Next up, also part of NYC’s new Let’s Paint The Town Collection, are the two Big Bold Bronzing Powders. They come in two colors; ManhaTan is the lighter one, and MetropoliTan is the darker shade.
ManhaTan // MetropoliTan
And both have a really lovely design embossed on them – but note that it won’t last very long at all, because the embossing is quite shallow and the bronzers are on the powdery side. In fact, you can see some of the fallout / powder in the following swatches.
Daylight bulb: ManhaTan, MetropoliTan
With flash: ManhaTan, MetropoliTan
Despite the fallout, these are both quite smooth and blend well. They’re on the sheer side (which I think is a good thing for bronzers!) and, as you can see, are buildable to a moderate intensity – the swatches are multiple swipes with a sponge-tipped applicator.
I’m not great at undertones, but ManhaTan looks yellow-based to me, and MetropoliTan looks more neutral, but slightly red-based. I would not contour with either of them, because I prefer a more ashy / grey toned contour (like the ones I swatched in this post), but I do think they colors will work bronzers.
I see a slight sparkle in the pan with both shades, but it’s not visible in most lighting. In full sunlight, ManhaTan (the lighter shade) is matte with a slight sparkle, and MetropoliTan is a bit sheeny with a slight sparkle. Inside, Manhatan appears quite matte, and Metropolitan has a bit of a sheen. I would say that if you generally prefer not to wear shimmer on your face, these are still wearable; but if you loathe the thought of even a fleck of shimmer ever appearing on your face, skip them.
Overall, I think these are quite nice for the price (around $5 each; and there are some $1 off NYC coupons floating around right now that I used). The texture of these is a bit powdery and not particularly refined, but they’re smooth and blendable, and the pigmentation level is exactly right for a bronzer – sheer enough to be foolproof, but easily buildable. If you’re in the market for an inexpensive drugstore bronzer, these are worth a look!
*I purchased both of the featured products. Please see my disclosure policy for more information.