Ever wonder how Gisele Bundchen, Victoria Beckam, and Beyonce get their face to look perfectly slender and also manage to have dewey skin? The answer is that they just so happen to have a great makeup artist who knows the tricks of the trade to making a woman look perfect.  But don’t fret, you can look the same way by just knowing the basics and putting in a few hours of practice.

First, you need to know what highlighting and contouring means.  Highlighting parts of your face means that you’ll use light products to make parts of the face seem bigger, or to bring certain parts of the face forward.  Contouring is using darker products to make parts of the face recede.  The purpose of contouring is to add depth and definition to the face.  This illusion will give you cheekbones that stand out and look great on stage, at events, and in photos.

Second, you need to know what areas are to be highlighted and what ones are to be contoured.  Areas you want to contour, or add depth to, are the hollows of your cheeks, your temples, and the sides of your nose.  You want to highlight the bridge of your nose, the high points of your cheeks, and your cupid’s bow.

The easiest way to highlight and contour is to grab some bronzer (or a matte powder that is 2-3 shades darker than your skin), blush, and a shimmery powder that matches your skin tone.  You will need a chiseled brush (for the best results) or just an angled blush brush along with a regular blush brush.  When you contour your cheeks, you need to make a fish face J and find your hollows.  Apply the bronzer onto your hollows and blend into the hairline.  This will make the contour seem more natural, as if it’s already there.  You can also find your hollow by placing you middle and index fingers right under the apple of the cheek.  Your hollow is where your fingers end.  Next you can S M I L E and apply a light coat of blush to the cheeks and blend into the hair line as well.  After you’ve finished, apply a light coat of shimmer to the high points of your cheeks and to the bridge of the nose.  This adds a healthy glow to the skin.  Once you’ve contoured your cheeks, don’t forget to do your temples and jawline if necessary.  Always remember to blend into the hairline; that’s probably one of the most important rules of contouring.

Contouring is a technique that gives your face and instant pop.  Try it out when you have a few hours to spare, or when you’re bored on a rainy day.  Have fun!

Use this picture as a guide: