How to Contour in One Minute or Less
Watching makeup tutorials is a favorite pass-time for a lot of us. However, the looks many beauty influencers create seem super unattainable in the 15 minutes I leave myself to get ready for class in the morning. It is possible to do a full face in that time – you’ll just need a little instruction and a lot of practice. I’m going to give you a step-by-step guide to contouring in one minute or less, but first, you’ll need just a little bit of prep.
Using the right products is key. A rule of thumb for contouring is to go about two shades darker than your skin, and always keep it cool-toned. This means stay away from bronzers meant to add warmth. Contouring is creating shadow on your face, not color. For tools, use a smaller, dense brush. You want a brush to lay down the pigments and give definition. Pick one roughly the size of the hollows of your cheeks when you make a fishy-face. To avoid harsh lines, keep a clean, fluffier brush handy to soften the edges.
Step 1: Snatch your Cheekbones With some product on your brush, lightly tap off any excess and begin lined up at the top point where your ears meet your face. Bring the brush down with gentle, circular motions. Only bring the color about a third of the way down your cheek, in order to keep it natural-looking.
Step 2: Five-head to a Forehead Big foreheads are great (prime example: Tyra Banks). But sometimes I like to contour my forehead to look a bit smaller, especially when my hair is pulled back. For your forehead, take some product on your brush, and starting about an inch above your temples, tap the brush along your hairline to the other side. If you feel you didn’t pick up enough powder for the whole perimeter, feel free to dip back in!
Step 3: Jawline for Days The last part of your face to contour is your jaw. To get correct placement, push your head forward to get a definite jawline if one isn’t already there. Following suit to steps 1 and 2, take your dense brush with powder on it and lightly run it under your jawline from ear-to-ear. It’s important to make sure you’re under your jawbone and not above to create a shadow.
Final Step: BLEND This step is absolutely the most important. Take your fluffy brush and run it along all the edges where you applied the contour shade in circular buffing motions. It only takes a few seconds but it’ll change the outcome of your face dramatically. Feel free to tweak any steps to fit your face! As with everything, practice makes perfect. If you’re doubtful about being able to achieve a contoured face in under a minute, give yourself some practice runs. One of my favorite times to try new makeup techniques is at night before I shower and wash everything off. (Completely consequence-free!) Remember to have fun with it! And of course, that you’re beautiful with and without makeup.