NYX Wonder Stick Review and Swatches

NYX Wonder Stick ($11.99 at Ulta) is a dual-ended stick that makes it a breeze to highlight and contour. Contouring has always been intimidating to me...I always worry that it'll look obvious or fake if I put the bronzer in the wrong spot or if it looks too dark. As someone with fair skin, the bronzer aspect is more of an issue for me than the highlighter because I need to make sure I find one that's not orange and not too dark.  When contouring, they say you should choose a shade that's only 2 shades darker than your natural skin tone.  Well, 2 shades darker than Casper is more of a medium skintone shade than a bronzer, so you can see the trouble I have finding a bronzer that's light enough for me, haha! Thankfully, the Wonder Stick comes in four shades, Light, Medium, Deep, and Universal (I purchased Light).

The box comes with full instructions on how to use it and where to put what, including photos, so it's great for beginners like me.

The Wonder Stick does contain mineral oil, in case you're sensitive or opposed to using products that contain it. Full disclosure: I have heard from people with more oily skin types that developed breakouts from using this, but I have dry skin and had no issues...in fact, I appreciate how creamy it is!

The stick itself is like a chubby pencil and each end has a different shape. The highlight side is tapered at the top like a lipstick, which is great for getting right up under the eye area especially (you can also use this as a concealer). The contour side is rounded, giving you more surface area for getting into the hollows of your cheeks and around your hairline.

In this photo you can see just how creamy the Wonder Stick is...it has a sheen and texture that reminds me of those grease-paint type concealers like Bye Bye Under Eye from IT Cosmetics or Fergie's Come Correct from Wet N Wild, but it's not as full coverage as those.

Blended out a bit, I would say that the highlighter is just light enough to highlight my already pale skin. The contour shade isn't too dark or orange and once blended, it creates a good contrast with my skin. This photo is only partially blended out so these do disappear into my skin a bit more.

The downside is the texture if you have oily skin.  This may not last long on you...it has that sort of texture that feels like it just wants to slide right off.  I didn't have a problem and this lasts most of the day on me, but then again, my dry skin literally drinks up anything I put on it.  That may change now that the weather's getting warm though- I'm not immune to summer makeup melt!

Overall, the NYX Wonder Stick makes contouring easy, whether you're a beginner or just want to get out of the house quickly. I much prefer using a stick rather than a powder because I feel like I have a lot more control over where it goes and how much I need to blend. That being said, I think that this is best suited to normal to dry skin types, but if you're oily and have had a good experience with this, please let us know in the comments below! 

You can purchase the NYX Wonder stick at Ulta and Ulta.com.