How To Contour And Highlight For Your Face Shape: 7 Tips

Written by Team BBMar 03, 2023
How to Contour and Highlight for Your Face Shape: 7 Tips

Face contouring and highlighting is a game of light and shadows that has more twists and turns than the plot of Game of Thrones! Put quite simply, contouring is using a darker shade than your skin tone to deepen or reshape the areas where shadows fall naturally on your face. You don’t need any face contouring surgery, just learn a few simple makeup techniques to transform your face shape and features. 

Highlighting is accentuating the prominent areas that naturally catch the light on your face. If you are a newbie at this game or if you still have doubts about what goes where, let us take you through a guide on contouring, concealing and highlighting. 

How to Contour and Highlight for Your Face Shape: The Basics 

Contouring and highlighting are makeup techniques that can help enhance and define your facial features. So, stop googling about face contouring botox, or face contouring surgery cost in India, because you can easily do this with makeup. To achieve a flawless highlight and contour face makeup, you just need to choose the right products and makeup techniques for your face shape. 

Tips on How to Contour and Highlight for Your Face Shape

How to Contour and Highlight for Your Face Shape

1. Apply your foundation 

How to apply contour on face? Always start with a foundation that perfectly matches your skin colour and type. Keep in mind that foundation is not for contouring or masking blemishes, it is designed to provide even skin complexion. 

Tips on How to Do It 

Apply your foundation on a clean, moisturised face. Use a brush, sponge, or fingers to spread your foundation evenly, starting from the centre of your face, blending upwards and outwards.

How to Contour and Highlight for Your Face Shape

2. Conceal 

You can use a concealer in a lighter shade than your complexion for brightening your face, masking fine lines, and slightly contouring. Lakmé 9to5 Primer + Matte Liquid Concealer provides a broad spectrum of shades for all Indian skin colours. 

Tips on How to Do It 

How to contour and conceal your face at the same time? Pick the product with your index fingertip, dab and blend it below your eyes to conceal any pigmentation. Dab the same concealer along the centre of your face, starting at the centre of your forehead, along the length of your nose and a little on your chin, then blend outwards towards your hair line. Add horizontal concealer lines if you want to visually widen your face, and vertical lines if you want to make it look longer and thinner. Do not forget to conceal the sides of your nose and around the outer corners of your mouth.

How to Contour and Highlight for Your Face Shape

3. Contour 

For contouring, there are many options available. You could opt for a darker shade of concealer, a darker shade of foundation, or even a darker shade of powder to do the trick! But we suggest you trying the Kareena Kapoor Khan Lakmé Absolute Face Contour stick, that is lightweighted, and provides a luminous complexion. 

Tips on How to Do Contour Based on Face Shape 

Use the stick or an angled brush to trace the shape ‘3’ starting at the temples, along the area just below your cheekbones (where the hollow is) and ending just below your jawline. 

  • How to contour round face? If you have a round face, contouring under your cheekbones and jawline can help create definition.  

  • If you have a square face, you can contour your temples and jawline to soften your features. 

  • To contour oval face, darken the area under the cheekbones and jawline, and highlight the centre of the face, so you’ll create a sculpted and balanced look. 

  • For a heart shaped face, shade the temples and hairline, under the cheekbones, and along the jawline, blending towards the chin. 

  • Need to contour diamond face? Shade the temples, cheekbones, and jawline. Blend well and highlight the centre of the forehead, the bridge of the nose, and the chin. 

How to Contour and Highlight for Your Face Shape

4. Highlight 

The shimmer in the highlighter reflects the light that naturally catches on the high points of your face. This makes your face glowing, youthful looking, and sculpted. You can try Lakmé Absolute Liquid Highlighter in rose or ivory shade for dewy, radiant look. 

Tips on How to Do It 

Dab a little highlighter (you could also use a rose gold or champagne coloured eyeshadow for a similar effect) to your cheekbones, cupid’s arch, eyelids, inner eye corners, under brows, the back and tip of the nose. Create vertical lines to make your face appear thinner, and horizontal lines to visibly widen your features.

How to Contour and Highlight for Your Face Shape

5. Blush 

Blush can be used to add warmth and dimension to the face by creating a subtle contour effect. That’s why you have a buildable lightweight brush in a Lakmé Absolute Facelift Palette. Choose a cool or warm blush shade that complements your skin tone and apply it to the apples of your cheeks, blending towards the temples. 

Tips on How to Do It 

How to contour your face with a blush? Use a lighter hand for a natural look and a denser brush for a more defined effect. Avoid placing the blush too low on the face to prevent dragging the features down.

How to Contour and Highlight for Your Face Shape

6. Blend 

Blending your face contouring is important to create a natural-looking and seamless transition between the darker and lighter areas of the face. When you contour any face shape, it prevents harsh lines and creates a more subtle and flattering effect. 

Tips on How to Do It 

To blend contour, use a fluffy brush and blend in circular motions, starting at the edges and working towards the centre of the face. Make sure to blend well and adjust the intensity as needed.

How to Contour and Highlight for Your Face Shape

7. Set 

The last but not the least step of how to contour face is setting your makeup with powder. After contouring, it helps to lock in the product, keeping it in place for longer wear. 

Tips on How to Do It 

Use a fluffy powder brush to gently apply translucent or setting powder over your entire face, concentrating on areas where you applied cream or liquid products. Be sure to blend well to avoid any harsh lines or product buildup. 

FAQs about How to Contour and Highlight for Your Face Shape 

Q1 How to contour a fat face to look skinny? 

If you want to know how to contour a chubby face, or how to do contouring for round face, here are a few tips for your face to appear more slim and defined. Use a matte contour powder that's two shades darker than your skin tone to shade the areas that you want to appear more sculpted, such as under the cheekbones, along the jawline, and the temples. Blend well to create a natural-looking shadow. Highlight the high points of your face, such as the cheekbones, brow bones, and the bridge of the nose, with a light-reflecting powder or highlighter to add dimension and balance your features. 

Q2 How to choose contour makeup for your skin tone

Choose a contour makeup shade that is two shades darker than your skin tone and has a similar undertone. Cool-toned skin should use a cool-toned contour, and warm-toned skin should use a warm-toned contour. 

Q3 What is the difference between bronzer and contour? 

Though, you can sculpt your face with a bronzer, too, but actually these products have different purposes. Bronzer adds warmth and a sun-kissed glow to the skin, while contour is used to create shadows and depth on the face, sculpt and define facial features. 

We hope now you’ve learned more about face contouring for different face shapes, also check the guide on how to apply makeup for your face shape

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