Contour Cosmetics…not only an Indie brand but a UK based Indie brand! There’s not a huge amount of info available anywhere about these guys anywhere apart from a very brief ‘about’ website section (their FAQ section isn’t much better, although the focus of that is customer service/ shipping etc so you’re covered from that point of view), but the company according to the info on the products packaging anyway is based in Cheshire I believe.
I had seen their products before (they have a pretty impressive online presence and their contour kits grace the makeup kits of loads of makeup artists, including Kim K’s very own Mario!), but it was spotting them on Instagram that drew my attention to them again recently and made me interested in testing out a few of their products. As the brand name suggests they’re mainly known for their cream contour palettes, but on their website they have a pretty decent selection including highlighters, lip kits, primer/ setting spray and tools/ brushes. Although again I can’t find any specific website info, according to their Insta they are a cruelty free brand which is great! They do ship worldwide too.
I decided to pick up a cream contour palette and also spotted that they had a powder highlighter palette too…you know me and highlighters, one of those had to come home with me too! There’s 2 options of cream contour palette available, the Contour Compact Original palette (which leans a lot warmer, more of a bronzing palette in my opinion) and Contour Compact 2 which has a cooler selection (therefore a more realistic/ natural looking contour) and is the one I went for. I needed a new cream contour palette for my Pro kit and I felt like this one had the better selection of shades for a wider spectrum of skin tones too. Check out the contour palette swatches…
One of the first things I noticed about these contour creams…the coverage! These super pigmented creams are full coverage for sure. You could definitely use them alone as a flawless base in it’s own right! I’d usually go in with my usual base products personally or base products to suit the individual client/ their skin first though, but the high pigmentation of these means I only need to use a tiny bit to give the face depth and dimension and prevents the need for too many base layers (which can cause makeup to slip and slide) which is great! The creams blend out beautifully! I do feel like unless you/ your clients skin was super dry, you would need to set these with a similar tone powder (as I nearly always would anyway) as they don’t set down completely matte. I’m not mad at that though, it’s more of an advantage if anything as you get more play/ blend time and it looks a lot more natural on the skin. The lighter shades are great for under eye correction/ concealing and highlighting too!
It is slightly fragranced, but nothing super offensive or even noticeable really…and I’m pretty picky/ sensitive to scent in makeup/ skincare!
I’ll be really putting this palette through it’s paces during the busy holiday season!
Next up (*fanfare*)…the Spotlight Highlighter palette. It was kind of love at first swatch with this one. All Contour Cosmetics palettes are slimline, light weight and great for travel/ handbag/ kit etc…(this one’s no exception) but the packaging also feels sturdy enough too and the strong magnetic closure on them mean less chance of palette malfunctions/ devistation eg. opening in your bag/ smashing, always good! The palette contains 3 smooth, glowy not glittery powder highlights.
➕VERVE – pale champagne gold with a slight pink/ warm shift
➕MINK – soft light gold
➕CLIQUE – rose gold
The texture/ finish of these is somewhere between a Becca Shimmering Skin Perfecter* which is a silky smooth and naturally glowy and another long time favourite of mine, the Ofra Cosmetics highlighters* which are just as smooth and non glittery, but definitely one of the most blinding highlighters on earth! I like that this palette sits between the 2…a little gives a subtle lit from within and building it means you’re seen from space, best of both worlds! Not the biggest pans ever (3 x 3g) but you don’t need to use a lot! The shade selection is gorgeous, something for most skin tones as highlight and Clique also makes for a super pretty blush topper. Big fan of this palette so far!
You can get your hands on Contour Cosmetics online on their own website, MISSGUIDED and lookfantasic. And as of 1st November, you can shop online (and swatch too!) in most larger stores (check/ contact your local branch to find out more) of Sally’s and Salon Services in the UK.
(They have said they’re launching in store at Riley Rose in the US too soon, but date TBC)
Have you tried anything from Contour Cosmetics? What did you think? I think I’ll definitely be picking some other bits from them!
Lyd x
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