It’s been years since I’ve tried out any makeup by Paula’s Choice. The thing is, while most of her skincare products are pretty damn good, I’m afraid I can’t say the same for the tinted moisturisers I’ve tried before. At that time, the closest thing they had to makeup were tinted moisturisers so I gave up on those and stuck to their skincare instead.
Fast forward a good number of years later, I noticed that the brand had started introducing more forms of makeup. There are foundations, lip glosses, mascaras, eyeshadow palettes and so on now, which is a far cry from before. Okay, between you and me, they still looked pretty meh to me. Well, that was until I stumbled upon their Blush It On Contour Palette.
The first thing I thought was “It looks like something from NARS!“. And it doesn’t come in that awful rubbery packaging! Granted, it’s just a simple cardboard packaging with a magnetic closure and a mirror but as long as it doesn’t come in the NARS-style rubber packaging, I’m a happy camper.
The palette comprises 6 shades: 4 blushes, 1 highlighting shade and 1 contour shade. Now I don’t typically contour and highlight so I didn’t use those shades much but the rest? GORGEOUS. The shades include Pearl (highlighter), Bronze (contour shade), Delicate Coral, Dusty Rose, Peony and Soft Mauve. As for shade description, the names are pretty self-explanatory.
The photos below make the blushes appear to be the same but in real life, they’re quite different.
The powders are very finely milled and they’re soft and buttery to the touch. It’s not gritty and there’s no fallout. They actually start out rather sheer but when you start layering, you’ll see that beautiful pop of colour. The powders, save for the highlighter, are matte. The highlighter has a shimmery but not glittery finish. It’s not over-the-top so you can’t go wrong with it.
This is a beautiful blush palette and I must say that I’m very impressed. I know that a lot of Paula Choice’s skincare products are good but I didn’t have very high expectations of this at all. It definitely surpassed my expectations and then some.
The palette retails at AU$55.00 but when you divide the shades up, each blush/contour/highlight powder is just AU$9.17 a pop. This palette is certainly comparable to many mid to high-end brands but at a more affordable price.
If you’re a blush fiend like I am, have been coveting similar blush palettes like this from NARS but can’t justify the price, I can’t recommend this enough. Of course, the colour payoff is not as rich as NARS’, but they’re still very good. If you’re not keen on bright, scary-looking blushes, this is a good one to start with because they go on light yet they’re buildable.
What I like about it: Beautiful blush palette, good colour pay-off, fine quality, comparable to mid-range and high-end blushes.
What I do not like about it: Nothing. In fact, I’d give this 2 enthusiastic thumbs up!
OMG THANK YOU for reviewing this – I have been umming and ahhing over it for ages….
The Dusty Rose looks *so* pretty on you!! I know you say you don’t contour etc much, but could you try out the Bronzer as a contour for me, in the privacy of your bathroom, and report back? Basically I’m worried it will turn too orange on skin, so wondered if it ends up looking natural on you, you reckon? The Highlighter was another worry, as glittery = not good, but shimmery I can cope with (and if its anything like the shimmery eye shadow they do, its not ott shimmer at that but rather subtle once applied).
I *highly* recommend the nudes eye shadow pallet they do btw – I’m down to pan on about 3 shades in there, and they are also all buttery soft and lovely – I will have to replace mine soon I think actually.
The foundations? Not a fan, but we know I’m incredibly hard to please there. But the eyeshadows? OMGosh they are FAB!!!
I’ve tried the contour and used it in the photos. It doesn’t show in the photos but I like it. It’s not strong, so I don’t have to worry about overdoing it with brown stripes of poo on my face. It’s not orange on me and looks very natural. Highlighter-wise, again, quite subtle. There’s shimmer but it’s not sparkly.
Ooh I’ll check out the nude eyeshadow palette next!
Yah for no poo stripes 😛
I think I’ll just have to get the blushes. Oh dear. I’m due another Paula’s choice order soon. Ho Hum 😛
Y’know what, my first thought about it was that it was very similar to the Nars Virtual domination palette that I already have haha. I also agree about sticking to PC’s skincare lines. I am not a fond fan of their cosmetics line, except maybe their lipgloss. Also, not a fan of their tinted moisturisers also haha, instead I use the Custom Cover drops to add to their spf50 (I always wear spf40+) to make it either a tinted moisturiser or foundation.
Oh I know right? I thought so too!
When you mentioned Custom Cover drops, do you mean the ones by Cover FX? Have you tried those? What did you think? I’m planning to get one soon but just don’t know what shade to choose. >.<
Yeah the ones from cover fx. I’ve tried em for about a month now and I really like it, both its convenience and flexibility. Which reminds me, need to write about it soon. But I’ve read some reviews online saying that it sinks into find lines so try to get a sample if possible I’d say. But then.. if you think about it, doesnt it sink into fine lines die to your base (cream/gel) and not the pigment (the drops)? I’m unsure but I haven’t experienced any of those issues complained by other reviewers yet and I’ve tried it quite extensively with everything. I use the shade G30 and yeah, theres alot of shades to choose from which is what puts me off at the start hahaha. I googled them since they dont have a counter near me haha. But I’d guess youre G20 though..(don’t take me up on that). Overall, I like it, some don’t >.<
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Sorry for the typos >.< boarding flight, needed to type it fast lol
The only “counter” we have here is in Sephora Sydney and I’m not going there any time soon so I’ll have to buy them online. It looks so interesting! I tried their so-called foundation shade checker thingy a while back but can’t remember what my supposed shade is now. Have to try it out again. The reviews are very mixed about this. I’m just curious to see how it works!
As a huge Paula’s Choice fan, I’m embarrassed to say I didn’t even know they had a makeup range! I rarely sway outside of what I know I like when it comes to makeup, but this blush palette is mighty tempting!
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I didn’t know they’ve ventured out to so many makeup products until I did a bit of research (and by that I mean Google). I haven’t tried the rest of their makeup, only this and the tinted moisturisers. Didn’t like them though. This one, I love! I heard that the nude eyeshadow palette is good too.
You and bloody blush man! Damn it, I shouldn’t look at it! SO PRETTY!!! I didn’t realise she had makeup products too, thought she only had skincare. Must not google Paula’s Choice…. for the risk of burning huge holes in my pocket!
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It’s my job to make y’all love blushes so I take it very seriously to show you all the beautiful goodness that is rouge. Tee hee hee! This is so pretty, isn’t it? Heck lot cheaper than NARS, that’s for sure.