Blusher has dominated the beauty space for the last couple of years, and you don’t need to spend long on social media to conclude that this movement isn’t slowing down anytime soon. So, fellow blush fans, allow me to point you in the direction of another great one: the Haus Labs Glassy Blush Balm Stick.
The brainchild of Lady Gaga, Haus Labs is widely regarded as one of the best celebrity beauty brands (a controversial topic in this industry, let me tell you). It makes one of my current favourite bases, the Haus Labs Triclone Skin Tech Foundation, so how do these new additions to its blusher line-up stack up? Let’s get into it.
The Glassy Blush Balm Sticks first launched in 2024 with an eight-shade-strong line-up that covered everything from your classic bright coral and dusky rose to lesser-seen lilac. Excitingly, the brand has now tapped into a big summer make-up trend by dropping four new blonzing options, described as “shades that flex between blush and bronzer”. These "Spiced-Up Neutrals" to the "Juicy Originals" are Glassy Ginger, Cayenne, Cinnamon and Clove—and they all come with that skincare-focused formula that Gaga has made the brand's signature.
Each of the embossed silver lids click off to reveal a perfectly smooth dome. Opening the shade Glassy Ginger, I simultaneously felt like I never wanted to touch it while also having the urge to crush the entire stick into a hard surface in one satisfying smush. As satisfying as that would have been, I went for the less wasteful option of applying a small-ish amount straight onto my cheeks.
Unlike something like the Rare Beauty Blush, of which you only need to apply a small dot, this is both semi-sheer and layerable. It glides across the skin like a figure skater on the ice. You’ll see from the swatches below that the colour payoff is outstanding, but it stretches well to create a low-level flush while building easily for noticeable colour.
Finish-wise, this blush has that perfect slight hint of dewiness without feeling slightly oily and looking next-level glowy—read: greasy on my oilier skin within an hour of wear. In my experience, this usually means a formula is a good all-rounder that suits drier complexions, too.
As for the wear? Despite that balmy consistency and slightly dewy finish, that aforementioned colour payoff paid off. It lasted well through the day; I looked just as healthily flushed a few hours in. I also noticed, after removing those swatches from my forearm, that they have a slight blush stain effect, which makes sense given the long-wear claims. I think eight hours might be a stretch, but it’s certainly stuck around longer than many other non-powder blushers I’ve tried.
I try not to lean too heavily into the “run, don’t walk, you need this product” cliché, but if you are in the market for a new blush, this has impressed me and is well worth trying. It blends beautifully, has strong colour options, lasts well and, judging by the size vs how much I applied in one go, I reckon each stick would last ages.
