“Miracle Balm was actually a brilliant mistake,” Bobbi Brown tells me over email. “When I was developing the launch products for Jones Road, I was working with the lab to create another product I had in mind. When the lab sent back a sample of what they thought I wanted, it was completely wrong and not at all what I asked for. But it did look sort of interesting so instead of getting upset about it, I just stuck my fingers in it and dabbed it on my cheeks.” Impressed with with its texture and moisturizing benefits, she thought plain and simple—‘what a miracle.’
A production slip-turned-serendipitous discovery, Miracle Balm is now the brand’s bestseller. The blush-meets-bronzer is described by Jones Road as “a light-reflecting super-product that’s as versatile as it is simple to use.” Nearly four years after its initial launch, the multitasker has only grown in popularity; having amassed thousands of five star reviews on the brand’s website with monthly searches for it up 50% year over year and what feels like endless TikTok praise.
I’m often asked if Miracle Balm is worth the hype—and if so, which shade? For those unfamiliar, there are 13 total. “Depending on what shade you choose, it can be used as a blush, a bronzer, a highlighter or an all-over tint,” Brown instructs. One might choose shade Flushed for a classic pinkish blush hue, or shade sun-kissed for something that reads more bronzer. Today, Brown debuts shade Pinky Bronze, a warm pinkish brown she’s technically had in the works for years—first made in 2020 as a lipstick called Batch18. Realizing the shade had versatility beyond just lip color, she had her team readapt the formula for Miracle Balm; then, in October 2023 tested it as a mini in her limited-edition Bobbi 3.0 kit. Members of her Jones Road Roadies Facebook group continued to praise the shade long after the kit sold out; so much so, she decided to make it part of the permanent collection.
Though Brown believes Pinky Bronze to be the most versatile shade in the whole collection (it can be used for a sheer wash of color on fair skin, or color-correct sallowness for those with yellow undertones), the entire range can be built up to provide an instant flush on all skin tones. That is, if you apply it correctly. “Customers will sometimes tell us that they aren’t getting enough payoff in the color but, that’s usually because they haven’t ‘broken the seal’ on the product to release the pigmentation,” Brown says. To do so, simply press your index finger into the pot to break the seal on the surface so that the color can be released. Once you do so, you’ll achieve more intense pigment.
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With the seal broken, you can apply Miracle Balm to the cheeks, lips, or anywhere you want color with your fingertips or a brush. “If you have oily skin, I recommend putting your balms of choice over a light veil of loose powder,” she continues. “If you have dry skin, the balms float effortlessly over the skin to hydrate and provide a glow.”
There’s no difference in the way you apply Miracle Balm, regardless of your age, she continues, but women over 50 tend to have skin on the drier side. Though the blush is rich in jojoba seed oil to continue hydrating skin throughout wear—the second reason Miracle Balm is so coveted—be sure to apply a good fave moisturizer before diving in. “That is the best way to prevent makeup from caking into wrinkles,” Brown continues, emphasizing use of skincare-makeup hybrids which pair nourishing ingredients with pigments that keep skin looking fresh and glowing. Her last bit of advice? Avoid using powders or heavy foundations because they can make the skin look dull and flat—settling into fine lines. “I’m in my mid-60s, I don’t know what I would do without this product.”