I honestly think that Sleek are one of the best budget brands around, especially when it comes to powder-type products such as highlight, blush, bronzer, contour etc. Ever since I discovered their Blush by 3 palette (review from way back in the day here), I have been wowed by how pigmented their products are; they are like nothing else I’ve tried! You definitely get more than your money’s worth with this brand. The packaging of most of their products are black and very minimalist, much like their name suggests. This palette, however, sticks with this simplistic theme but comes packaged in a beautifully elegant gold casing which I can’t get enough of. One downside is to this reflective gold casing is that it instantly becomes littered with fingerprint marks (nothing you can’t wipe off though!).
Within each of their highlight palettes (Solstice isn’t the only one, they also do similar palettes called Cleopatra’s Kiss, Midas Touch and Precious Metals, however, I felt this one was the better match for my paler skin tone), there are four different shades available. Four highlights for £10! I think that’s pretty good value (especially if you factor in 10% student discount in Superdrug)! Solstice’s four shades are ‘ecliptic’ (top left), ‘hemisphere’ (top right), ‘subsolar’ (bottom left) and ‘equinox’ (bottom right). All are powder formulas except for Ecliptic, which has a light creamy texture which is actually still very easy to blend. However, I do still prefer the powder formulas despite the cream shade being gorgeous. The one I was most unsure of when I received this was Hemisphere- I was worried that it would be too purple, especially given the strong pigmentation of Sleek powders! Instead, it’s more silvery on the skin (rather than purple), making it a perfect highlight shade for pale skin tones. Subsolar is a great general highlighting shade whilst Equinox has beautiful golden tones which just provide the most stunning glow, making this my most used shade so far.
Although you can build these highlighters up if you so wish, I find that these are so pigmented that one sweep across the cheekbones is more than enough. That said, I do prefer a subtle shimmer rather than going overboard. They aren’t glittery as such, but just provide your skin with a natural shimmer and radiance. I adore everything about this palette, and I’ve been turning to it every day. The shades, how they look on my skin, the packaging…it’s got all you’d ever need. Perfect for a subtle glow or a more full on look, I honestly couldn’t recommend this palette enough. It’s a case of need as well as want!
