Contouring: A step-by-step guide by expert make-up artists

We speak to three leading make-up artists to help you navigate the world of contouring

Kim Kardashian West is meeting with president Donald Trump in order to discuss pardoning a grandmother serving a life sentence in prison after her first drug offence (ANGELA WEISS/AFP/Getty Images)

Thanks to the Kardashian-Jenner clan and the rise of YouTube and Instagram make-up tutorials in recent years, contouring has been brought to the masses.

But, while this means that chiselled cheekbones are finally fair game for us all, the term can still strike fear in even the most make-up savvy among us.

And it’s not hard to see why. After all, embracing a technique that requires you to apply products several shades darker than your skin tone is contrary to everything we’ve been told from make-up artists when it comes to matching foundation to your skin colour.

Fortunately, over the past decade, the methods and mystery behind contouring have been debunked, leading to a rise in the popularity of the technique. On Instagram, you'll find more than 5m posts using the hashtag #contour, and a quick Google search will bring up endless results (422m to be exact).

What is contouring?

Contouring is the art of creating definition and shadow in your face, meaning you can subtly change the shape of your face or enhance features by applying darker coloured products in certain areas.

"By putting shadow on an area it falls into the background while the area next to it appears lighter, therefore coming into the foreground," Rachel O’Donnell, MAC’s global senior artist, tells The Independent.

"This is why most people contour under their cheekbones where shadow would naturally occur making our cheekbones more pronounced."

The technique is also commonly used in areas such as the jawline, hairline and along the sides of the nose.

Contouring to your hairline makes your forehead appear smaller, while contouring your jawline makes it look more defined.

Meanwhile, applying a darker shade along the sides of your nose will make also it appear narrower, according to O’Donnell.

Where did it come from?

“Contouring is as old as make-up itself,” Maddie Pearce, a freelance makeup artist with two decades of experience, previously told The Independent.

“Initially it was found in theatre, using pan sticks or grease paints to help the audience see their heroine in all their glory.”

Long before the era of Instagram make-up, contouring was used by stage performers out of necessity, so that their expressions could be seen by audience members who were further from the stage. In an article for Byrdie, Faith Xue traces the technique back to the mid-1500s when stage actors in Elizabethan England would apply chalk and soot to their faces for this purpose.

More recently, contouring became associated with drag queen culture, with performers using it to create the illusion of having a more feminine face shape and creating shadows to alter their features.

The rise of television shows like Ru Paul's Drag Race, which shows contestant's make-up up close, and stars like Kim Kardashian West, using drag techniques on a regular basis has helped to popularise the style massively.

“Contouring is widely used among the drag community and, let’s face it, no one does it as good as they do," Pearce continues.

“Gradually over the years, many of the drag queens tricks have filtered into everyday make-up,” he says.

Charlotte Tilbury MBE, a make-up artist, founder and creative director of her eponymous beauty and skincare brand, says it’s one of her go-to guiles.

“Contouring is one of my favourite tricks of the trade,” Tilbury tells The Independent.

“It creates beautifully defined features, at any age.”

But that's not to say the technique is reserved for professional performers or make-up artists alone, because now people across the globe are making it the norm by applying contour in the comfort of their bedrooms.

Is it possible to achieve a subtle contour?

While contouring is typically associated with Instagrammable razor-sharp cheekbones, it is also possible to use the technique to subtly define your favourite features.

Speaking to The Independent, Lisa Potter-Dixon, head make-up artist at Benefit Cosmetics, gave us her top tips for achieving a quick and easy contour:

• Using a super blendable, soft matte finish bronzer, like Hoola, start at the forehead and dust down in a figure of three either side of your face. This will complement the structure of your face and therefore enhancing your natural features. 
• After, be sure to dust a small bit of bronzer down the neck to match your face.
• To finish the look add a pop of blusher to the apples of the cheeks, and sweep up to the top of the ear.

If you prefer to use cream products, Tilbury suggests using a product like the Hollywood Contour Wand which uses a cushion applicator to create shadows and define features for a natural finish.

“Simply apply the sculpting wand to cheekbones, temples, forehead and down the sides of the nose to instantly lift the appearance of the face,” Tilbury tells The Independent.

Should everyone contour in the same places?

Thanks to the ever-expanding range of beauty products, contouring can be achieved relatively simply, but O’Donnell says it’s important to remember that contouring is different for every face shape.

“Every face shape and person have different concerns or loves so you may only want contour one or two areas or none at all,” she tells The Independent.

“Wherever you are contouring make sure you choose a tone that looks like the natural shadows on your skin that way your added shadows will look more flattering and realistic.”

Here, O’Donnell provides her step-by-step guide on how to contour each part of the face, depending on what you want to define.

• Cheekbones: Imagine a line from the top of your ear to your mouth and brush your contour colour inwards on that imaginary line gently lifting off when you reach the middle of your cheek. This allows you to create soft natural shadow that you can build on. 
• Jawline: We often contour a jaw in or away by placing our shadowy shade under our jaw line to make our jaw appear stronger or by adding it to the jaw line itself, softening hard edges and creating a rounder shape. 
• Forehead: Adding shadows on the temples and around the hairline will add dimension and soften a forehead
• Nose: Make a nose slimmer by adding your shadow on either side, or less pronounced by adding the shadow to the area that you want to lessen, such as bridge or tip.

You can read more about our favourite contour products here.