Top Contouring Makeup Products For Different Skin Colors
Very few people are born with a sculptured bone structure. But thankfully contouring makeup allows anyone to create the illusion of chiseled cheekbones and defined jawlines by playing with light and shadow. Here are the best contouring makeup products that every woman needs to own.
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Nowadays it’s hard not to run across pictures and videos that involve highlighting and contouring. These two techniques are used in the makeup industry to sculpt and give the face definition. Highlighting is blending a lighter shade of makeup on certain parts of your face to bring attention to them, i.e., the upper part of your cheekbones, bridge of your nose, chin, cupid’s bow, the center of your forehead, and other areas you would want to stand out more than usual.
Contouring is quite the opposite. It is using a darker cream or powder to hide and sculpt areas of your face, i.e., the side of your nose, around your jaw-line, under your cheekbones, and other areas.
You can use an array of powders and creams to create a perfectly sculpted face. My personal suggestion is to go 2-3 shades lighter than your skin tone for highlighting and 2-3 shades darker for contouring.
Make sure to blend well using a beauty blender for cream or a contour/highlight brush for powder. My favorite is MAC’s 168 brush for the cheeks and jawline and the 224 brush for the nose.
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To contour porcelain, complexions choose a cool shade such as NYX Powder Blush in Taupe and work the product underneath your cheekbones, temples, brow bone, and under your jawline. Use a light hand when contouring and blend well as any contrast in color will stand out dramatically on pale skin.
Color-infused highlighting products will show up on darker skin tones but tend to blend seamlessly into fair skin with little to no effect. Focus on illuminating instead with a pearlescent highlighter such as Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powder in Ethereal Light.
The best shade of blush for ivory skin tones is one similar to your natural lip shade. For cool, pink undertones choose a deep rose or pink such as Revlon Powder Blush in Oh Baby. Women with warm, yellow undertones look best-wearing apricot.
The medium skin color covers a broad range of variations in pigments, but a great neutral color is Kevin Aucoin Sculpting Powder in Medium. Steer clear of contouring products with too much orange in them.
Don’t be afraid to try darker highlighters such as Burberry Fresh Glow Powder in Golden Radiance. This product is designed to illuminate the skin but can also be used to contour.
Dusty mauve blushes such as Maybelline New York Fit Me Blush in Deep Mauve will compliment yellow undertones while women with red undertones are suited to raspberry pinks.
The key to contouring is building up light layers, but darker skin tones allow for a more confident application. Look for warm chocolate and caramel tones as found in Stila Shape and Shape Custom Contour Duo.
The natural glow in your skin allows you to play with golden highlighters in warm shades, and our favorite is the Dreamy Glow Highlighter by Charlotte Tilbury. Sweep across the top of the cheekbones, down the bridge of the nose, and on the cupid’s box for sun-kissed radiance.
When it comes to blush warm peach tones with hints of orange flatter olive skin; Giorgio Armani’s Cheek Fabric in Ecstasy will give your skin tone a luxurious lift.
Depending on your skin tone you may also want to work a darker shade into your temples, underneath your cheekbones, and your chin. When combining both a dark and light product be sure to blend well. Our pick is Smashbox Step By Step as it provides three different shades to play with.
To emphasize your inner glow apply a highlighter in either a colorless or terracotta shade such as Ellis Faas Glow Up in Deep Glow. Apply it above your cheekbones, across your eyelids, on the chin, and down the nose.
Look for berry blush shades if you have a red undertone, alternatively, if you have a yellow undertone go for an orange blush. Ebony skin tones allow you to play around with brighter pigments.
