Kat Von D Shade and Light Contour Palette and Brush

Kat Von D Cruelty Free Contour Palette Review

I think back to years before when I never even thought to use blush, bronzer or highlighter. Eeessh. What a difference those things make, now that I’m older and have experimented with more products. Without those things, my complexion can look flat – but a little bit of contouring helps immensely. The art of contouring with light and dark is one that I’m still working on myself, but with the little skill I have in doing so, I notice my cheekbones and brow bones more, which I like. Lately, I’ve been testing out my skills with Kat Von D’s Shade and Light Contour Palette and have been really liking the results.

I think it’s important to choose a palette that has a selection of colors that work for your complexion. Some palettes are too light and do nothing for me, but this one works perfectly for my neutral, medium-toned skin. It has six matte colors to work with – three highlighting tones (Lucid – pink nude, Lyric – yellow nude, Levitation – peachy nude) and three contouring tones (Sombre – taupe, Shadowplay – soft brown, Subconscious – deep brown).

I also use Kat Von D’s Shade and Light Contour Brush that comes in an awesome shiny black coffin case to keep it from being crushed in your bag. The case and brush are a bit on the big side, but I don’t travel with it often so it’s a non-issue for me. This dual ended brush is super soft and fluffy, and expertly deposits powder just where you need it. It was designed so that you can use the angled brush for contouring and the dome side for highlighting. I would prefer the contouring side to be a bit more dense for my taste, but it still does the job well. The brush blends very well and you never have to worry about a “oopsie” streak of color because it applies color wonderfully.

I find that the brush picks up quite a bit of color with a sweep of the pan. The colors are on the soft, powdery side so I try to sweep lightly and build as I go. I love using lucid on the high points of my cheekbones, and lyric works nicely on my brow bones. Shadowplay is what I start out with to chisel out my cheekbones and I blend a bit of Subconscious in there, below my jawline, and along my hairline.

The palette comes with a small guide to help us clueless ones out on how to contour, slim and define parts of the face. I’m not big on contouring my nose but always love perfecting the art of beautiful cheekbones. I think with a bit more practice we can all get the hang of it.