SPEND OR SAVE?: Australis AC ON TOUR vs Anastasia Contour Kit

HIGH END ITEM: Anastasia Beverly Hills Contour Kit
RRP: $40USD (excl. shipping)

DRUGSTORE ITEM: Australis AC ON TOUR (Unfortunately, unavailable in the U.S.)
RRP: $16.95AUD 

So the next instalment of my "Spend or Save" Series will be to compare the Australis AC ON TOUR with the ABH Contour Kit. I am sad to say that those in the U.S. or the U.K. (the bulk of my readers) will not be able to get their hands on this kit.

However, I have done posts reviewing the Kat Von D Shade and Light Palette (link HERE) and the Too Faced Contour Kit (link HERE). So you can check those out instead. I will be following this post up with an ultimate decision on which kit I think is the best, so keep an eye out for it.

Top: AC ON TOUR Kit
Bottom: ABH Original Contour Kit

Left: AC ON TOUR Kit
Right: ABH Original Contour Kit

As you can see from the pictures, they look almost identical. So I did think this was extremely appropriate for this kind of a post. Keep reading to find out whether I think you should save your pennies and purchase the "drugstore item", or whether you're better of forking out the dollars for the "high-end item".

Anastasia Beverly Hills Contour Kit
Price: $40USD (excl. shipping)
Shade: Light to Medium

My opinions on this product:

So I have done a complete in depth review and swatches of every single Contour Powder in the Anastasia Beverly Hills Contour Powder range so please click HERE to read my opinions on these and to see the swatches of every single shade. This way, if this kit was not right for you, you are able to go in and see the swatches of all the shades to find the one that's best for you.

For your reference however, this kit (the light to medium shade) comes with the following shades:

Top Row: Vanilla - Banana - Sand

Bottom Row: Java - Fawn - Havana

These are swatched next to the Australis shades below.

So, in saying that, I will now move on to give you an in-depth look at the Australis AC ON TOUR Palette.

Australis AC ON TOUR Kit
Price: $16.95AUD
Shade: Only one available

My opinions on this product:
So this was an extremely hyped up product on the internet and it went crazy at Priceline. It was always sold out and I was seeing it left right and centre on social media. One day, I decided I would succumb to the pressure and get my hands on it. At first glance, you can see that the colours look almost identical to the ABH kit. The concept is also the same - two matte highlights, one shimmery highlight, three contour shades.

When I put my finger into these, they were extremely extremely pigmented (like it was ridiculous how much gets onto your finger on first swipe). They were also super buttery and creamy. I loved the texture on my skin. The colour selection of this one was really good in my opinion because it's got warm shades and cool tone shades for contouring, and has the banana and more pink shades for under-eye highlighting.

The following are swatches of the product. They swatch amazingly! Because of the texture and pigmentation, these actually swatched much better and easier than the ABH kit.

These do not have names. However, the first three are the top row from left to right. Then the second three are the bottom row from left to right.

Contouring shades:
Unfortunately though, I must say that I really did not and do not enjoy using this on my face. I feel that this is one product where the insane pigmentation goes against the product. It is so pigmented that it comes out muddy on the face and is impossible to blend out. I have used synthetic and natural hair brushes but neither really change it. I find that the best way to use it is to be SUPER light handed, then tap off the excess, then wipe some onto the back of your hand or the lid of the palette, THEN use it extremely lightly onto your face. But for me... that's way too much effort to go to for using a product.

The insane pigmentation actually could benefit people with a darker or more tan skin tone because even with a heavy hand, it would not be too obvious. However for people with light to medium skin tones like me, you need to go through that arduous process. Those with a pale skin tone however will not enjoy this at all. It's going to look way too muddy and way too obvious. It's sad because the colours and formula itself were so great. It's just... too pigmented. Which I must admit is a strange dilemma to have with a product.

Highlighting shades:
These are alright. I think that they are versatile and can be pretty on the skin. It doesn't fully brighten up the under-eye area, but it does assist with setting that area. The shimmery shade is also pretty. It's subtle so it's not for 'strobing' purposes, but is good for everyday or even natural glam looks.

I always take swatches of the products in different lighting and brightness. This one is in greater natural lighting - so a bit brighter than the first.

So overall, I was disappointed by the product. It was good quality in its own way. But, it was too difficult and high maintenance of a product.

More Swatches
So for the sake of this comparison, and because the kits both look so incredibly similar, I did swatches of the colours side by side. I did the swatches of the three corresponding highlight shades. Then swatched the three corresponding contour shades below. As mentioned above, the Australis shades were more pigmented and much easier to swatch than the ABH kit. This is pretty noticeable in the below swatches.

The following alternate between the Australis and ABH shades. They are paired together.

The Highlight Shades (Left to Right)Australis first shade top row - ABH Vanilla - Australis second shade top row - ABH Banana - Australis third shade top row - ABH Sand

The Contour Shades (Left to Right)
Australis first shade bottom row - ABH Java - Australis second shade bottom row - ABH Fawn - Australis third shade bottom row - ABH Havana

So from the swatches, you can see that the Australis shades are much more pigmented and swatched much easier and pigmented. The other aspect which becomes obvious through these swatches is exactly how warm the ABH contour shades are. They all pull more orange than the Australis shades.

Also, the Australis shades have greater diversity in shade range, whilst the ABH appear to be more similar in colour. But I do think that this seeming similarity between the shades could be attributed to the fact that the ABH aren't as pigmented when swatched as the Australis ones.

Similarities

• Colour (in the pan): the colours in the pan obviously look very similar

• Creaminess (when swatched): the texture in terms of creaminess is quite similar when swatching the product

• Packaging (appearance): both are cased in black packaging. 

Differences

• Packaging (material): the ABH palette is sturdy and structured whilst the Australis is a plastic packaging. The ABH is also magnetic pans that can be switched, but the Australis is permanent in there, so if you run out of one of the shades, you have to repurchase an entire palette.

• Application: the Australis as I mentioned is somewhat muddy and difficult to blend when applied on the face. Whereas the ABH is easy to blend.

• Colour (on the skin): the Australis has a greater colour range with greater distinctions between them. The ABH pull a little bit more warm and don't have as much distinction when applied on the skin.

• Pigmentation: the Australis is much more pigmented than the ABH without a doubt. However, I do think this works against the Australis palette.

Verdict: Spend. Unfortunately, I do not think that the effort and care that you have to put in using the Australis palette is worth it, so I think that it's better to spend a few extra bucks and get the ABH. However, I will give a hint and say to look at the Kat Von D and Too Faced Palette reviews that I have (both linked) and perhaps wait until I do a post comparing all four (to come very soon).