Makeup Contouring 101

Makeup Contouring 101

“I believe all women are beautiful without makeup, but with the right makeup she can be pretty powerful” -Bobbi Brown

Makeup is a form of art and knowing how to apply it can give you the ability to achieve the exact look you are wanting. If you know anything at all about makeup, you know that contouring the face is a staple for all beauty gurus. Contouring can gives the face shadow yielding the effect of a slimmer jawline, cheisled cheekbones, and overall a sun kissed bronze. Although, contour can be tricky. Making sure you place the contour in the right place is essential, otherwise it could lead achieving a look that does the complete opposite of accentuating your natural features.

 

 

Products/Tools Needed

  • Picking out a shade of bronzer is totally subjective to what kind of look you like and your skin tone. You will typically choose between cool toned or warm toned.
  • I personally like to use a brush that is somewhat dense, but not too dense. I also find that if the shape of the brush is more angled, it creates the perfect shape to use right under the cheekbone. Here is a picture for reference:

 

How to Contour the Cheek Bones:

  1. First we are going to start by tapping our brush into our powder and tapping off the excess

*TIP: It is much easier to add more than to take away, so make sure to always tap of the excess powder

  1. Place the brush right below the cheekbone and start to blend in back and forth motions making sure to blend to your hair line and stopping about an 1 ½ to 2 inches from the corner of the mouth.
  2. Blend in an upward motion towards the cheekbone while making sure the shadow is still under the cheekbone

*Blending up towards the cheekbones will help you achieve the look of higher set facial cheekbones

How to Contour the Forehead:

  1. Tap your Brush into the powder and tap the excess powder off
  2. Start with either side of the temple blending the powder into the hairline
  3. Blend the powder from one temple to the other while also include the space between each temple
  4. Make sure to stay leave the middle of the forehead clear of any contour

*The middle of the forehead is where you will leave highlighting to do the job!

Face contouring areas explained

How to Contour The Jawline:

  1. Start by tapping your brush into the powder and tapping the excess off
  2. Start right under the earlobe where the jawline begins
  3. Blend the powder just about right under the jawline
  4. Blend from one ear lobe all the way to the other

*TIP: The jawline contour can get tricky because its easy for it to look harsh, so make sure your using a light hand and blending!

 

FAQ’s

Q: How can I fix a contour that looks too harsh?

A: Blend, Blend, and Blend! Make sure to blend with a clean brush. If it is still harsh after that try blending with a translucent powder.

 

Q: What if when I apply my bronzer I look orange?

A: Try going for a cool toned bronzer!

 

Q: My contour blended out down towards my jawline, how can I fix this?

A: Use your concealer or lighter powder right under the contour. This will make it look much cleaner and sharper!