Sleek Cheeks

Today I have a very cheek centred post for the blog. I'll be featuring some products that the UK brand Sleek is probably most famous for - their blushes and contour kit. Sleek is a drugstore brand that offer very bright and pigmented products for a very reasonable price. I have to share the powder blush in the shade Pomegranate and the Contour Kit in the shade Light.

The packaging on both of the products is - yep, you guessed it - very sleek. Both products are encased in matte black plastic thin compacts with very secure closures, and an accompanying mirror. They are very compact and I love that the packaging is simple, practical and not excessive.

I'll start out with the blush. Sleek offer a multitude of shades in their singles, as well as their Blush by 3 trio palettes. I already have way too much blush and also those BYS trios which are very reminiscent of the Sleek ones. I don't, however, have any shade in my collection similar to Pomegranate which was one of the reasons why I picked it up, along with after hearing rave reviews on this particular shade. 

The blush looks quite metallic in the pan, but does not appear that way on the cheeks. In fact you can detect hardly any shimmer on the cheek, and it gives off more of a satin finish. The shade looks quite scary in the pan. It is a deep, pomegranate, maroon, berry shade. It looks purple leaning in the pan but I find it applies and sheers out differently (see blended swatch). This product is incredibly pigmented so sheering out is a must. Despite its strong pigmentation, it isn't at all hard to blend. I find that working and building in light layers is most effective - it's always easier to add on then take away. One tap into the pan (making sure to tap off the brush too) is a good amount for each layer. With too much product on the brush, it gets harder to blend and is very easy to overdo. The texture of the blush isn't particularly soft and it isn't powdery which is a good thing, but it isn't hard or chalky. It's the perfect in between! 

Transferring to the cheeks, it pulls a bit more of a red-y burgundy berry than in the pan. Coming into the Spring/Summer months, I haven't been reaching for this shade much as it is definitely more Autumn appropriate. I think it would be perfect for that time of the year! I tend to focus the colour on the outer apples of my cheeks and upwards and I definitely wear it very lightly. Keep the colour concentrated because if applied to too large a surface area, it can tend to look ruddy, particularly if you've gone in with a heavy hand, it can look a tad swollen. The product lasts quite well on my skin and is still noticable 10+ hours later, but it fades considerably (keeping in mind I've applied it very lightly, and it depends what base I'm wearing).

Swatched heavily, Blended

SUNLIGHT: Swatched heavily, blended

On to the Face Contour Kit in the shade Light. Since I was ordering online, I didn't want to order a shade too dark so I went with the lightest just in case. It comes in three shades so they cater for pretty much all skintones, though Light may be too dark for the lightest of the light. I probably could have gone for medium but Light still gets the job done.

The Light shade consists of a slightly warm toned medium-dark brown contour colour and a light silver toned champagne highlight. The contour shade is matte and the highlight is metallic at its base but does contain sparkles (not glitter, or individual shimmer bits) that catch the light. I do wish that the contour was a bit cooler in tone so as to make it more effective in the shadow imparting area but it's depth still works well to create a natural and not-too-obvious contour (depending how heavy handed you are). However, this shade can also work well as a bronzer. The highlight provides a nice dewy finish and isn't too stark or obvious either but does give a lovely glow.

The texture of the highlighter is pretty similar to the blush, probably given that they are of similar finishes (though the highlight is much more sparkly and probably a bit less pigmented). The contour shade has a harder feel (still not chalky) but gives off less pigment (keeping in mind the blush was very potent). It blends well and is very easy to work with, especially for a matte powder. These both last quite well on the skin but do fade considerably throughout the day. 

Contour, Highlight

SUNLIGHT: Contour, Highlight

COMPARISON: Sleek, Elf, Jane Iredale, Essence, Napoleon Perdis

A comparison of the contour shade with other bronzers in my collection. I don't own any highlighters similar in shade to the Sleek. As you can see the E.l.f bronzer from the contouring blush and bronzer kit (in shade St. Lucia) is the darkest but it contains some golden shimmer making it not as good for contouring. The Jane Iredale Bronzing Powder in So Bronze 1 and Essence Matte Bronzing Powder in Sunny are similar to each other and much lighter and more orange than the Sleek. The last is the Napoleon Perdis from the Ultimate Nude Palette which is also lighter and more orange. Out of my collection, the Sleek is definitely most appropriate for contouring.

That was quite a long review but I hope you enjoyed! Overall both of these products are absolutely amazing quality and are very well priced! I would definitely recommend them and would pick up some more products from Sleek! You can purchase their products from their website and the shipping is extremely cheap to Australia (only about $3 or so!).

Have you tried Sleek cheek products?