Happy Tuesday friends!
I’m sharing a LONG overdue post today that’s been highly requested from all of you!
How to contour and highlight your face…(without looking like a clown).
Ha! For real though, contouring can be super scary, confusing and what’s the point of it anyways?
Well, let me tell you…once you learn to do it correctly, you’ll love it and it will be hard to not do it every time you put on your makeup.
First and foremost, I need to warn you all…I’m NOT a makeup artist by any means. This process and these products are just what have worked best for me and look the best on my skin tone. I’m self taught…aka I’ve watched a lot of Youtube videos and practiced on myself many many times. I will tell you though, practice makes perfect.
The more times you work on contouring your face, the better you’ll get at it and the better it will look.
Let’s get back to the question “why contour?”
Contouring your face with a darker bronzer like liquid or powder can create structure to your face, reshaping your nose, cheekbones and adding length to your face. Maybe you’re like…”why do I need to do that?!” Well, overall it really does look great but remember, I don’t go crazy with the contour. I want it to look natural and not super fake or like my face is covered with an overwhelming amount of makeup. No thanks.
Overall, by adding a few extra steps in your makeup routine, contouring your face correctly can make your face appear thinner and more structured…who doesn’t want that?!
Here are the steps I take when contouring my face in the morning during my daily makeup routine:
Step 1: After I apply my under eye treatments (I’ll have another full blog post coming on this process) and put on my liquid foundation and powder, I apply my Shape Tape Concealer in the shade “light medium”. I originally wasn’t going to add this into the steps, but adding this concealer under my eyes and to my nose/middle of my forehead, really does brighten up my face and add structure. Now, I used this concealer for over a month and honestly wasn’t really a fan because I felt like it caked under my eyes and actually made me look older. (Who wants that?!) Well, when I started prepping my eyes with this eye cream and THEN applying the concealer, the difference was remarkable. Basically you need to hydrate that under eye skin before applying the concealer for an overall perfect look.
Another key with this concealer is using a damp beauty blender and tapping it into the skin. Key word…TAP… don’t rub. Trust me, it makes a difference. (I also like to tap the concealer in not only under the eye, but all the way down the bridge of my nose and in a triangle shape under my eye as well.
Step 2: Here comes the bronzing part of the contour process. Now, there are two different products I love and use depending on what I’m doing and where I’m going that day. If I’m just running errands and I’m not doing a full face of makeup, I use this bronzing powder and if I’m doing a fuller face of makeup for a blog shoot or when I go out with girlfriends, I’ll use this bronzing contour wand. (I use shade “light medium”). I absolutely LOVE this contour wand…but remember, a little goes a long way. When using the bronzing powder or contour wand, I’ll put it around the top of my forehead, under my cheekbones, on my jawline and on the sides of my nose. I’ll then take a damp beauty blender and tap the product into my skin.
Step 3: Apply your favorite blush to your cheeks. (Doing this helps with the highlighting process in the next step). I’m currently loving this blush in shade “sin” and this one in shade “light pastel”.
Step 4: Ok, let’s talk highlight. The highlighting process helps give your face a hydrating glow, making your face appear brighter and more awake. Yes please! I shared this highlighter wand in my Instagram stories and you all LOVED it as much as I did. Just like the contour wand a little of this product goes a long way. When applying the highlighter, I apply it on the top of my cheekbones (above my blush), in the middle of my eyebrows, down the bridge of my nose, above my lip and on the center of my chin. I’ll then take my damp beauty blender once again and tap the product into the skin making sure it’s blended perfectly.
All in all, you have to figure out what products work best for you! Maybe you’ll love a powder highlighter better or maybe you’ll love using a liquid highlighter….this liquid one has just worked so well for me, and I can’t recommend it enough. It really is one of the best highlighters I’ve ever used!
Do you have to contour your face?! Nope…not at all!
But I wanted to create this post because it’s a question I get asked a lot and it’s something that doesn’t come easy for most people.
I hope this post is a great resource for you and helps you with all your contouring questions!
(If choosing the contour palette over the liquid contour wands, apply the powder in the exact same areas as I did the liquid and just use a contour brush to blend the powder into the skin).
Thanks for stopping by, reading and for all your love.
You guys are the absolute best and I’m SO lucky to have such great followers!
*Striped sweater linked here – I’m in a size small*
*Gorgeous marble cosmetic bag by Stephanie Johnson linked here*
** Thank you to Charlotte Tilbury Makeup & Stephanie Johnson for sending me these products. As always, all opinions are my own and I would never share anything with you that I absolutely didn’t LOVE and use myself!
