The latest trend in blush is a colour you'd usually ban from being on your face.

by Mamamia Team June 25, 2015

Carla GS and the Urban Decay Afterglow 8-Hour Powder Blush in Bittersweet. Source: Supplied.

We’re totally bold when it comes to brightly-hued nails, lips and even hair, but blush? It seems that we’ve completely chickened out on blush in unusual colours.

Blush is the final frontier of coloured cosmetics. Think about it. Would you wear a bright purple blush?

Don’t be fooled: that wasn’t a rhetorical question. Purple blush is a trend that’s been rumbling along quietly, and now that 2015 is well and truly here, it’s made a loud and defiant arrival.

Urban Decay, that cult makeup brand that’s only just hit our shores at Mecca Maxima, will be releasing their Urban Decay Afterglow 8-Hour Powder Blush in July, and within this range is the orchid-purple “Bittersweet” shade, which I’m holding in the photo above. (Post continues after gallery.)

Purple makeup & celebrities

Rita Ora at the Grammys

Jennifer Hudson at the Grammys

Lorde, wearing her signature purple lipstick.

Katy Perry at the Arias

Lupita Nyong'o at the Golden Globes

Rihanna rocks ultra violet lips.

Eleanor Pendleton from beauty website, Gritty Pretty.

Backstage at the Derek Lam fashion show, SS15, #1

Backstage at the Derek Lam fashion show, SS15, #2

Backstage at the Derek Lam fashion show, SS15, #3

Matthew Williamson fashion show, SS15, #1

Matthew Williamson fashion show, SS15, #2

Backstage at the Vera Wang fashion show, SS15, #1

Backstage at the Vera Wang fashion show, SS15, #2

We all know that beauty nerds (ahem, me) go crazy over anything by Urban Decay ( Naked eyeshadow palette, anyone?). So, does this mean that the fashion and beauty set will be seen with purple cheeks come July? Perhaps.

If the trend for purple eye and lip makeup is anything to go by, then it is highly possible. And you thought strobing was weird!

I checked out the Urban Decay Bittersweet blush myself, and was surprised at the results, because the colour was actually… wearable. Here are four ways to wear it. Who would have thought there’d be so many uses for a fluoro purple blush compact?

1. As a blush.

Carla GS wears Urban Decay Afterglow 8-Hour Powder Blush in Bittersweet. Source: Supplied.

“I’m scared,” said Eddie, the editor of The Glow, upon first glance of the Urban Decay Bittersweet blush. And I was the one who had to put it on my face! A single swipe of a brush over the purple powder, and the bristles turned bright purple. I hunched over my desk and applied it to the tops of my cheekbones, hoping that no-one was looking.

“Your blush looks amazing!” declared Valentina, who writes for our sister site, iVillage (soon to be The Motherish). It turns out that everyone agreed - well, everyone sitting near me and my makeup-bombed desk, at least.

Once I showed them the hot purple colour of the blush compact itself, they were all shocked, because the blush on my cheeks looked more like a bright, deep pink, rather than a cheeky-sister-of-eggplant purple.

I would definitely wear this blush again, especially if I was looking or feeling tired. And, let’s face it, I’d wear it if I needed more attention and compliments. Don’t we all need more of those? Hey, while I’m at it – you’re awesome.

2. As a contour.

I'm sorry, but you have to do a mean pout when modelling a cheek contour. It's the rules. Source: Supplied.

Urban Decay Bittersweet blush can also work as a sneaky and alterna-babe contouring shade. I get so bored of all the browns used for contouring, so why not step it up a notch with purple? I think this look would work best with pared-back eyes and lips, because otherwise, you’re one perm away from a full 80s face.

3. As an eyeshadow.

Carla GS wears Urban Decay Afterglow 8-Hour Powder Blush in Bittersweet as an eyeshadow. Source: Supplied.

Unlike a pink rouge, this Grimace-toned blush can easily double as an edgy eyeshadow. I was already wearing black eyeliner when I whacked the Bittersweet blush on top, and I gotta say, it kind of works.

I’ve got a few layers of Bittersweet on my lids, but even a single sweep of this colour could be a pretty wedding-guest look.

4. As a lip colour

Carla GS wears Urban Decay Afterglow 8-Hour Powder Blush in Bittersweet as a lip colour. Source: Supplied.

I dabbed this Violet Crumble-hued powder all over my lips, added some all-purpose balm over the top (Elizabeth Arden Eight Hour Cream, in case you’re wondering), and voila!