Review: Anastasia Beverly Hills Contour Kit

Hello Readers!

I thought I would review the Anastasia Beverly Hills Contour Palette after I got so much great feedback on my last tutorial: Contouring 101.

For starters, if any of you are fellow makeup addicts, you have most likely heard about this coveted palette. For the longest time the palette was only available online and always sold out on the Anastasia Beverly Hills website. Lucky for us, Sephora announced that they would begin selling the palette exclusively online back in the beginning of April. You can only guess how many people were excited about this announcement and finally given the opportunity to get their hands on it. Although Sephora started selling the palette, so many buyers were upset as it would sell out again within an hour of being restocked. I was lucky enough as to snag one up a before Easter weekend within the 30 minutes it took to sell out again for a second time. Since the palette is so hard to find, so are its reviews. Therefore, without further ado, I will be reviewing the Anastasia Beverly Hills Contour Palette.

Top Row (L-R): Vanilla, Banana, Sand. Bottom Row (L-R): Java, Fawn, Havana.

 

The palette comes packaged in a protective sleeve mirroring the design on the front of the palette. The palette itself is made of a smooth and sturdy cardboard that uses a magnetic closing. When the palette is opened there are 6 pans approximately 1.5″ in diameter. The top row has 3 powder highlighting shades (L-R) Vanilla, Banana, and Sand. The bottom row has 3 powder contouring shades (L-R) Java, Fawn, and Havana. All the sades are matte, except for Sand which is a shimmer. Each pan is held in place by a magnetic bottom and is removable if it needs to be replaced.

Vanilla: a light matte cream

Banana: a pale yellow based matte

Sand: a pale nude shimmer

Java: a warm neutral brown matte

Fawn: a cool neutral brown matte

Havana: a warm red based brown matte

Swatches: 

Swatched: natural light on NC15 skin

 

Blended: natural light on NC15 skin

Matte Contour Shade Comparisons: natural light on NC15 skin

Final Thoughts:

I think this is a really great palette for any beginner who is interested in learning to contour. That being said, I think it can still be a great asset to any growing makeup collection or kit. I wont lie,many of the shades in the palette can be found in a dupe however not in this format nor in such superior formula. Its wide variety of shades are suitable for most skin tones with the exception of probably those with extremely light or dark skin. For those with lighter skin, I would suggest contouring using Fawn. Those with medium skin should stick to Java. And lastly those with darker skin should fall in love with Havana. I think all the highlight shades are fantastic and like there is a shimmer one as well. I especially love Banana as its yellow undertones mask virtually any redness and is perfect for setting your under eye concealer. Each shade is very pigmented and applies smooth. When using a brush, I noticed that the formulas are very powdery and tend to make a mess on the palette. Since they are so powdery, I advise knocking off you brush of any excess before applying it to your face. If you don’t knock off your brush you will notice fallout especially with the darker shades.

PROS:

• Packaging
• Pigmentation
• Texture
• Variety of shades and finishes in one convenient palette
• Used pans can be replaced
• Good for beginners and experts
• Value
• Cruelty Free

CONS:

• Powdery/ Fallout on with darker shades
• Always sold out

The Math: 

This palette is available online only at Sephora and Anastasia Beverly Hills for $40.00USD. The palette holds 6 pans with approximately .11oz of product each which translates to approximately $60.00USD per ounce. For comparison purposes, Benefit Hoola retails for $28.00USD and holds .28oz of product translating to approximately $100.00USD per ounce. By purchasing the Anastasia Beverly Hills palette, you are getting essentially 3 full size bronzers for under half the price.

For those of you who would like to see this palette in action, check out my tutorial Contouring 101 where I use various shades to create a sculpted every day face

XO-