BEAUTY: BARRY M CHISEL CHEEKS CONTOUR KIT

R-L: Dark Brown (scultp), Medium Brown (bronze) and Light (highlight)

Last weekend I took advantage of Boots’ 3 for 2 offer, as usual, and picked up the Barry M Chisel Cheeks Contour Kit. With having a round face, contouring is a must for me but unfortunately I’m not great it. That’s why I love picking up contouring kits; with all the shades you need it’s a one stop shop to cheekbones. At only £6.49, it’s one of the most affordable contour kits out there and so I couldn’t resist picking it up to try it out.

Upon swatching the product, I found that the lightest of the shades used for highlighting was quite sheer and not so pigmented, as you can see in the above photo. I use other highlighters, such as Phee’s Glow Highlighter which I recently bought, so I don’t think I’ll be getting much use out of Barry M’s. Then there’s shade two, the medium brown which is used to bronze where the sun would naturally hit. My first thought was that it was too pink toned. With being so pale I have to be careful with bronzers, and this isn’t a colour I would associate with being bronze. It actually appears more like a blusher to me. Finally, there’s the third shade, the dark brown used to sculpt the hollows of the cheeks, blending out to the ears, along the hairline and down the sides of your nose. This is the only shade that I’ve managed to get any use out of, and even then, it’s slightly too dark. With the powder being a cool grey, it does create the effect of shadows on your cheeks but does need blending thoroughly to prevent any harsh lines or looking like you’ve a bit of dirt caught on your cheek by mistake. However, the positive of this is that it is very pigmented and a little does go a long way.

I like that the palette contains a little “how-to guide” inside the packaging, which is very useful to those who are maybe unsure how to use the palette. It’s also the perfect size to carry around with you day to day if your makeup needs touching up. Though, I’d have to say that the highlighter for me isn’t great. It’s too chalky and sheer, and there are definitely better alternatives for around the same price. I also think Barry M could create this palette in different shades for different skin tones, as of course what colour bronzer might work me might not work for somebody else with a different skin tone. As for the packaging, it does feel quite flimsy and could do with a mirror inside maybe just for ease of application, though the powders are well protected.

I would say that the powders do wear off quite quickly during the day and some of them do need building up quite a bit to begin with to have any colour payoff, and a wider colour selection would be more beneficial. However, for £6.49, it’s a great starter contour kit and is a great alternative to something more expensive if you’re just starting out. Have you tried the Barry M Chisel Cheeks Conour Kit? What did you think?