The Ultimate Makeup Contouring Guide

Highlighting and contouring is an essential step in applying your makeup these days, and it’s necessary to know the basic steps involved in doing it. You should be aware of the tricks and techniques required to master contouring skills. Contouring, if done right, can chisel your face and can give you sharp features that will accentuate your face.

Check out this fantastic contouring map from Tina Yong’s contouring video:

Highlighting and contouring are two simple tricks that can make your face look smaller and more structured and will bring an instant glow to your face.

In case you need help, these essential tips will work great for you if you are a beginner:

1. Know Your Face Shape:

Before beginning, it’s really important to know your exact face shape as the pattern for contouring and highlighting is different for every face shape.

This quick guide on what points to hit from @Makeup_By_Jackie is super helpful:

2. Hit The Right Points:

There are some specific points of your face which you need to contour and highlight like the lower part of your jawline, your hairline on the forehead and below the apples of your cheeks. Also, it can make your nose look smaller and better.

Here’s a quick-hit pic from Birchbox that shows us how to hit these points in the right spots based on your face shape (most people are oval, heart, round or square):

3. Choose Contouring Products:

Depending on your budget and preference, you can choose which products suit you more. If you don’t wanna choose a contouring stick, invest in a foundation and concealer which will give you a similar effect. Too-dark? No way – in contouring, we call that “just right”.

3. Choose The Right Shade:

Choosing the right shade is super important because the wrong one can completely ruin your look and is totally a big no-no. For contouring, go for a shade which is two shades darker than your skin; for highlighting, choose a shade which is two shades lighter than your skin.

4. Blend It Well:

This is the easiest step of them all – but also the most crucial. You can use a blending brush, but the best way to get a matte effect is to blend your makeup with a soft beauty blender sponge. It will be soft on your skin and will blend all the makeup even from the trickiest parts of your face. Invest in a good beauty blender to get the best results.

5. Highlighting:

Highlighting is the perfect way to bring back glow on your face and when done with contouring, it makes you look like a goddess. The areas where you will be putting your highlighter: your cheekbones, bridge and tip of your nose, chin, Cupid’s bow, and above your temples by your eyebrows. Highlighting can give a dewy effect to your makeup look.

You can also enhance your brow bones and the inner corners of your eyes to give an even more sunkissed effect.

6. Airbrushed Look:

Instead of rubbing the products in with your fingers, tap them on to achieve the airbrushed look.

7. Choose The Right Brush:

An angled brush can create a softer look, whereas a small contour brush will build a more chiseled look. Here, thebeautydepartment shows us which is the right brush to use for which purpose:

What are your go-to contouring tips? What do you still struggle with?

This article was originally submitted by Pooja Sharma, fashion and lifestyle writer at Baggout.com, an online recommendation engine for girls aged 16-30 where you can choose from the best products that suit you the most chosen by the top stylists from the top retailers. You can find Indian dresses like Women Sarees and Women Kurtis all at one place.