Here at beautyheaven, we take pride in being able to assist those in a beauty emergency. Though we can’t always help with everything (hello, girl from the YouTube video who burned off her hair with a curling tong!), we like to think we can assist most beauty issues that come our way. So when I saw a cry for help from beautyheaven member Blondage in the beautyheaven forums, I knew it was up to me to help her.
Blondage is suffering from what we like to call contouring confusion, a very serious make-up matter indeed. It’s a very common confusion that affects more women than you may well think – and has been known to leave a dirty, bronze mess as a result.
So what are the rules when it comes to contouring your cheeks?
FACT: while deeper blushes can also be used to contour your cheekbones, bronzers (without shimmer) tend to give the most accurate, face-shaping results. If you don’t wear bronzer, apply the below rules to a deep blush that suits your complexion.
FIND YOUR PERFECT MATCH
To start, you need to find a shade of bronzer that suits you, either a milk chocolate or dark chocolate shade, depending on your skin colour and tone. If you have a light to medium complexion, opt for the milk chocolate; medium to dark skin tones should go for a dark chocolate hue. As a rule, your bronzer should be around two-three shades darker than your skin in order to look natural.
HIT THE RIGHT SPOT
Some people believe that as bronzer is used to accentuate your cheekbones, it should be applied to your cheekbones. As in, on top of them. Ba-bow. Wrong! Bronzer should be used to ‘lift’ your cheekbones, so should support them from underneath, like a weightlifter, so to speak. For this reason, you should always suck in your cheeks nice and tight when applying your bronzer to find exactly where your cheekbones sit on your face and then apply your bronzer in a parallel line directly underneath. See below, I have pulled my very best ‘duck face’ to show you exactly where your bronzer should be applied. Please, hold your giggles.
BUILD IT UP, BUTTERCUP
Don’t just grab any old bronzer and brush it straight on to your cheeks. Start by dabbing your bronzer brush onto your powder and then tapping off the excess thoroughly before going anywhere near your cheeks. Remember, it’s super easy to build up your colour, it’s near impossible to take it away if you apply too much.
AND THE RESULT?
You should be left with a faint shadow on your cheeks that works to make your cheekbones look higher and your face look slimmer, too. If the bronzer is very noticeable it means you have applied too much. Sometimes your work can be saved by applying a little loose powder to your cheeks to even out the bronze hue, but often you’re better to cut your losses, start again and practise, practise, practise!
SOME SUPER COOL CONTOURING PRODUCTS:
Artiste Contour Blush Brush Flat Bristles #19
Rimmel London Natural Bronzer
Prestige Cosmetics Blush Contour Brush
Clinique Almost Bronzer SPF 15
Revlon PhotoReady Sculpting Brush Palette
MAC Bronzing Powder
What are your top tips for contouring your face? Do you prefer blush or bronzer? Or both?
