I hope you are having a good week. I am catching up with the blog since it started raining in Rome in the afternoon and I was not very well that prepared for this, especially in terms of shoes. Today it was as horrendous experience in Vatican City while trying to visit San Pietro Basilica. I am shocked by how Vatican treats people, by that I mean, the tourists. The line was inhuman and if you paid four times you could skip it. The people who didn't pay had to basically survive over 2-3 hours stand in row which was defined by wooden borders and those were fixed with some monster screws which you could basically crash into being squeezed from the back of the line. You could get hurt badly. The conditions were really nothing but safe. I took some photos of these. Although it is not related to make-up, if you are interested, I can post here. It was the worst line I had to go through in my whole life. Anyone tried to go in there and experienced the same thing?
Today I have a contouring product for you, Smashbox Step-by-Step Contour Kit. Recently contouring became very popular. I was chatting with some of you about that in Instagram. I personally think not everyone should contour. I am seeing slim faced people who contoured themselves to death with stripes on the sides of their faces, usually of very warm shades, I despair. But if your face is round or you can profit from a little bit of emphasize on the bone structure, and if you find the right shade to do this, it is a nice trick which might work. Today I would like to show you how Smashbox's Kit worked for me.
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| Smashbox Step-by-Step Contour Kit: Contour Palette and Brush |
Smashbox Step-by-Step Contour Kit consists of a Contour Palette and a brush. The palette comes in a sleek plastic case with click closure. Inside there are three shades and on the mirror there are the instructions of where to apply each shade.
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| Smashbox Step-by-Step Contour Kit: Contour Palette |
The shades in Smashbox Contouring Palette are as follows:
Contour: An ashy cool brown to mimic the shadows of your face. This one is particularly nice since it is nicely pigmented but not overly so. More pigmented contouring products such as Kevyn Aucoin Sculpting Powder need lots of control and experience to apply and even after that you might end up with stripes if you are rushing. This one is a little less intense, hence it is easier to use on my light to medium complexion. You can find more comparisons below.
Bronze: A medium cool toned bronzer, which is warmer than the contour shade but a little cooler than my other bronzers. It is nice to warm up the face a little after you contour. According to the instructions of Smashbox, this one should be applied over the counter.
Highlight: A light ivory to brighten up under the eyes and over the cheekbones as well as points in the center of your face. This can also be used as a setting powder over your concealer or to blend your eye shadow over the crease and to highlight the brow bone.
Since Smashbox's focus is photography, the shades all have matte finishes. Nothing ends up flashing back. A matte highlighter is very handy and great especially if you have a combination to oily complexion. These are silky to touch and not powdery.
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| Close-up: Smashbox Contour Palette |
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| Swatch: Smashbox Contour Palette |
I pulled out some contouring products from my stash to give you an idea how Smashbox Contour and Bronze shades from Contouring Palette compare to them. The deepest shade of Anastasia Beverly Hills Contouring Kit is deeper and warmer. Anastasia contouring kit never worked for me properly. I especially hate the banana shade. Any tips and tricks for that? I wanted to review it but eventually I gave up. MAC Sculpt (reviewed here) is lighter and a little warmer than Smashbox Contouring Palette Contour shade. I like MAC Sculpt but I like Contour shade in this palette even more. It is very close to Kevyn Aucoin Sculpt Powder in Medium in terms of undertones but Kevyn Aucoin has stronger pigment, hence easier to overdo. For mornings when I rush, I reach for Smashbox version at the moment. Chanel Notorious is notoriously cool. Smashbox Bronze shade is close to one of my most beloved bronzers at the moment, Bronze Lights in Deep Matte (reviewed here) but a little lighter, which is even better for my complexion.
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| Smashbox Contour Palette comparison swatches |
Below you can see a close up of me wearing Contour, Bronze and Highlight shades from Smashbox Contouring Palette. My first observation is that I can't get along with the brush which comes in this kit. It doesn't have enough flexibility on its bristles for me. I might be spoiled by all my japanese fluffies though. I have other angled brushes which work better with this palette so I don't particularly recommend getting the kit just for the brush. Everything else works very well.
The photo below is taken from side to show you that it doesn't look fake or like a stripe if you use the right amount of product and blend nicely. Contour shade has the right amount of intensity for my complexion. Combined with the bronzer it looks even more natural. The matte highlighter, which has the right undertone for me works effortlessly to sculpt the cheek bones.
Note to myself: Looking at this photo, I see that I needed some of that contouring on my nose too lol.
Note to myself: Looking at this photo, I see that I needed some of that contouring on my nose too lol.
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| In-action: Smashbox Contour Palette |
Here is the full look. I am wearing Chanel Laurier Rose on my eyes with all kinds of MAC Eye Shadows applied near and over it, such as Quarry, Expensive Pink and Type Blanc. I have a touch of Tom Ford Frantic Pink on the apples of the cheeks and an RMK Lipstick on my lips which I will be reviewing very soon.
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| FOTD with Smashbox Contour Palette |
Final thoughts: I really like the shade offerings in Smashbox Contour Palette. The contour shade is fool proof , bronze shade is cold enough not to turn orange and ivory highlight shade is matte which makes it multi functional (brow bone, blending over crease, setting under the eyes and highlighting). I am not very excited about the brush which comes with it but only the contouring palette is worth the price tag. It is also great for traveling, so I certainly recommend checking it out if you are in the market for a sculpting/contouring product.
Do you contour? What is your product of choice?
Disclaimer: The product in this post was sent free of charge for my consideration.
I am not paid for this review. All opinions are honest and my own.