Mistakes You’re Making When You’re Contouring Your Face (And How to Fix Them)

Thanks in part to dramatic YouTube tutorials and Instagram posts, it may seem like you have to use an ultra-dark contour colour to achieve results. In reality, this can leave your makeup looking harsh and unnatural.

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You can fix this mistake by choosing a colour two shades darker than your skin for a natural look, or three shades darker for more drama. Try finding your exact skin-tone match in Fenty Beauty’s Match Stix Matte Skinstick, then go two or three shades deeper than that to find the perfect contour shade.

Fenty Beauty Match Stix Matte Skinstick, $31.

You might be tempted to contour with bronzer, and then wonder why it looks unnatural. The idea behind contouring is to mimic or enhance shadows on the face and shadows have a cooler undertone. Bronzer, however, tends to be warm-toned to give the illusion of a sun-kissed glow.

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Go for a product with a cool, grayish undertone rather than a warm, orange-y one. The Kevyn Aucoin Sculpting Contour Powder comes in three cool-toned shades (Light, Medium, and Deep) perfect for carving out perfect cheekbones.

Kevyn Aucoin The Sculpting Contour Powder, $57.

Again thanks to YouTube videos and Instagram tutorials, it may seem like creamy sticks and concealers are the only contour options. In fact, creams can be tricky and time-consuming to blend.

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Cream isn’t the only option at all! It’s a good idea to choose your contour formula based on your skin type. If you have oily skin, go with a powder. If you’re on the dry side, go with a cream. If you’re extremely dry, you can mix that cream with an oil. Normal skin? You can pretty much choose whichever formula you’d like. If you have normal skin, a palette that includes both creams and powders – like the Kevyn Aucoin Contour Book – will give you plenty of options.

Kevyn Aucoin The Contour Book The Art of Sculpting + Defining Volume II, $78

It’s one of the most common beauty mistakes but it's so easy to end up with a skunk-like stripe, get discouraged, and never try contouring again.

This one is so easy to fix, even mid-contouring catastrophe. Put down the contouring brush or sponge! Use either a clean brush or a brush with some leftover foundation on it to blend out the edges. The e.l.f. Cosmetics Ultimate Blending Brush is soft but dents, which makes it perfect for blending out harsh lines where your contour meets your foundation.

e.l.f. Cosmetics Ultimate Blending Brush, $6.

This is such an easy step to miss, but just like with concealer or foundation, setting a cream contour helps to keep everything in place.

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Set cream contours with a light dusting of powder contour in a similar shade to your cream. Powder contour kits like this one from Anastasia Beverly Hills give you plenty of options.

Anastasia Beverly Hills Contour Kit, $52

Contouring is supposed to slim and sculpt the face, so placement is key. Contouring too low – towards the middle of the cheeks – can make you look gaunt rather than snatched.

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Ideal placement depends on your individual face shape, but what flatters a lot of face shapes is to follow the line created from where your ear meets your head towards the corner of your mouth.

Placement is really important, but in our contour enthusiasm, it’s easy to get carried away and blend too far inwards, toward the nose.

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It’s best not to contour past the apples of your cheeks. When blending, use short, deliberate strokes to keep control of your placement.

Over the past decade, contouring has gone from the realm of drag queens and celebrity makeup artists to something completely mainstream. It can be easy to think that, if you’re going to do your makeup, you absolutely must contour.

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Sometimes a little blush or a healthy dose of bronzer can give a fresh, pretty look without the glam and drama of a Real Housewives contour. It’s a great alternative for when you have to get out the door in a hurry. Try a blush-bronzer duo to save time and still achieve a fresh and sunkissed glow.

<a href="http://Sometimes a little blush or a healthy dose of bronzer can give a fresh, pretty look without the glam and drama of a Real Housewives contour. It’s a great alternative for when you have to get out the door in a hurry. Try a blush-bronzer duo to save time and still achieve a fresh and sunkissed glow. NARS Mini Blush/Bronzer Duo, $28" rel="noopener" target="_blank">NARS Mini Blush/Bronzer Duo, $28.