Contouring à la Moi!

It's not something that I really bother to do on the daily, but for evenings out and special occasions I can never turn away from a good contour! Generally I don't do the whole Kimmy K triangle highlight under the eyes shebang but a structured cheekbone on the other hand, I am quite a fan of. I have a few products and tools that I like to use to achieve this depending on the way I've done the rest of my face.

Day to day I do bronze the outer portions of my face- hairline, temples and cheekbones, the usual, using the MAC Matte Bronzer but I don't sculpt out my face at all. It's more to warm up my complexion and make things a shade less ghostly! However when contouring using this same bronzer, I'll use a smaller, more defining brush which creates more shadow. Often people say not to use bronzer for contouring as it's less natural looking, especially those with shimmer but I find this one works fine for me.

My go-to powder product for contouring is definitely MAC Harmony blush which I think I heard about from the Pixiwoo sisters, who most definitely know their stuff. As it's a blush it's very pigmented so a light hand is best but the shade of this looks really natural on the skin because of it's slight ashy/grey undertone. Paired with any of the brushes pictured it works a chiseled cheek dream!

Now that the weather's warming up, the cream products emerge. Cream blushes, eye products and as well- bronzers. The Bourjois Bronzing Primer, which is said to be an affordable alternative to Chanel's Soleil Tan de Chanel, is a cream product that can be used underneath or on top of makeup. I like to use this with a stippling brush (not pictured) but also works well with both the Real Techniques Duo Fibre Contour brush and original Contour brush. A little goes a long way with this product but it's easily buildable and provides a subtle bronze and can be more defined for a contoured look. This product is quite heavily scented just as an FYI.

Last but not least we have the gorgeous Hourglass Ambient Lighting Palette which contains three powders all for different purposes but this post's focus will be on Radiant light (right hand shade). The high-tech and soft focus nature of these powders make them one of my absolute favourites! As a gal with uneven and far from perfect skin, anything that's going to mask this without looking or feeling cakey gets a thumbs up in my books. I prefer to use this powder in combination with a matte bronzer to add extra dimension and an all over bronze rather than a bold contour.

NARS Ita Brush, Real Techniques LE Duo Fibre Contour Brush, Real Techniques Contour Brush, Sigma F05 Small Contour Brush

In terms of tools, I have four current favourites however some newbies have been added to the mix but I will report on those with some more use. The NARS Ita brush appears all over the interwebs and beautysphere with many people bragging about how amazing it is so of course I succumbed to the hype and finally found one online. The narrow shape of the brush provides a very bold, sharp contour which you can then blend out to look slightly more soft. This is probably my number 1 tool because you just can't go wrong.

Two contour brushes from Real Techniques have been in my stash for quite a while now and work very well. As with the entire range of Real Techniques these brushes which are both synthetic work really well with both powder and cream products. The Duo Fibre Contour brush is slightly less dense so can work well for a softer look. Then we have an addition from Sigma, the F05 Small Contour brush; this is slightly rounded so fits well into the hollows of the cheeks and blends product out well.

Getting that Glow!

Everybody's always aiming for the Victoria's Secret glow that we see in all their campaigns and on the glitter runway when those leggy ladies are strutting their stuff! For those of us who don't wake up looking like Candice Swanepoel, there are many different things we can do and put on our face to fake the glow. Fake it 'til you make it ladies!

There are different types of highlighting products on the market which for the most part can be separated into cream and powder categories. More and more we're seeing 'new technology' in products on the market that aim to give you an even more 'natural' look to your highlight. Cream contouring/highlighting that we see so much on Instagram and YouTube is more about creating depth and structure to your face rather than a glow. In the past I've been a bit afraid of highlighting the high points of my face mainly because I felt like it drew attention to any pores and made them look larger but more recently, I've found the best way to apply and the right products for me which doesn't make me look like a discoball belonging in Saturday Night Fever! I prefer to keep my highlight for the evening generally but you know, sometimes things are lookin a lil drab so you gotta add some glow in the day.

My glow endeavour began with Benefit's Sun Beam which is a gorgeous bronzey glow, perfect for tanned skin in the Summer which is when I bought it but of course kept it unopened until a few months ago.. Classic me. Anywho, regardless of what it would look best with, I was getting ready one evening and thought it was time to crack it open. I dabbed it on the high points of my cheekbones, down my nose and on my cupid's bow- all the places the experts recommend and voila! I got the glow! Subtle enough for me to have to move my face to catch the light and make it visible but enough that I could see a difference in how my skin looked. A much later addition to the highlight game but again from Benefit was their cult classic High Beam; the same consistency just a more pinky pearl shimmer. A gift from the lovely Lipstick n Linguine's giveaway, I hadn't made this purchase before because I thought my skin tone needed a more champagne toned shimmer but the old High Beam, she goes alright. Same application, same points on my face and the shimmer is perfect for day and nighttime. I just make sure to apply the cream highlight after foundation and before powder because it won't sit well on top of powdered skin. You can also add a drop of the Benefit highlighters to your foundation for an all over glow but I haven't been game enough to try this for fear of turning out like a shining moon.

Once I'd dipped my toe in the proverbial highlighting pool, that was it! Dim Light from my beloved Hourglass Ambient Lighting Palette gets a lot of use but the middle and right hand shades- Incandescent Light and Radiant Light have been a little neglected. Until recently that is. Incandescent light has become my everyday brow highlight and my general face highlight for both day and evening looks because this palette is phenom. If you know these powders then you know they're designed with new technology to create even looking skin texture by reflecting light so therefore the way these make your skin glow is beautifully natural. The shimmer is super fine so there's no chunky particles and you're just left with very healthy, radiant looking skin. You may know this if you've read my past blogposts or seen my Instagram posts but for me, Hourglass can honestly do no wrong.

MAC's Porcelain Pink was in fact the first highlighter I ever purchased. It was quite a long time ago now, I just haven't really used it. I bought it at the Estee Lauder corporate store and at the time I swore I'd heard the name mentioned on YouTube but I think I was very wrong. Nothing wrong with this highlighter but I find it a little too pink for my skintone so I don't reach for it that often. I've used it on my friends and thought it looked gorgeous but just don't feel it on me. It's the standard formula for MAC highlighters so a very fine powder, easy to use and blend out. Usually products like this that don't get much use I'll giveaway but I keep challenging myself to use it and writing this post has reminded me so I'll be bringing it to the front of my cheek drawer!

Now that we've talked about things to put on your face to #getdaglow, there are a few things you can do for your skin to get it looking more radiant and at its best. Water! Drink a lot of it, all day everyday. Small sips throughout the day even if you aren't hungry and this will improve skin's clarity and complexion. Moisturise! I used to be one of the sinners who thought because their skin was more oily that I didn't need to moisturise as much/twice a day. Ba boooooooow- wrong. Your skin then tries to overcompensate and it just makes things worse (I might go more into this in a skincare post but not sure yet). By moisturising you help to balance your skin and it'll look more radiant and plump.

They're my two quick and easy tips for things you can do for yourself but if you just want a lil extra VS glam then go artificial and light yo'self up girl! What is your favourite highlighting product? Do you prefer cream or powder products?