How to Apply Makeup Highlighter

Few women are born with perfect facial features or flawless skin. However, most women can learn how to accentuate the positive and downplay the negative with the right types of highlighting techniques. Such techniques can help create the features that you want, contour other features to the best effect and shadow those areas that you want to soften or downplay.

Things You'll Need

• A lighted mirror
• Highlighting products
• Appropriate makeup tools

Instructions

1. Determine the difference between highlighting and shading. The purpose of highlighting is to call attention to a feature or features while shading is meant to soften or downplay them.

2. Determine those features you wish to highlight and those you wish to shade. Looking in a lighted mirror, determine which facial features are your best assets. Those are the ones you may wish to highlight. Next, determine which features you wish to shade (reverse highlight).

3. Begin by highlighting the forehead. If your forehead is too low and you want to "lift" it, apply a light highlighting product across the top of the forehead from the end of one eyebrow to the end of the other. Blend the highlighter carefully into the hairline and foundation. If the forehead protrudes too much, to diminish the overall look, use a darker contour highlighter below the temples, over the eyelids, to the top of the nose. This will fill out the face and make the forehead appear smaller.

4. Highlight your eyes. Use highlighter in an ivory, peach, or pale pink shade underneath the brow bone if you need to "lift" the look of the eye and/or decrease the crepe-like look of the eyelid. Put a dot of the same ivory, peach, or pale pink highlighter inside the corner of each eye if you want to make the eye look more awake or alert. Use a white highlighter on the inside rim of the eye to help whiten and brighten the eye overall. Use a highlighter that is one to two shades lighter than your foundation, with a slight yellow tone, underneath the eyes it you need to diffuse skin discoloration and the darkness of under-eye circles. To narrow wide-set eyes, apply a darker contour highlighter in between the eyes at the temple to where the nose begins. To widen narrowly-set eyes, apply a light highlighter in between the eyes at the temple to where the nose begins.

5. Highlight or shade the cheekbones. Apply a light diffusing highlighting product across the top of the cheekbone. This will make the cheekbones appear more defined as well as lend the face a better overall shape. It will also help to draw light and attention up to the eyes. Locate the top of the cheekbone and begin the highlighter there, blending out to toward the hairline. If needed, shade the hollows of the cheeks with a darker contour highlighting shadow. Be sure to pull your cheeks in to find jawline that leads from the mouth to the ear. The contour highlighter should be applied there. Be sure to blend the contour highlighter thoroughly in downward strokes.

6. Highlight or shade the nose. Dot highlighter one or two shades lighter than your foundation along each side of the nose to conceal any skin discoloration. The same process can also help to decrease the look of the nose's width if you perceive that to be a problem. A dot of light highlighter down the center to the tip of the nose can help to lengthen it, while a dot of darker contouring highlighter can help to shorten it. To broaden a nose that you feel is too small apply a darker contour highlighter on each side of the nose and a lighter shade down the center. To downplay a crooked nose, apply a lighter highlighter on the the part of the nose that is concave and a darker highlighter on the area that is convex. This will help to give it a more straightened appearance. To downplay a hooked nose, apply a darker highlighting contour on the tip and sides of the nose.

7. Highlight the lips. Place a small dab of light (white, silver, or pale gold) highlighter above the upper lip and/or below the lower lip to make one or both of them look fuller. You can also apply it into the indentation between the nose and the mouth if you want to emphasize the bow of the mouth. However, if you want to downplay the "bow" use a darker highlighting lip liner to fill in part or all of the bow. Another technique can be used after lipstick is applied to further the "pouty" look. Apply the same shade of highlighter in the center of both the upper and lower lip. If you want to downplay a mouth that droops at the corners, use lip liner to build the upper lip up at the corners. To make thin lips appear fuller, use highlighting lip liner to draw just outside of the lips, employing a curving line that matches the shape of the mouth. To make a thin upper or bottom lip look fuller, use highlighting lip liner to build a curve of the thinner lip in order to balance it will the other. To downplay lips that are too large, be sure to keep all shading inside of the lip lines.

8. Use highlighter to contour the look of the face according to your facial shape. To make a round face appear move oval, use a darker contour highlighter on each side of the jaw and at the temples. Use a light highlighter on the center part of the nose, on the cheeks, the forehead and the chin. To make a heart shaped face appear more oval, use darker contour highlighter on the chin and temples and use a light highlighter on the cheeks and jaw. To make a rectangular shaped face appear more oval, use a darker contour highlighter on the forehead near the hairline and on the cheeks and chin. Use a light highlighter above the cheekbones and at the temples. To make a square shaped face appear more oval, use a darker contour on the temples and the sides of the jaw. Use a light highlighter down the center of the nose, on the cheeks and on the chin.

9. Highlight or shade your chin. To hide a double chin, apply a darker contour highlighter directly underneath the chin area. Sweep the contour color down the neck, blending it evenly into the skin of the neck area until all color disappears. To downplay a receding chin, apply a light highlighter in the center of the chin area. Then apply a darker contour highlighter under the chin, blending it down into the neckline. To narrow the jawline, apply a darker contour highlighter across the jawline area from the ears to where the chin begins. To widen the jawline, apply a light highlighter to the edges of the jaw from the ears to where the chin begins. To highlight a long neck, apply a light highlighter on the neck area. To downplay a thick neck, apply a darker contour highlighter on the neck area.

Tips & Warnings

• There should never be a line of demarcation so blend, blend, blend no matter the type of highlighter you use.

• Choose highlight colors that work with your specific skin tone.

• Choose the best "type" of highlighter for the job to be done.

• Use the right tools to blend the highlighters you choose properly.

• Triple check everything in the mirror before pronouncing your look complete.

• Whenever possible, do daytime makeup in natural daylight and nighttime makeup in the light under which your makeup will be seen.

• Don't be overly critical of your features since no one has a perfect facial structure, perfect features, or flawless skin.

• Expensive doesn't always mean quality so choose products that work for you, no matter the cost.

• Don't apply daytime makeup in incandescent light without also checking it in natural light.

• Don't apply nighttime makeup in natural daylight.