Contouring

One of the most dramatic ways to change a face is the use of a deep base shade to alter the shape of the face. Short of plastic surgery, there is no other more effective way to make such a drastic change in the face. However, contouring is often overlooked or misunderstood as being obscure and overly complicated. But as with all things, with practice, it will eventually become simple...I mean, I'm sure we all remember our first few times experimenting with eyeliners!

Because asians tend to have a "flat face" with less definition overall to their face, contouring is especially important. 2 important considerations are the color of the contouring product, and the quality and shape of the brush used. I suggest using a powder for easier control, and a relatively big and soft angeled brush. I do not suggest using bronzer to contour, the reason being the color may be off, as bronzers usually have an orange tone, and shimmer. We want something less conspicuous for contouring (so that people dont think its makeup thats giving you definition), something that is matte, and has a yellow based brown. I use MAC matte blush in Blunt. To reiterate, you really do want to find a neutral brown matte blush of some sort to do this, and NOT a bronzer- it will just look too fake and make-upy with the bronzer, especially in daylight or under strong indoor lighting. For brushes, I use the angled face blush brush made by MAC, and various Sephora brushes. In my opinion, these two companies make the best brushes. MAC is very functional for makeup artists, and sephora has affordable quality and the texture of the brushes feel great against the skin with very minimal shedding.

Placement of the contour on the face will differ on every face, and you must practice, practice, practice in front of the mirror until you get it right...but there are some general guidlines. To slim the face down, apply on the sides of the face, under the eyes, down the the upper chins on both sides. Also, to create shape on the forehead, color on the temple area, while utilizing highlight powder of some sort in the center of the forehead (be careful of overdoing the highlight if you have really oily skin). To define cheekbones and look like the models with razor sharp cheeks, pucker up your lips and apply where it caves in. To narrow the nose, apply on the sides, and do highlighting on the bridge. To create depth in the eye area, apply contour to the spot under your eyebrow and where the crease should be. Again, the amount and degree of contouring will take practice and will be different on every face. But with practice and a little patience, you will see what a dramatically sexy difference contouring can do!