Which is actually a technique that isn't new. Theatrical makeup artists and those who work in television have been contouring people for years. My real first in encounter with it was probably Heavy Metal music in the 80's! All those guys wore makeup and wore it dramatically! As they did everything else. I was/am a Stryper fan (Those of you who don't know they are a Christian Heavy Metal band that dressed in makeup and leather. Sort of the Christian worlds version of KISS. Gene Simmons would be proud).
Kim's got nothing on these guys - look at those cheek bones!
So I digress... I'm not a subscriber to the extreme contouring. But I do almost always contour my clients. And this is how....
Subtly! If you need to contour everyday . . . then let's look at what we are wanting to highlight and contour. Don't just do it they way Kim does it. We have to fit our needs and face structure. On Social Media I follow Lisa Eldridge. She's an amazing makeup artist and the new Creative Director at Lancome. She recently posted a photo where she did Kim's makeup. Everyone raved about the difference. (Click on the link to read the article).
and this (photo is retouched) done by a Mario Dedivanovic who is someone who does Kim's makeup on a more frequent basis and kind of responsible for all the shading business (and also genius).
She looks almost like a different person. And it's all because of contouring. Now the debate is which is better. For Kim it doesn't matter. She's a beautiful woman and short of a bag over her head, I'm not sure there's anything that can make her look bad.
But you and I may need a bit extra help. Well, I know I do. So contouring our cheeks and around our face is a nice place to start. The chart below shows us placement for contouring for different face shapes. It also helps designate where to highlight.
Notice on the long face there isn't any highlighting and contouring happening in the nose area. WHY?! Because that would just make your face look longer! Following the rule light makes things look bigger and dark makes them smaller is best to keep in mind when doing this technique. So someone with a round face wanting to look slimmer would shade around the outer part of her face. This draws the eye to the center to a smaller visual.
This isn't something you have to do every day unless you choose to, but for occasions you may want to pay a bit of attention to using contouring and highlighting.
All of this brings us to products to use. You can use creams... this will give you a very dramatic Kim K. look. You will need a beauty blender or similar product to blend it all out. Listen... this is a lot of work. The placement of the product along with the blending and then that's just your base. You'll need foundation and the rest of your makeup on top of that. Plus you're using multiple products and that can be costly. If you really want to knock yourself out . . . go for it. But personally I do not understand this. Unless you are Kim K., again I ask why?! LOL
So for a more subtle approach - use a matte bronzer or powder a few shades darker that yours and you can still achieve a very nice contour. The easiest way is to brush on, starting at your temples/forehead and working your way down the sides of your face in a "3" shape will accomplish this nice glow and creating shadows where dark should be. Just follow the natural contour of your face. Again, nothing too dark just a shade or two darker ... you can then add highlighter at the tops of your cheeks and where appropriate.
It can be easy or complicated... if you have questions let me know below. I'll try to answer as best I can!
Happy Tuesday!
xoxox,
T
