Battle of the Contour Palettes!

These days you don't even have to be a makeup lover to know that contouring is EVERYWHERE. Almost every major makeup brand from drugstore to high end has come out with their own contouring kit or palette and it it can get a little overwhelming trying to find once that suits you. Well I decided that I'm going to do a little run down of a few of the popular palettes to maybe help you decide which would be a good fit for you. 

Anastasia Beverly Hills Contour Kit ($40)

First up is the Anastasia Beverly Hills Contour Kit. ABH was one of the first brands to really popularize contouring recently and this kit is crazy popular. 

Pros:

-magnetized pans 

-tons of shade selection to choose from

-easy to blend powder

-widely available at many stores and online

-six shades for a variety of contouring styles

-thin palette good for travel 

-fair price for the brand (roughly $6.67 per pan)

-options for matte/shimmer highlight shades

Cons:

-pans are small

-powders can be a bit powdery

-sells out fast and restocks can take a while

-packaging is somewhat bulky compared to size of pans

-no mirror inside of palette

-color fades throughout day

-no guide for product placement for beginners 

Too Faced Cocoa Contour ($40)

If you love the Chocolate Soleil bronzers from Too Faced, you'd love this one. It's has four shades and all are made with the same moisture and antioxidant rush Cocoa a complex in other TF products and has that same divine chocolate smell. I love this one. 

Pros:

-universal shades to use on many skin tones

-warmer shade to bronze

-cooler shade to sculpt

-shimmer highlight shade included

-mirror included in palette

-comes with mini slanted kabuki brush for easy application

-product placement guide included

-buttery texture makes it easy to blend

Cons:

-higher price for amount of product ($10 a pan)

-highlight shade is too glittery for some tastes

-packaging is quite bulky

-light highlight shade is slightly ashy

-can easily look muddy of not blended

-easy to pick up too much product on brush

Kat Von D Shade + Light Contour Palette ($46)

This is a fairly new one on the market and it's been making waves across YouTube and Instagram. It's a best seller and it's usually sold out so if you want this palette, snatch it up while you can!

Pros:

-three different trios of highlight/contour shades for different skin tones 

-large contour pans sizes

-sturdy packaging

-smooth buttery powders

-easy to blend

-very pigmented

-mirror included inside

-product placement guide included

Cons:

-limited availability (Sephora)

-small highlight pan sizes

-no replacement pans available

-pricier option than competing brands

-easy to make skin muddy if using too heavy of a hand

-matching brush sold separately ($36)

-bulky palette not ideal for travel

-no shimmer highlight shade available 

BH Cosmetics Forever Nude Sculpt and Glow Palette ($11.95)

This is an affordable option I threw in the mix because I actually really like this one. It's so cheap yet the product itself is amazing. This is a good option for beginners. 

Pros:

-price friendly

-two different options (Light/Medium and Medium/Deep

-blush shade included

-matte contour shades

-warm and cool shade included

-mirror included inside

-shimmer highlight included

-easy to blend powders

Cons:

-flimsier packaging

-powders can look too orange if too much applied

-online availability only

-can look powdery or chalky if not blended properly

-limited option for very fair/very deep skin tones

-blush is not too pigmented

I just ordered the new Lorac PRO Contour Palette, so when that arrives I'll update this post to include it. I hope you guys found this little guide helpful. Contouring can be a little daunting when you're just starting out and finding the right product can be tricky. Sometimes it just takes a little trial and error. If you own any of these, what are your thoughts? Which one is your favorite? Thanks for reading and have a fabulous day everyone!