Illamasqua Cream Pigment in Hollow

Being a pale skinned lady, one of the banes of my life is trying to find the perfect products to use to contour with. I have tried so many products over the last year or so but they all end up being too dark or too orange toned when they oxodise. So after doing even more research, I discovered that a lot pale skinned ladies had raved about how fantastic Illamasqua's cream pigmented named Hollow was for contouring, as they didn't contain any of the usual dark/orange tones - so after swatching it every time I went remotely near the Illamasqua counter I finally picked it up - staff discount and money on my beauty card made it easier on the pocket!

When you first look at Hollow, it looks like every other contour cream/powder out there - a slight orange tone. However, for some reason that's just the top - once you start using the product itself, it is a lot more grey toned than orange - I would described it as a cool ashy tone that is perfect for girls with a lighter skin tone and is something that works absolutely beautifully for pale skinned ladies as that's more of the tones that would be on our skin rather than orange ones! It's a persoal pet peeve of mine that not enough companies cater for us pale girls! 

Personally I prefer cream products than powder products as I find them a lot easier to blend on the cheeks and they have less harsh lines - I don't know if that's because the way I apply products or not, but it works for me, so we will go with that. Because this product is a cream product though I wouldn't recommend this for ladies with oily skin - you don't want to be adding extra moisture. 

When I purchased this, the lady who work for Illamasqua made sure she told me all the different uses for this product after I had said that I wanted it for contouring. She informed me that just like other Illamasqua products - this can be used in a variety of ways all over the face and body - such as eyes, lips, cheeks. 

I have normal skin, which can lead towards the dry side in the winter months and in the Summer months I get an oily T-Zone (read: my skin never behaves!) and so I sometimes get cakeyness which I'm forever trying to combat, and is a fight I'm winning at the minute, however I haven't had a problem with Hollow. It applies beautifully and I have found no cakyness with it, and I have found that the wear time is definitely impressive. I can do a full days work and come home and it will still be there, doing it's job with providing me with some kind of cheek bone that my genes failed to give me. Success!

One thing that I find with the majority of cream products is that they normally have some kind of sheen or shine to them - but not this one! Which is a another factor that makes it the perfect product for contouring - this product has a matte finish which I absolutely adore. Once it set, it is also smooth to touch and for some reason makes your skin feel really soft, which I like. You can see it in use in my recent FOTD post below. 

I am so, so, SO glad I purchased this - and I think it's definitely going to be a product that I will always repurchase, as well as it having a firm place in my favourites every month! 

What do you use to contour? Any contouring tips for us pale ladies?