks like a natural as healthy glow on the skin - it doesn’t lean too orange and it isn’t too bright. It is very well pigmented though, so I recommend using a light hand. It is buildable and doesn’t look at all cakey or powdery. It has a matte finish, making it the perfect natural, everyday blush. It lasts well over a wide variety of liquid foundations (I have not yet tried it over a powder foundation). This is now one of my must-have MAC products, I doubt I will ever be without it! Fair and warm skinned makeup lovers should all give this baby a whirl!

UPDATE: September 2018: This has been the only blush I have used since I bought it. I would never give up my other blushes, but for right now, this is my no brainer blush. I dare say, if I had to pick a desert island blush at the moment...it would be Melba. Melba has taken me through that post holiday winter phase into full on spring / summer and now ushering in fall. If you have not tried this, you should give it a fair shot. (nw20, deep winter)

UPDATE January 2018: Ok, so I did not stop thinking about this blush specifically because of a few reviews I read where the reviewer says something like "I get so many compliments when I wear this". I still stand by my original review, Prism was a better pairing for those deep wine, reds of the holiday season. However, I have found a new love for Melba. It does impart this "wow look at my skin" glow. And when done right, it is gorgeous even on my NW20 deep winter complexion that pulls orange out of everything! I paired Melba with the Fenty lipgloss, Expensive Pink on my eyes and Brown Script in the crease (both MAC) and I looked so fresh and glowy. I was floored. I was even wearing a very "winter" berry colored shirt and it just looked so peaches and cream. Melba compliments my Naked Heat palette really, really well too. All of these years I stayed away from some of these warmer tones, it turns out, I just need the RIGHT warmer tones (soft, not too extreme ones). You can teach an 43 year old dog new tricks ;) Melba, I am glad I kept obsessing over you. Bumping up to a full 5 lippies. I finally get the hype.

ORIGINAL REVIEW: The blush itself is great quality and one of those neutral MAC colors everyone should at least try as it is super popular and when it looks good, it looks gooooood. All that said, I am nw20 , deep winter with 3n hair and brow eyes, and a skintone that brings out orange in any color that has an iota of it in the shade. So while Melba was nice as a daily blush on me, it skewed a bit on the warm side with some deeper berry/red shades(depending on the lippie and eyeshadow I was wearing). With warmer to neutral shades or soft plums, it looked great. I wanted a blush to work with my deep berry and red lipsticks. Melba did, but not as well as Prism on me (with the deep berry & red lippies).

This must be my favorite blush of all time. It doesn't really work on its own when I'm at my very palest, I'd need help from my bronzer...but other times, it's great. It's a warm, muted apricot color, really brings out the golden tones (that I didn't even know I had) in my skin. It looks especially beautiful when I start to get a natural tan, gives me sexy sunkissed cheeks. For reference, I'm NC15 - NC20 and up to NC 25 in summer, with neutral-warm undertones. I've tried similar hues of blush from MAC (peaches, gingerly, etc), but this one looks the least 'orange' and is more muted, more natural looking on my face. I also like that its matte, makes it more versatile I feel, and I can build it up or tone it down depending on the time of the day or year. Love it.