little white truths

I was recently sent this product for review and I was interested in trying it because I'd seen some good reviews online and wanted to see for myself what it was like.

You may have seen that I've just posted on Maybelline's strobe stick (reviewed here) and I do think that's the better product overall, but this isn't a bad find if you're new to contouring and want to try something cheaper before committing to a high-end product.

The first thing I noticed about the product was that the packaging has some weight to it and it doesn't feel flimsy or cheap, a common problem I've found with many pharmacy/drugstore packaging.

The next thing I noticed was that, while there's nothing hugely wrong with the colours of the two sides, they don't make sense to me because the 'contour' side is quite warm (so it's more of a bronzer than a contour) and the highlight side is so pale and cool that I'm not sure what it's doing in a product designed for medium skin. Just sayin'

Below I've done light and heavy swatches of each shade in different lights.

If you can see a bump or two, that's because I'm cold and not because the texture is grainy ; ) 

Shots taken outdoors above and below. Above is natural light and below indirect sunlight.

Another indirect sunlight shot (indoors):

Verdict

I'm glad I was sent this product to review because I mightn't have tried it otherwise: cream formulas can be difficult and I haven't had a lot of luck with them when it comes to pharmacy brands in particular.

Happily this product surprised me. It's a cream-to-powder formula that hasn't irritated my dry, sensitive skin - and while it does have a slight plastic/fake scent that I don't like, I'm only aware of the smell if I hold the product to my nose so it's not overpowering and I can live with it.

Both sides apply and blend well. If you apply too much product, don't worry because the formula sheers out to almost nothing if you want it to - so it's hard to go overboard with this. I personally love that in contouring products because it makes them easier to use.

What I'm a bit confused about with the Medium shade, however, is that the 'contour' side isn't cool enough for good contouring (at least on me) and the highlight shade is too frosty and white for my medium skin. While I can use the contour shade for bronzing because it pulls quite orange/red on me, the highlight shade just doesn't look right and I think it would be better-suited to paler skintones.

Otherwise the formula is pretty good and it offers a natural look because you can blend both sides well and the highlight isn't full of chunky glitter (that's a good thing, at least in my opinion).

My only issue with the formula itself is that it doesn't last too well (just a few hours) on its own, but you can improve longevity by setting it with a powder.

All in all, this is a good budget option - especially for beginners to contouring - if you're after something easy-to-use that travels well, but I'd definitely check that the colour options will work for you prior to purchase because they don't work for me.