Contouring for a long face is a transformative technique that can create the illusion of a more balanced, oval-shaped face. The key is to strategically place shadows to shorten the appearance of the face and add width. This guide will walk you through the process step-by-step, providing you with the tools and techniques to master this skill.
The Foundation: Prepping Your Canvas
Before you even touch a contour product, your skin needs to be prepped. A smooth, even base is crucial for a flawless application.
- Cleanse and Moisturize: Start with a clean face. Use a gentle cleanser to remove any oil or impurities, and follow up with a lightweight, hydrating moisturizer. This creates a plump canvas that prevents makeup from settling into fine lines.
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Prime for Longevity: A good primer is non-negotiable. For a long face, opt for a mattifying primer in your T-zone (forehead, nose, chin) to control shine, and a hydrating primer on your cheeks to create a dewy look. This dual-primer approach ensures your contour stays put and your skin looks balanced.
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Choose Your Base: A medium-coverage, satin-finish foundation is ideal. Avoid heavy, matte foundations that can make your face look flat and emphasize its length. Instead, opt for a foundation that mimics the look of healthy skin. Apply it evenly with a damp beauty sponge or a foundation brush, blending it down your neck for a seamless transition.
Selecting Your Contour and Highlight Products
Choosing the right products is half the battle. Your choices will directly impact the final result.
Contour Products
The goal is to create a realistic shadow, so choose a contour shade that is one to two shades darker than your natural skin tone with a cool or neutral undertone. Avoid warm, orangey bronzers, which will look unnatural.
- Cream Contour: Excellent for dry skin or for a more natural, dewy finish. Cream contours are easier to blend and build, making them beginner-friendly. Look for a stick, pot, or pan formula.
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Powder Contour: Ideal for oily skin or for a more defined, matte finish. Powder contours are great for setting cream products or for a quick, all-in-one application. Use a fluffy, angled brush for precise placement.
Highlight Products
Highlighting is just as important as contouring. It brings light to the high points of your face, drawing attention away from the length.
- Matte Highlight: A matte concealer that is one to two shades lighter than your skin tone is perfect for this. It brightens without adding shimmer, which can sometimes emphasize texture.
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Shimmery Highlight: Use a subtle, finely-milled shimmery highlight on the high points of your face. Avoid chunky glitter, which can look unnatural.
The Art of Strategic Contouring: The Placement is Key
The core of contouring for a long face is to shorten the forehead and chin while adding width to the cheeks.
Contouring the Forehead
The objective here is to create the illusion of a shorter forehead.
- Placement: Apply your contour product along your hairline, from temple to temple.
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Technique: Start at the temples and blend the product down into the hairline. Avoid bringing the contour too far down onto the center of your forehead, as this will make your face look narrower.
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Pro-Tip: If your hairline is high, bring the contour product down slightly further onto your forehead to create a more impactful shadow. Blend meticulously to ensure there are no harsh lines.
Contouring the Chin and Jawline
This step is crucial for shortening the bottom half of your face.
- Placement: Apply your contour product directly under your chin, creating a horizontal line.
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Technique: Blend this shadow downwards onto your neck, creating a soft, natural-looking shadow. Avoid bringing the contour up onto your jawline, as this will only emphasize the length.
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Pro-Tip: For a more defined look, apply a small amount of contour on the two corners of your jaw. This creates a sharper angle and helps to break up the long line of the jaw.
Contouring the Cheeks
This is where you add the much-needed width to your face.
- Placement: Instead of creating a diagonal line from your ear to the corner of your mouth, you need to create a more horizontal line. Place your contour product on the hollows of your cheeks, starting from the mid-point of your ear and extending forward no further than the outer corner of your eye.
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Technique: Use a fluffy, angled brush or a damp beauty sponge to blend the contour upwards and outwards. The goal is to create a horizontal shadow that widens the face. Avoid blending downwards, as this will drag the face down and make it look longer.
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Pro-Tip: Smile and locate the apples of your cheeks. Apply a small amount of contour directly under the apples and blend upwards. This creates a subtle lift and adds volume to the cheeks, further widening the face.
Contouring the Nose
A long nose can contribute to a long face shape. Strategic contouring can shorten and widen it.
- Placement: Apply your contour product on the sides of your nose, creating two straight lines.
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Technique: Start the lines from the inner corner of your eyebrow and bring them straight down to the tip of your nose. The key is to keep the lines close together to create a narrower bridge. Blend the contour outwards towards the cheeks to soften the lines.
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Pro-Tip: To shorten the nose, apply a small amount of contour to the tip, blending it up towards the bridge. This creates a subtle shadow that gives the illusion of a shorter nose.
The Power of Highlighting: Bringing Light to the Right Places
Highlighting draws attention and creates the illusion of more balanced proportions.
Highlighting the Under-Eyes
This step brightens the area and draws attention to the center of the face.
- Placement: Apply a matte concealer or a highlighting product in an inverted triangle shape under your eyes.
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Technique: Blend the product outwards and upwards towards your temples. This lifts the face and draws attention to the eyes.
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Pro-Tip: Use a damp beauty sponge to press the product into the skin. This creates a seamless, airbrushed finish.
Highlighting the Cheeks and Temples
This step is crucial for adding width to the face.
- Placement: Apply a shimmery highlight to the highest points of your cheekbones, directly above your contour line. Also, apply a small amount to the temples.
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Technique: Use a fan brush or your fingertips to gently pat the product onto the skin. Blend it in a C-shape, starting from the temples and sweeping down to the cheekbones.
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Pro-Tip: For a more intense glow, spritz your brush with a setting spray before picking up the highlight product.
Highlighting the Center of the Face
This brightens the center of your face and draws attention to the middle, away from the length.
- Placement: Apply a matte highlight or concealer down the center of your nose, on your Cupid’s bow, and on the center of your forehead (between your eyebrows).
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Technique: Use a small, precise brush to apply the product. Blend it gently to avoid harsh lines.
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Pro-Tip: Avoid highlighting the tip of your nose, as this can make it look longer.
Blush: The Final Touch
Blush adds a healthy flush of color and can also be used to create the illusion of width.
- Placement: Instead of applying blush to the apples of your cheeks and blending upwards, apply it horizontally. Start at the apple of your cheek and sweep the blush outwards towards your temples.
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Technique: Use a fluffy blush brush to apply the product. Blend it seamlessly into your contour and highlight.
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Pro-Tip: Choose a blush color that complements your skin tone. For fair skin, a soft pink or peach is perfect. For medium skin, a rosy pink or a terracotta shade works well. For deep skin, a rich berry or a plum shade is ideal.
Setting Your Makeup: Lock it in Place
The final step is to set your makeup to ensure it lasts all day.
- Powder Power: Use a large, fluffy brush to lightly dust a translucent setting powder over your T-zone and under-eye area. This controls shine and locks in your foundation and concealer.
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Setting Spray: Finish with a setting spray. For a dewy finish, use a hydrating spray. For a matte finish, use a mattifying spray. Hold the bottle at arm’s length and mist your face in a T-shape and an X-shape.
A Quick Summary: The Cheat Sheet
To make this process even more actionable, here’s a quick summary of the key steps.
- Contour the Top: Apply contour along your hairline and blend it downwards. This shortens the forehead.
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Contour the Bottom: Apply contour horizontally under your chin and blend it down onto your neck. This shortens the chin.
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Contour the Sides: Apply contour horizontally on the hollows of your cheeks, from the middle of your ear to the outer corner of your eye. This adds width.
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Highlight the Center: Highlight under your eyes, down the center of your nose, and on the center of your forehead. This draws attention to the middle of the face.
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Blush Horizontally: Apply blush from the apples of your cheeks outwards towards your temples to add width.
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Blend, Blend, Blend: Blending is the most crucial step. Use a damp beauty sponge or a fluffy brush to ensure there are no harsh lines.
Conclusion
Mastering the art of contouring for a long face is a game-changer. By understanding the principles of light and shadow and applying these techniques with precision, you can create a more balanced and harmonious look. The key is to work with your face shape, not against it, and to use strategic placement to create the illusion of a wider, shorter, and more oval-shaped face. With practice, these steps will become second nature, and you’ll be able to create a flawless, sculpted look every time.