Adore Beauty Pty Ltd

Friday 1 August 2014

Revisiting contouring

My first post about contouring was quite some time ago and if your a beauty follower on blogs, Pinterest or Facebook you've probably seen the Kim Kardashian crazy contouring picture that floats around after a tweet of her 'mid contour'.  With an influx of information in the beauty world about contouring these are quite easy to do guidelines to try it out.

Have you ever had your make up done and felt like you've been given the 10 years younger treatment? Likelihood is that you've had some contouring incorporated into your make over. Mastering the art of contouring is no easy task but can make you look and feel great. Contouring is about light and shade and using make up products to either bring out (using a light shade) or push back (using a darker shade) areas of the face.

Follow these simple contouring rules:
1. Only ever attempt contouring in a well lit area.
2. The 'perfect' face shape is oval and that's what you are aiming for so use a darker product (you can use either powder or foundation) around the outside of the face to 'blank out' outer areas (e.g. top corners near hairline, corners of the jaw) aim for a diamond shape in the centre of the face. This pushes back these outer areas into the shade making your face appear more oval.
3. Adjacent to these darkened areas use a lighter product to bring out the new face shape you have created.
4. BLEND. Single most important thing in contouring...well actually in make up application full stop. Regardless of what product you have used you must blend these harsh lines or you will get some serious funny looks! Be brave and use a good amount of product don't go too faint or you've likely wasted your time but don't forget to blend like you've never blended before!
5. Use contouring to emphasis your cheekbones by sweeping your darker colour down underneath your cheekbones (do the fish face and suck in your cheeks to see where this colour should go), use your darker colour down each side of your nose to slim a wide nose or on the underneath the tip of your nose to shorten a long nose, go under your chin and along the underside of the jaw to camouflage a double chin and finally a sweep of the darker to the cleavage will create depth and emphasis. 
6. Now you have finished contouring go look at yourself in a different mirror and blend some more!

Just a note about products. Darker colour should be a Matt finish so it is flat and not reflecting the light  best products to use are either a bronzer without shimmer try Benefit Hoola or a face powder two tones darker than your skin tone. If you are using foundation to contour make sure you use your actual skin tone to blend the two contouring products.  

To finish the process you must add the light.  To highlight feel free to add shimmer but it also doesn't  have to be shimmery it could be a lighter concealer you use or a light reflecting concealer.  Good areas to highlight with shimmer are inner corner of the eyes, cuspids bow, tops of cheekbones, brow bones but to add a sweep down the centre of the nose and highlight the centre of forehead I prefer to stick to none shimmer.    For a contemporary look forgo the blush but if you can't resist finish with a sweep of blush on those cheeks and up to the temples.

Practise makes perfect when it comes to contouring and it's worth the effort. My original celeb reference point was Jennifer Lopez when I wrote this post first time round but I'd say she's been superseded! Here's some contour queens let's see if they can motivate you to join the contouring revolution!


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