We Tested Milk Makeup's Jelly Lip + Cheek To See If It Lives Up To The Hype

The best Milk Makeup Cooling Water Jelly Tint shades

As we mentioned the Milk Makeup Cooling Water Jelly Tint Lip + Cheeks come in four dreamy shades: Spritz, Chill, Burst, Splash. Having swatched all four below on Hanitra’s arm, we recommend choosing the Jelly Tint shade that catches your eye the most as one swipe gives you a wash of colour, which can be layered for a bolder look.

If you have paler skin, you might lean towards Spritz which is a happy coral or Chill that has pretty pink tones, while darker skin tones might be drawn to the bolder pink of Burst and rich berry tones in Splash.

Hanitra’s Milk Makeup Cooling Water Jelly Tint review

Skin tone: Medium

The shade: Milk Makeup Cooling Water Jelly Tint, £22.00 in Chill

I’m a big fan of the OG Milk Makeup Lip + Cheek, £22.00 and own pretty much every shade, so I’ve been desperate to get my hands on the Jelly Tints. When I first opened the Jelly Tint in Chill, I found the texture very interesting and wasn’t sure how strong the colour pay-off would be as the jelly stick looked quite watery.

I applied the blush on directly from the stick and it went on very smoothly, it glided. I would say you have to work really quickly to blend it in because the colour sets within seconds on your lips and cheeks. The finish is very natural and makes your skin look super fresh compared to the original Lip + Cheek. It’s much more pigmented than I thought it would be given the watery consistency.

The Jelly Tint lasted all day on my cheeks and stained my lips for a few hours. Once the blush has been applied, it really doesn’t budge. I think the Milk Makeup Jelly Tints are definitely worth the hype and Chill is going to be my go-to blush for the summer.

Lizzie’s Milk Makeup Cooling Water Jelly Tint review

Skin tone: Fair with yellow undertones

The shade: Milk Makeup Cooling Water Jelly Tint, £22.00 in Chill

I like a blush, I think I look a bit sickly without a little pop of colour, but I’m not fussy on the format – I’ll use creams, liquids or powders. I am fussy about the finish though and I’m not keen on shimmery shades. A blush with good pay-off that I can play around with is a makeup staple.

While I’ve seen Milk Makeup’s Lip + Cheek Tints on my TikTok, I’ve never actually used one. I’ve just admired the cute packaging and portability from afar. I’m pretty low maintenance when it comes to makeup and appreciate products you can apply with your hands, so I had an inkling I’d enjoy the Jelly Tints.

I picked Splash as I love a berry shade. This is a very ‘me’ colour and in real life, it did not disappoint. It was super easy to apply, but you do need to be quick with your blending. This is a blush to apply one cheek at a time rather than swatch onto both sides. I liked that you can build the colour up on your lips and cheeks.

The Jelly Tint had a stain like finish with incredible staying power and don’t feel sticky at all, even on my lips. For me, the blush lasted all day and will 100% be slotting the Jelly Tint into my everyday routine.

Viv’s Milk Makeup Cooling Water Jelly Tint review

Skin tone: Medium to deep

The shade: Milk Makeup Cooling Water Jelly Tint, £22.00 in Burst

So, I'm one of the many fans of Selena Gomez's Rare Beauty Soft Pinch Liquid Blush in Believe and even with the hype around the Milk Makeup Jelly Tints, I had my reservations about considering using another blusher. The punchy berry shade of Burst lured me in though - it's a really pretty colour. I like a pop of colour on my cheeks and I found Burst complemented my skin the best.

Despite the stick format, I actually found the Milk Makeup Jelly Tint quite tricky to apply. Based on the swatch I did on my arm I thought it required a firm application to get enough colour pay-off. I was wrong. It was very strong from the get-go and wasn't very blendable. You have to work very quickly with this formula before it dries because then it's set in place all day.

My work-around for this was to apply the Jelly Tint under my tinted moisturiser for a more natural finish. The Jelly Tint gives you a matte finish, but I have quite oily skin so by the end of the day it looked a little more dewy. Despite my oily skin, the blush lasted all day which I was pleasantly surprised by and as a result, I will definitely wear it again.

Victoria’s Milk Makeup Cooling Water Jelly Tint review

Skin tone: Fair

The shade: Milk Makeup Cooling Water Jelly Tint, £22.00 in Splash

Concealer, gel eyeliner, brow gel and cream blush are my daily makeup essentials. I’ve used Milk Makeup’s Lip + Cheek cream blush before and I like it, along with the cream bronzer, but it isn’t a product that I go back to time and time again. Not because it’s bad, but I’ve just found other cream blushers that suit my skin tone better (hello, VIEVE Sunset Blush Balm, £21.00 in Rosa). The wobbly jelly stick intrigued me though…

I was a little cautious of applying too much as the swatch on my hand dried very quickly and the pigment was much stronger than I’d anticipated. However, I swiped the stick across my cheeks, blended straight away and was pleasantly surprised by the subtle wash of colour it gave. Like everyone else has said, speed is of the essence with these Jelly Tints and you should apply a cheek at a time.

While I loved the colour and did actually end up applying an extra layer, I didn’t really get the cooling effect. The formula glides on, but it dries so quickly and once it’s dry it doesn’t leave any texture, so any cooling effect is there for a split second. It’s a product that lasts though and come summer when the temperatures rise, this is the blush we all need in our makeup bags.

Our verdict on the Milk Makeup Cooling Water Jelly Tints

A lot of beauty products go viral on social media and sadly, few of them live up to the hype. All of our testers plan to use the Milk Makeup Cooling Water Jelly Tint, £22.00 again, going as far as to say they’d become staples in their routine.

There’s been some talk on TikTok about Milk Makeup’s Jelly Tints being easy to break, but all our testers found the jelly sticks to be robust. There was one comment that came up though and that was the speed at which you need to blend the formula in very quickly as the jelly texture doesn’t have the same blendability as a cream. If you want long-lasting colour that is quick to apply though, these Tints are definitely worth exploring.

If you love the original Milk Makeup Lip + Cheek sticks, is it worth investing in the Jelly Tints? “I found the Jelly Tints have better staying power and I really like that they have a different texture and come in different shades,” says Hanitra. “I think it’s definitely worth having both in your makeup bag.”