March 1, 2011

Hard Candy Fox in a Box Blushing Quad Review, Swatches, Photos

As you know Hard Candy has several new blushes for Spring 2011 entitled Fox in a Box. These are broken up into blushing quads and bronzing duos and housed in tiny boxes kinda like our beloved Benefit packaging but with a budget price tag.

The blushing quads are available in four shades and I believe they are $6 each (don’t quote me on the price). If you’ve always wanted Benefit’s version because of the cute packaging this might be one to look into or just because they are rather cute and have a nice inexpensive price tag.

Did I like ’em?

Find it after the jump!


A boxed blush quad featuring four shades of color to mix and match!


Packaging is adorable and definitely appeals since I look at them and instantly think Benefit however the box isn’t nearly as sturdy and it’s a bit flimsy in comparison. It does contain a generous amount of powder at 0.20 oz compared to Benefit’s version of 0.28 oz at the price of $28.

The powder has a flip lid with a brush stored in the flap with a small stretchy band. The brush is pretty tiny so you’re better off using a brush of your own to swirl around in the powder and buff into place. The shade I tried was Hot Flash which proved quite nicely pigmented. The color was made up of two shades of contrasting beige peach in a matte and semi-matte formula plus two shades of contrasting pink in the same finishes. The bright pink and fuchsia shades were definitely pretty and the beige-y shades tamed these colors down so the blush applied without being too loud or vibrant. The powder wasn’t too silky and it proved a little difficult to blend out at first but I smoothed it out properly and felt it left behind a nice bit of color!


The box is a bit flimsy so you won’t want to travel with it less it crush or tear.

The brush is quite scratchy and sheds a good deal.

 

 

I wasn’t particularly keen with the chemical scent that the blush had but not too bad.� I had a tad difficult time blending it out at first due to the matte formula that wasn’t particularly silky. It does take a little TLC to get it into place correctly due to not only the formula but also the louder, brighter shades in the quad.

  • Anyone seeking a budget friendly, “cute” blusher!
  • Anyone who likes bolder, brighter blushes (the pinks that dominate this quad are very vibrant).

  • Those who want packaging built to last (if you’re one for tossing stuff into your purse and makeup bag and dashing off you might want to re-think the action as the box will easily crush or get damaged).
  • Those who don’t have the time or patience to blend out their blush properly (I thought this took a little care to get into place without giving me clown-y cheeks).


Overall, Hard Candy Fox in a Box proves a very cute, inexpensive blush find. I liked it well enough but it had a few quirks to it that prevented me from giving it a complete Muse Approval. I’ll probably indulge in a few other shades when and if I finally find them at my local Evil Empire. The blush is a good value compared to more inexpensive higher end products so it might prove fruitful if you’re on a strict beauty budget. I wouldn’t call it amazing but it’s pretty good at this price.


(Fox in a Box in Hot Flash on Cheeks)

If you tried Fox in a Box I’d love to hear your thoughts, do share ’em!

Hard Candy is available exclusively at Walmart.

About the Muse

Isabella MuseIsabella is just an average everyday geeky girl who doesn’t blend her eyeshadow correctly, wears too much blush, and hopes she never finds her holy grail products because she likes the thrill of the chase so much. Her mission is to bring you super honest reviews on makeup, skincare, fragrance and all things beauty. She’s in no way an expert on the topic and she sure as hell isn’t a super model. But she’s passionate about makeup and is seeking like-minded individuals that like pina coladas, getting caught in the rain, and ones that enjoy spending hundreds of dollars at Sephora without feeling buyer’s remorse. If you’re that person feel free to reach out and leave a comment or follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Bloglovin‘.

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Comments

  • Sasha

    I picked it up yesterday, and another one as well, and it was $6 at my Walmart. There was another box that looked quite similar to Sugarbomb in my opinion. I think there were three boxes with the four colors, and two boxes with two shades in them.

    I agree that the brush is trash. I haven’t tried the blush yet, but will tomorrow. I also don’t think the box will stay closed.

    • the Muse

      ooo sugarbomb dupe eh Sasha ;-D sounds good. thankfully I thought that would be issue but it closes fine ;D!

  • winni

    Yup, I bought hot flash and spicy and sweet and I loves ’em. I also bought one of the glossaholic glosses that is supposed to “relax you”, but all it did is smell weird and leave me with super giant glitter lips. I’m givin that one to my niece…

  • Courtney

    I’ve been so curious about these so I’m super glad you reviewed this one. I honestly have more blushes than anyone reasonably needs but I’m so tempted to get this. Are you planning on reviewing the other shades?

    • the Muse

      I think so Courtney. I got a bronzer I’ll be sure to review soon but I also want to buy a few more shades, I’m the same more blush than I’ll ever need but I’m kinda tempted to indulge in the other shades so I’ll def prob do reviews/swatches. I haven’t found them yet though 🙁 my evil empire didn’t have stock when I checked :-/

      • Courtney

        Do they have it on Wal-mart online? You can have stuff shipped to the store for free. It may seem extreme for $6 blush but if you really want them you may as well.

        • the Muse

          I didn’t see ’em on walmart’s online site Courtney and didn’t know they ship to store free, thanks chica ;-D that’s a rather awesome feature ha! I’ll have to re-look and see if they are popping up yet! saves me the hassle of searching!

  • Jessica

    I’ve only been able to find one so far! This is going to sound completely bizarre, but once I got past the top layer of product, what’s underneath blended really beautifully. (Sometimes pressed products are over-pressed/too hard pressed and end up making you blend for ages, so if you loosen it a bit by removing the very very top layer sometimes what’s underneath works better)
    *Off to the weird and crazy corner*

    • the Muse

      no it’s true jessica. I used two different brushes as well and felt the bushy one I used worked way better as it kicked up alot of powder so I could dust off and blend properly where as with my bobbi brown domed blusher brush it didn’t do so well picking up color :-/ and ended up blending out crummy!

  • Susan

    Hard Candy has been getting more and more buzz lately and Fox in a Box will give me an excuse to check it out (after all, I’ll be doing myself a favor by saving money vs Benefit, right? 😉 ) Can’t wait to cruise the Wal-mart aisles and snag some!

    • the Muse

      ha Susan sure you ;-D I think you’ll like it. the blush is actually pretty nice ;D!

  • Jessica

    Thanks Muse! My Bobbi Brown brush is picky! Sometimes she likes to pick up color, sometimes she doesn’t. I call her “The Snob” she won’t associate herself with certain brands lol

    • the Muse

      ha jessica ;-D I adore the domed brush they sell with their lush kits from NM it’s my HG ;-D but it def didn’t want to work with this 😛

  • Kaila

    For me, I found that the brushes provided are actually too soft! They pick up NO product whatsoever because they just slide and bend right overtop of the pressed powder. And I’m definitely a handbag hauler so the first thing I thought too was that I won’t be tossing these into my bag with EVERTHING else and its mother lol. But that might be a good thing! Thorough review AS ALWAYS! 🙂

    • the Muse

      hey kalia yup def not a dense brush it flops around alot ;-D but scratchy too 😛 thanks!!!!

  • Quinctia

    So, as someone who totally doesn’t use blush, I’m curious. With something like this, would you generally just wear all the colors together as in your lower swatch, or would you also wear the individual ones?

  • Courtney

    I picked one up in spicy and sweet last night and I like it a lot. I think it’s the one that looks like Benefit’s Sugarbomb but I’ve never used Sugarbomb so I can’t really say whether it’s a dupe or not (i’m more of a coralista girl). Anyway, I really liked it so far. It’s really pigmented and it’s more of a warm pink when blended together. Since I’m fair most of the blushes I have are cool tones so this one is a nice addition to my collection. Btw, the evil empire near my house had all of them. I’m also curious as to the orange and bronze duo but I wanted to see it swatched first.

    • the Muse

      I am too courtney love me some coralista. Oh I have it upcoming shortly ;-D it’s actually very nice! no such like here. Had to haul ass to two evil empires, was emotionally drained after that road trip lol! needed a nap lmao! god hate wally world. but no luck, nada has any of the new goodies, my search continues!

      • Courtney

        That totally sucks. Can you order them online from Hard Candy?

        • the Muse

          nooo courtney wish they offered online shopping on the HC site :-/