West Coast Wives

Now that i've got your attention with hopes of some kinda hair pulling, titty twisting bitch fight gossip, lets talk about what really is on the agenda: Who's contour palette is better? Kat Von D's Shade & Light Powder Palette or Anastasia's Cream Contour Palette?

Both these artist's makeup lines have blown up in the past 5 years . Anastasia of Beverly Hills which started as a brow shaping and brow salon business has now expanded to a phenomenal product line that has me cooing and weeping in despair that i can't afford it all, WHYYYYYYYY?!?!?!. Kat Von D, originally a famed burlesque dancer and master of the nipple tassles collaborated with Sephora to launch her interpretation of the best red lipstick shades. Fast forward a few years and now her beauty line tackles it ALL and has some of the boldest colors and beauty options. It really is hard to put the two up against each-other. So maybe rather than fueling a potential cat fight since we ladies deal with enough drama as is, I'll play nice and not make this a discussion on who or what is better. Let's just chat about my likes and dislikes between Kat Von D's Powder and Anastasia's Cream contour.

Kat Von D's Shade and Light Contour Powder Palette

My face has yet to lose its baby fat circa childhood so as a chipmunk cheeked makeup enthusiast, contouring is a neccessity. I had used cheaper palettes and substituted numerous powders and shadows to mimic what is now offered in just this one palette. Moonlighting as a makeup artist, contouring has been a huge demand these last few years and the convenience factor with the versatility of the shades offered by Kat Von D upped my beauty game in my makeup kit. The palette has 3 lighter shades that assist with highlighting and strobing and 3 darker shades that can contour and sculpt.

Hotel selfie alert!! I used the Kat Von D palette on top of my foundation and concealer for this look and applied Mac's shimmer blush Peachy Keen to the apples of my cheeks. PROS: All powders are well pigmented and offer decent coverage on top of your foundation and concealer. Don't worry you don't have to be a makeup artist to master this palette. The colors are easily blendable and super user friendly. This definitely gives a more matte finish and provides a more flawless high coverage look. Although the powders are not loose powders you can essentially create the "baking effect" when applying one of the lighter shades over your concealer in your under eye area and letting it set. I love the multiple darker tones to blend and create more of a bridge to my nose and to carve out my cheek bones for a heroin chic emaciated look. CONS: The powders can often sit at the surface of the skin if not buffed in correctly and accentuate lines. Also, if not blended well the darker tones can get a ruddy look or just end up making you look more Walking Dead rather than Kate Moss.

Anastasia of Beverly Hills Cream Contour Palette

I'd been using my Ben Nye Foundation palette as a contour palette in my makeup kit, but found that it is just a bit overkill for everyday makeup. The release of the Anastasia Cream Contour Palette had me racing to get my beauty fix. Like most palettes it comes in multiple shades but for starters i purchased the Medium palette because it seemed the most versatile for my kit. The palette consists of a concealer like skin tone color, a yellow toned color corrector for dark shadows and brightening, an orange tone color for for correcting skin discoloration and three sculpting shades in a bronzing tone and two other deep shading tones.

Come hither honey, contour really gets me going! Don't mind my hormonal eyebrow blemish, but I used basically all the same products in this selfie as the previous except with the Anastasia Cream Contour Palette and a translucent setting powder instead. PROS: This product blends seamlessly and flawlessly for a dewy natural contour. Most often we think cream products will appear heavier and less natural but this is quite the contrary. The finish has a glow that makes your skin continue to look like skin just a sculpted, sexier version of your skin. Also, the orange color corrector is amazing for those of you who have any dark spots or melasma-like skin discoloration. It cancels the grayness and blends your skin to one neutral tone. CONS: This is definitely a product for a more intermediate makeup officianado. The blending needs a little more technique and a gentle touch that might not be for everyone. Also, because it is a creamier product if you suffer from oiliness prepare to carry a blotting powder or oil blotting papers with you. On a warmer day i looked in the mirror to find my eyeliner had migrated and i went from looking like a youthful fresh face to looking like i was executing a walk of shame at 3 in the afternoon.

There you have it folks. Get your contour on and let me know how it goes!

-Tuyen