Showing posts with label contour & highlight. Show all posts
Showing posts with label contour & highlight. Show all posts

Thursday, 15 September 2016

ChiChi Cosmetics Highlight & Contour palette

Palette Review & Swatches

If you're a beginner with makeup or on a budget, this could be the contour palette for you! I was so excited when I saw this was coming out, ChiChi Cosmetics is one of my favourite affordable brands & to hear that they were bringing out their own highlight & contour kit!? I had to get one to try out & compare with my others. The price is amazing for 8 different contour/highlighting shades & the quality is not so bad either! This palette is available at Farmers for $30 NZD or online from ChiChi's website for $25 AUD
"The Golden Rule of successful highlighting & contouring is to use as little product as possible so the end result is believably natural, to blend it in well & add more colour gradually. Highlight the areas of the face you want to look bigger & emphasise - Contour & shade the areas of your face you want to look smaller & have less emphasis"
This is on the back of the palette & it's so true when it comes to the art of contouring! A little goes a long way with contour powders & it's best to start with the tiniest dab on your brush as it's much easier to blend out & add more if desired.. Especially with this palette as I found it was a little harder to blend then say KvD or ABH where it seems no matter how much you use or if you mess up, they blend like smooth butter! This palette is a little drier so it can get patchy easier, that's why you really have to work with a light amount of product & have patience blending. The shimmer highlight though?! Um wow it's so glowy & super buttery, blends like a dream on the high points. 
The shades are numbered 1 to 8 & the under the palette cover there are helpful tips on how to use each one & where to use them on your face

♥SWATCHES

  1. Is a stunning champagne shimmer highlight that doesn't have too much colour but a lot of reflection so it looks quite natural & blends in seamlessly
  2. This a fair matte setting powder, I like to use this under my eyes to set my concealer but can also be used as a matte cheekbone highlight or base eyeshadow 
  3. Is a matte banana setting powder, unfortunately a little too dark for my under eyes (might be good in summer though) so sometimes I mix it with 2 or 4 & apply on my forehead, chin & around my nose & sometimes under my contour to clean up the shape for sharp definition
  4. Is a large matte setting powder, its almost translucent so not much coverage, I use this all over my face to set foundation, I love how big it is in the palette because I do use so much of it.
  5. Is a very neutral contour shade, it's on the warmer side when you compare it with shade 6, I like to use it as a face bronzer instead of contour because it's the perfect size for my big bronzer brush & I personally prefer a neutral tone as appose to a warm/orangey bronze.
  6. Is, in my opinion, the perfect contour shade for light-medium skin tones! It's a cool taupe that looks like natural contour when blended, but needs to be built up slowly or it can look muddy.
  7. One of the two warmer bronze shades, this one is slightly darker for a golden tanned look, it almost has a red/brown base & is matte, no shimmer. I almost wish it had a little sheen for that "sunkissed glow" effect
  8. Is another warm bronzer, this one is lighter than shade 7 & has an orangey/brown base. This one does have a slight sheen to it, I haven't used this one yet but I imagine in summer it could look really nice with a golden tan
Overall this is a really nice, affordable contour & highlighting palette that has good pigmentation & a good variety of shades. Don't expect the quality of KvD or ABH because they can go patchy or cakey if you're not careful, but they are a great alternative fore someone on a budget looking for a quality contour kit! ChiChi never fails to make amazing affordable products, make sure you check them out! 
Using shades 1, 2, 4 & 6


LucyLoves! xx

Wednesday, 20 January 2016

Anastasia Beverly Hills Cream Contour Kit

Swatches & Palette Review


Finally, I got my hands on the super popular Anastasia Beverly Hills 
Cream Contour Kit, in the new shade FAIR
I have the powder contour kit & use it a lot, so I was super excited to try 
out this cream kit, especially when they released the Fair kit!
I know Anastasia makes high quality products & this palette is no exception 

Contains 3 highlighting & 3 contouring shades,
To sculpt, define & enhance your natural features
Price $40 USD for 6x 4.5g 
Available on anastasiabeverlyhills.com


First thing I noticed when ordering was the classy new packaging
Thick black plastic case with a clear lid & removable magnetic pans.
Very sleek & looks nice on your vanity.
One thing we look for in a great contour, cream or powder, is of course the shade
Is it too ashy? Is it too warm toned? Does it have shimmer?
These shades are spot on! (swatches below)
My skin tone is NC15 - 20 (mac) & the contour shades are perfect! 
Also the highlighting shades work really nicely, but I'd like to point out they do
not work like concealers & they aren't meant to, where you place the product is where you
want to brighten the skin & highlight, not conceal & cover..
Super pigmented shades & a nice consistency - not too creamy
I apply the shades, using a paddle foundation brush, exactly where I want shade & light 
then blend out using a damp beauty blender.
If you have dryer skin & find the product a little hard to blend out, I've heard a few people
say they mix a drop of beauty oil (e.g Argan/Jojoba Oil, Tarte Marajuca Oil) to make it
 creamier & help with blending.

SWATCHES

Soft Light - Cool toned Highlight, Satin Matte Finish

Lustre - Icy Pearl Sheer Highlight, Shimmer Finish

Fair - Warm toned Highlight, Satin Finish

Fawn - Cool toned Brown Contour, Satin Matte Finish

Shadow - Neutral mid-tone Brown Contour, Satin Finish

Mink - Neutral/Cool deep Brown Contour, Satin Finish


You might be wondering what I mean by the Satin Matte finish with some of
these shades, in my opinion they set slightly more matte with less radiance to them, which may be
another reason people add beauty oil to give a more dewy finish? But don't these shades just look delicious to contour with!? I had to smother them all over my face when they arrived! I was surprisingly impressed with "Lustre" the illuminating cream, it gives a very intense yet very natural glow to the skin. That is what I like about this palette, it gives the most natural looking contour & highlight, you wouldn't know you were wearing makeup! But if you're wanting sharp, more defined cheekbones I recommend going in with a powder contour instead, or as well for a contour that lasts all day/night long!

For $40usd I totally think this palette is worth it
You're getting 6x quality cream contour/highlight shades in one kit!
That's about $6.60 per pan, not bad at all! Plus I heard Claudia (Norvina) mention they will be bringing out refillable pans for these kits! So if you use one particular colour a lot, you don't
have to buy another kit to replace that shade once used. Or you can pop them all in a 
Z palette for convenience & travel.

Remember if it doesn't work or blend as easily for you, try using a damp 
beauty blender or adding some beauty oil to each pan before applying!



LucyLoves! xx