Contouring for dummies

A little while back I got to attend a rather lush event thrown by Elizabeth Arden so they could show off their amazing new foundation. What we didn’t expect was to be told to arrive with no make-up on – a bloggers worst nightmare come true. But being a goody two-shoes, I did what I was told and arrived bare faced.

We then had our skin tone checked by an incredible little gadget, which then churned out the details of the EXACT shade of foundation we should be wearing, and were matched up with a bottle of it straight away.

We then sat down at a table brimming with makeup while the incomparable Gina Myers (celebrity makeup artist in case you live under a rock) taught us how to contour. This has been a technique I have actively avoided trying, fearing it is best left to a Kardashian sister, and even they don’t always get it right and look like a bad painting. So it was my lucky day and we got a live demo and lesson. I learnt that with the right tools, it is actually pretty easy.

So while some might have you buying into chubby sticks, powders and creams – I would suggest using what we did at the event. I found it much easier. Westarted with a layer of foundation, and combined it with two shades of Elizabeth Arden’s miracle product, the Flawless Finish Highlighting and Correcting Perfector pen (which I’ve raved about here and got stones thrown at me because I said its better that YSL Touche Eclat - which it is. *ducks under desk*).

You need two of these - one pen in two shades lighter, and one in two shades darker. For me this was shade Number 2 and Number 5. The reason I loved learning with these is they have a small, fine brush so using small amounts, and dotting if need be, was easy – and I needed my intro to contouring to be easy. I also prefer the light, foundation-like formula which made it easy to blend. This I learned, was key. You spend more time blending than applying.

I’ve got a few photos of during and after our session, and you can clearly see the difference contouring makes in defining your cheek bones and shrinking your snorkel. I also found it quite helpful to search online for where to place highlighter, shadow and blush for difference face shapes, to make sure I'm making my features work. I found loads of videos and images that were so helpful. It looks way harder than it is, and you just need to remember to blend dark into light, and to blend, blend, blend. Then blend some more.

Below is a cheat sheet from genius beauty blogger Cara of Maskcara - its the guide I found most helpful to use when practicing my new skills. Elizabeth Arden products can be found in Woolies, Foschini and Edgars, so next time you're out shopping, ask one of their staff to help you in trying out your own unique mix of foundation and contouring and highlighting pens. You won't look back.