Get Your Make-Up Game On-Point By Using The Shading And Highlighting Techniques

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The art of make-up is evolving every single day. Gone are the days when only foundation, loose powder and a lipstick would suffice.

Today, there are so many steps involved in the whole process. Make-up when done right has the ability to alter a person's facial structures. Thanks to the Kardashian sisters, terms like highlighting and contouring have become important steps while applying make-up.

Previously known only to artists and sketchers, these techniques have now changed the rule of the make-up game. Shading and highlighting are done to hide one's facial flaws and bring out the best facial features.

You can define certain features of your face to make it pop, or hide a few flaws. Many of you might have already heard about these techniques but are not quite sure how to go about doing it. Although it may require some effort and practice, it is easy once you get a hang of it.

Shading/contouring and highlighting is basically used to add or subtract any feature on the face. Shading/contouring will make a feature less noticeable. So use it to hide any flaws.

Dark colours are used while shading to give the perception of a shadow. Use light brown shades on fair skin and brows and blacks for darker skin.

Highlighting is done to draw attention to your best features. It should be done with pale colours. For maximum effects, shading should be done first and then followed by highlighting.

This article will tell you how exactly to incorporate the shading/contouring and highlighting techniques into your make-up routine.

Here are a few things you will need to start :

• Bronzer
• Dark brown eye shadow
• A blush
• 2 blush brushes
• A fan brush

1) Shading/Contouring

Set up your base with a good foundation. Now start with a blush brush and the bronzer or a dark brown eye shadow. Apply the bronzer to your forehead close to your hairline until your temples.

Next, suck in your cheeks and contour the hollows of your cheeks from the top of your ear. Then contour your entire jawline with one sweep starting from the bottom of your earlobe to the other side earlobe.

Next, contour your nose by starting from right under your eye brows and move towards the whole side of your nose. Do it for the other side as well. This completes the contouring step.

Don't fret if you are looking too ridiculous at this step. The make-up is not complete yet. Next step is the highlighting technique.

2) Highlighting

Use a different blush brush or a fan brush and use the blush powder to highlight the centre of your forehead. Now that you have contoured the hollows of your cheek bone, you need to highlight the area just above it.

After that, start from the area close to your nose and down towards the sides of your mouth in a C shape. Next use the blush to highlight the entire bridge of your nose.
After you have completed the contouring and the highlighting, you need to subtly blend all the edges to make it work. Then powder the entire face. Your facial features will appear sharper.

Remember this article will only serve as a base to the techniques of contouring and highlighting. You may need to tweak the process a little bit for the technique to work on the contours of your face.

The shades also can be changed to suit your skin colour. Just remember that darker shades are used for contouring whereas lighter shades are used for highlighting.