Get High Cheekbones with Charlotte Tilbury
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Charlotte Tilbury Filmstar Bronze & Glow Contour Duo Review

As a big sceptic of practically everything, this Filmstar Bronze & Glow review is a must-read if you’re unsure whether the contour palette is right for you. Is it worth it or are you simply paying for the luxury brand name?! This review will cover the quality, the shades, the application and everything else there is to know about the Charlotte Tilbury Contour Palette.

Disclaimer: This article contains affiliate links. If you purchase using these links, you don’t pay more, I simply earn a small commission!

What is the Charlotte Tilbury Filmstar Bronze & Glow?

Charlotte Tilbury Contour

The Charlotte Tilbury Filmstar Bronze & Glow is a contour palette that consists of a contour and a highlighter. The contour is designed to give you a sun-kissed look with a blend of pearl and pigments to give that effect. In Charlotte Tilbury’s own words: “The highlighter has a golden base to universally flatter any skin tone, with Light Flex Technology to capture and reflect light just where you want it.”

The contour palette comes in 2 colours/shades:

  • Charlotte Tilbury Filmstar Bronze & Glow Light to Medium
  • Charlotte Tilbury Filmstar Bronze & Glow Medium to Dark

I use light to medium since I’m very pale. I’d recommend the Charlotte Tilbury Filmstar Bronze & Glow Dark Palette for anyone with medium to deep skin tones.

The contour helps to sculpt and shape your face in the most subtle, natural-looking way possible, even though it has a slight shimmer to it. The highlight adds shimmer to the areas you want to accentuate.

The palette is beautiful, inside and out and is in classical Charlotte Tilbury style. Totally glamorous and I love it:) A useful feature is that it has a nice-sized mirror too. This is especially useful if you’re out and about and you want to top up your makeup.

It comes in a brown/maroon coloured box and the palette is in its trademark gold art deco style. But I’m not fooled by pretty packaging alone. Read on to see if the Charlotte Tilbury contour palette is worth the cost.

Pros & Cons of Charlotte Tilbury Filmstar Bronze & Glow

Filmstar bronze glow

There are pros and cons to everything in life, including the Filmstar Bronze & Glow. I’ll start with the benefits of the contour duo palette.

The pros of the Filmstar Bronze & Glow include:

  • Natural-looking color
  • No orange or red tones
  • Adds great definition
  • Buildable
  • No patchiness (even after wearing it for 12+hours)
  • Glam packaging
  • Generous sizing (The palette lasts a long time)

I find that if you have pale skin this contour is much easier to use than other contours. The colour is so subtle and natural-looking, if you want a stronger, bolder contour then you merely add layers. It’s very buildable and blends beautifully with even coverage and no patchiness. And that’s even after wearing it for a good 12 hours.

On the other hand, the cons of the Charlotte Tilbury contour duo are: 

  •  Expensive for a 2-shade palette
  • There are equal amounts of contour and highlight, yet typically they aren’t used at the same rate

While the contour palette is top quality, Charlotte Tilbury is designer makeup, and you’re essentially paying for that.

My Thoughts & Experience Using the Contour Palette

A couple of years ago, I got my makeup done at my local Charlotte Tilbury counter and the makeup artist used the Filmstar Bronze & Glow on my face. Well, the rest is history. I fell in love with the palette and bought it on the spot, which was quite drastic for me! However, I have rebought it multiple times since!

The contour and highlight are both really nice, generous sizes. The palette lasts a long time, I’ve been using it more or less every day for about 3 years and I’m only on my third one.

One thing I found interesting is that I read from a few people that they found the contour too orange in color. I have always hated contours that make me look orange and since I am very pale, most contours do in fact make me look orange. However, this is not the case with the Filmstar Bronze & Glow.

charlotte tilbury contour palette swatches

As you can see from the swatches, the contour is a gorgeous neutral shade. In the image, I overdid the swatch so that you’ll noticeably see it, it’s built up and not blended out. Another thing to take note of is that it’s swatched on the back of my arm which is as pale as a ghost! On my face, it adds the perfect amount of color, giving me a healthy, natural makeup look.

The highlight shade next to it is less visible, probably due to my amazing photography skills;) It’s a pretty shimmery gold highlighter, although, it’s definitely on the darker side. Being so pale, my personal preference is for highlighters to be a bit lighter and not gold in color. For a lighter option, read my highlighter recommendations for pale skin.

The reason why some people may find the contour orange is that perhaps they don’t blend it out properly. Contours need proper blending with the correct makeup brush. If you have dry skin, consider using a cream contour, if you love Charlotte Tilbury contours, their Contour and Highlight Wands are also bestsellers!

A small suggestion to Charlotte Tilbury is for the contour to take up three-quarters of the palette and the highlight to take up a quarter, since most people tend to use the contour shade more than the highlight one. I know it’s not as aesthetically pleasing but it would be more cost-effective. Or perhaps they could sell the contour alone without a highlighter shade!

However, despite those drawbacks, I still use the Filmstar Bronze & Glow every day because I think the advantages far outweigh the disadvantages! It’s an important part of my easy natural everyday makeup look.

With the Filmstar Bronze & Glow, I can assure you that you won’t walk around looking like a clown. Even if you over-apply it, you’ll never look orange. It really has the perfect neutral color balance. Read more contour application tips here.

Where to Apply Contour and Highlight

The main area to contour is typically just under your cheekbones, this is to help them stand out. However, you can also contour the top of your forehead, along your jawline and on the sides of your nose.

Apply the highlighter on top of your cheekbones, on the centre of your nose, brow bone and on any other area you want to draw attention to. Finish off with a setting powder for lasting makeup! Read more application tips for pale skin here.

The Verdict: Is Charlotte Tilbury Filmstar Bronze and Glow Worth It?

It’s a fabulous palette that sculpts the face really well. It gives you the defined features and creates the killer cheekbones that you want, without it looking like you’ve caked yourself in makeup.

The Filmstar Bronze and Glow palette is also perfect for beginners to contour because it’s practically foolproof. It’s really easy to use and it’s hard not to love it! So yes, it’s worth every pricey penny and is one of the few luxury makeup products that I buy on repeat:)

However, the Charlotte Tilbury Filmstar Bronze & Glow Contour Duo is not one of the most affordable options on the market. Make sure to check out the Best Contour Products For Pale & Fair Skin to find the best one for you!

Similar Products I Recommend

Hollie xx

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About Hollie

Hi, I’m Hollie, and I’m passionate about everything beauty. Over the last decade and a half, I’ve tested thousands of products to bring you the best of the best! I also love bringing you fun and creative beauty looks. Learn more.

Beauty profile – 35, dry, aging skin, focused on aging well with a healthy glow and natural makeup look ✨



Anastasia Beverly Hills bareMinerals Benefit Cosmetics Bobbi Brown CeraVe Chantecaille Charlotte Tilbury Clarins ColourPop Dermalogica Dior Dyson e.l.f. Cosmetics ELEMIS Estée Lauder Eucerin Fenty Beauty Fresh Giorgio Armani Hourglass IT Cosmetics L'Oreal Lancome Laura Mercier LORAC MAC Makeup Revolution Maybelline Molton Brown Morphe Nars Natasha Denona Neutrogena NYX Origins Peter Thomas Roth PÜR Cosmetics Revlon Sigma Beauty Smashbox Stila The Ordinary Too Faced Urban Decay YSL


12 Comments

  1. It really looks nice and the design is top notch. The bronze and glow results are going to the wonderful. I have used other products and ended up with creaky looks but I believe this will be effective and worth the price. Thanks for providing this great review.

    Have a nice day

  2. hello Hollie,

    I just see my drawers to see if I still have the Filmstar Bronze & Glow. I wii added to my shopping list this weekend, because I cannot stay without conducting contour. The contour completely changes the look with new hair style. LOL.

    The Palette brand has never used before by me. It looks awesome. you know what! one of the cons is that this brand not available in my country. I need to wait long time for shipping.

    I enjoy your info. about filmstar bronze & glow in general.

    1. I agree- contour adds so much! Aw I hope it becomes available in your country soon x

  3. julienne murekatete says:

    Thank you for sharing with us this great review on cheekbones.I am a make up lover that’s why I am interested in Charlotte make up.

    Filmstar Bronze & Glow seems to be a good contour palette but the problem is that it is expensive compared to what I am using but the beauty is my priority so the price is no longer the problem.

    I will order it to enjoy its miracle on my face.

  4. Chrissie Spurgeon says:

    Hi Hollie

    The Bronze and Glow does sound amazing, if pricey as you say.

    I would love to get some and get the high cheekbone effect! But I am wondering if you know if it is equally effective with a (slightly!) older skin? And does it come with instructions as to how to get the best results, which I would really need, unless there is a video somewhere which shows how to use it!

    Thank you so much for your information.

    Chrissie 🙂

    1. I think the Filmstar Bronze & Glow is perfect for any age. Look at the image on my post and the darker areas are where you should apply contour. After practising once or twice its pretty easy to get the hang of it.

  5. Joy gateru says:

    Personally I also read the reviews first before I make any purchase, currently in the market there are alot of fake products do I do some little research and experience from others before making a purchase, but now it’s clear with even with a well detailed context that the filmstar Blonnze& Glow is proven to be of good quality and class , I think with the little reviews I have done it’s appropriate.

    what am not sure about is whether it is applied on anytime of skin personally I do have an oily skin, so please can you please help me out to know whether its applicable to all types of skins.

    also kindly insert an affiliate link with the price of your marketing product toake it easy for a customer to purchase via your website.

    thank you.

    from Joy gateru.

    1. You can apply it on any skin- if you have oily skin make sure you have primed your skin first. 

      There are already links if you wish to buy the product.

  6. My little sister has natural high cheek bones which makes her the more beautiful sister. So, I envied,loved admired and of course wished I got those too. I was delighted to find the FilmStar Bronze Glow as I had tried a few other products before my friend bought it as a gift for my 26th birthday. But like you said, the down side is the shimmer…. I didn’t like it so much,hence,I now only use it for when I am attending parties. All in all, you’ve done a good review of the Filmstar Bronze glow. It’s Expensive but worth the price. 

    1. The shimmer is so subtle that it didn’t bother me for an everyday look too. But it doesn’t look the same on everyone. 

      P.s I’m sure you’re as beautiful as your sister!

  7. I’ve been looking for ways to highlight my cheekbones, but never seems to get a good combination of shades. I am currently learning from some YouTube video tutorials and practicing on my make-up skills whenever I can. Charlotte Tilbury is a well known product so I will definitely look into getting this one for my kit. Thanks for sharing. 

    1. Practise a few times and I’m sure you will get the hang of it. The beauty of the Filmstar Bronze & Glow is that its very subtle so it won’t make you look orange with one swipe of the brush. It’s the perfect product to use when learning how to contour.

      Good luck!

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