I am a sucker for palettes, whether they're eyeshadow, blush, highlighters or in this case contour powders. The convenience of having many colours just makes me feel like I will be ready for anything. This contour palette didn't disappoint. I am someone who gets very pale in winter and super tan in summer so I feel this palette can cover all my bases.
What I've found is I adore the lighter shades. The Banana shade is fantastic at setting and brightening my eye area, but I do prefer it when I'm more tan so the light matte pink shade is good for this purpose in winter. The shimmer highlight shade is very subtle but pretty. It is a little powdery though, while the others have a more creamy feel.
The contour shades are very pigmented and blend beautifully. The darkest I haven't used as its a little too dark and warm for me.
I like how I can remove the pans and replace individually as they sell the pans on their site. The packaging is simple. On first impression I thought it a little tacky being like a cardboard case but it has a secure magnetic closure. It does get finger prints on the packaging though but overall I do like it. I was surprised at the size of the pans, I imagined them to be bigger. They are 3g each.
For reference I'm in MAC NC42-44 with oily skin and I've been using this palette for almost a year. I really enjoy it because it doesn't take up too much space in my makeup bag, it's slim and lightweight (palette is made out of cardboard) and it takes the guessing game out of "which shade should I take with me today"?
Highlight = Vanilla, Banana and Sand Contour = Java, Fawn and Havana
I use all of the contour shades and only Sand from the highlight. The powders blend beautifully and are quite pigmented especially Havana! I start my contour with Fawn, it has a greyish undertone which alone looks a bit off on my skintone but I use Java to warm it up and then Havana for definition. Sand is the only highlight powder I can pull off but if I'm not careful it can look frosty on me. The powders last about 4-5 hours before they begin to fade.
I was hoping to use Vanilla and Banana under my eyes but they're too light for me and no matter how much I blend, buff or soften the powders I still look ASHY. I use the 2 to help mattify my lipsticks (over tissue) instead. On me the Banana powder looks the same as Ben Nye's Banana powder just a tad brighter where Ben Nye's slightly more dull/flat.
The palette is designed so you can remove the pans and replace with different shades from the brand - the magnetic board is no joke!
I'm quite happy with this kit, once I've hit pan I can customise it to include highlights that work for my skin tone - highly recommend to others.