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Someone please help me with bronzer!

Hey Everyone!


My name is Missy. I'm 27 and have just started using beauty products about 2 or 3 years ago as an everyday thing. I have a round/heart shaped face and puffy cheeks with know eye/cheek bones to see or speak of (that I can see anyways). 


I'm having the hardest time finding bronzer/blush/highliting techniques to make it look like I have an actually contoured face with cheek bones. The techniques I've seen on you tube just don't seem to work with my face shape or the color seems off. I have quite a fair face. I bought Kat Von D II Bronzer and have lots of shades that could be used as blush and highlighters including blushes and highlighters and the only thing I seem to pull off is highlighting my eyebrow bone area and a bit under my eyes. 


Everything as far as bronzers seems to be too dark, or mostly too orange for my face, and everytime I put the tiniest amount of blush on my "apples of my cheeks" I look like a clown or it looks like just wayyyy too much make up with the other make up I'm wearing all the sudden. 


Also it doesn't help that I have an under cut shave on one side of my face so when I wear bronzer in the "3" shape that Kat Von D recommends you can see right next to my temples my stark pale shaved head so its really obvious that I'm wearing bronzer compared to her dark orange shade I purchased. 


Also (Sorry to keep going and take so long) most bronzers kind of make me look like I've gotten a tan and thats not really my look as I'm really really pale. So the rest of my chest and neck look stark different than my face.


My questions are: How to truly apply blush, bronzer, and highlighter. Wear to apply it, and what shades should I be shopping in because these browns and oranges are making me look like a pumpkin head and keep my face looking just as round as it had before... Should I be going for a peach color or something? I've even tried the famous Nars Blush in Orgasm AND Albatross as a highlighter and can't seem to apply them in the right places. I'm going to attack a photo of my face with just foundation and nothing else on so you can see what I'm talking about with my cheekbone-less round face and the stark whiteness.


Please Please help me with this situation. I would LOVE to have a contoured cheek bone showing face with actual ANGLES in it rather than a round plump one. I guess when I'm not smiling my cheeks are very plump and kind of having a sagging face look or pull to them. Or is my face EVEN ROUND? Or is it heart shaped? I don't even know. 


Warm Regards and Love + Make up,




Re: Someone please help me with bronzer!

Take a look at this thread where I gave a break down on techniques for highlighting, contouring, bronzing, and blush, complete with visual guide for application/placement options for how you wish to enhance your bone structure.




I've also helped out a fellow Beauty Talk user with fair skin on bronzer recommendations here:




I've also made mention of a great bronzing kit here:





Re: Someone please help me with bronzer!

[ Edited ]

Thank you for all these awesome links I'm going to read them right now! Your the best! Thank you so much for the advice. I've really been struggling with this. Yes, BONE STRUCTURE is the key words I was lookinf for thank you! I don't know why I said angular but I'm glad you caught my meaning.


That "photo diagram of basic highlighting/contouring, bronzer, and blush techniques and application tips."


IS FANTASTIC Thank you again!


Warm Regards!



Re: Someone please help me with bronzer!

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Glad to be of help, Mizzy!!!




Definitely play with techniques, it helps to understand principles and basics of light/shadow, and knowing where you bronze/contour, you're making that area receed and fall to the back while where you highlight you're bringing to the forefront and to notice/attention first to the eye.


The TF blush I mentioned in the second link above has a follow up link where I swatched it and posted photos of it on so you can see what it looks like outside the box/packaging. It's gorgeous and has a satin finish that gives skin a glow rather than pack on shimmer and glitter. Check it out, it's very suitable for fair skin and the fact that it's got the word "flush" in its name is no lie, it really gives the appearance of that perfect flush to skin rather than just load on color!


Re: Someone please help me with bronzer!

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Hi Missy!


From the picture you posted it looks more like you have a heart-shaped face than round.  I'm gonna try and help you with your situation as best I can so please bear with me if this gets long thanks!


What I've seen is doing your conturing and highlighting beforehand.  So get out your normal color foundation and really look at it.  If you use powder foundation you can use either liquid, cream, or powder highlighters and bronzers.  If you use liquid you should mainly stick with cream and liquid stuff. 

You're gonna need any of the following:

Foundation or concealer one shade darker than your normal foundation

Matte Bronzer either cream or powder (most liquids have shimmer so if you wear liquid foundation get a liquid concealer a shade darker than your foundation)

Highlighter that complements your skin tone (normally fairer skin tones need a cool/pinkish highlighter)


If you're going to use bronzer for conturing make sure it's matte.  If you're going to use bronzer for bronzing you can use it with a little shimmer like Tarte Amazonian Clay bronzer or NARS Laguna Bronzer.  Something matte you can use is like the new Urban Decay Flushed that has a bronzer, highlighter, and blush.  But let me go on to application then I can leave some products that may work for you.  If I say contour powder I mean whichever you use to contour whether it be the bronzer or a darker foundation/concealer.


After you moisturize and prime your skin start your conturing and highlighting.  Take one of your hands and make a peace sign, let one finger touch the tip of your ear, the other finger should be about in the middle of your cheek.  That's where you should stop any color.  Now suck in your cheeks, that hollow that is right below the cheekbone (which you highlight) is where to contour.  So it's kind of like putting your contour on the back top of your jaw.  Do the same on the other side of the cheek.  For your forehead, follow the hairline and come down a little to just above the middle of your forehead and sweep the contour all the way across.


For highlighting I would highlight the cheek bone and follow it up to the area of the head that is above the ear.  So touch under your eye and locate that bone.  Then follow the curve around the end of the eye going up and stop where your eyebrow ends which is at the top of your ear.  Also highlight the corners of your eyes and if you like the eyebrow bone under your brows not above, but from what I see you don't need to highlight that area but if you like to then work it girl!  You can also highlight the edge of the cheeks from the corners of the nose but stop above the lip. 


Now that you've done all the highlighting and contouring you can conceal any imperfections under the eyes or around the mouth.  Make sure to lightly blend the contour and highlighting into the skin, try not to blend too much just kind of work it into the skin without moving it around too much.  Then apply your foundation lightly over everything, trying not to press too hard.  Everything underneath isn't gonna show completely thru (depending on coverage of foundation) so you can at this stage lightly add very little contouring and highlighting on top of foundation and blend well.


Here are some products that may work:


Bare Minerals Ready Bronzer (the lightest one), Warmth, or Faux Tan

Tarte Amazonian Clay Bronzer in Park Ave Princess, or Blush and Glow in Sunlight (I think it's called it's in the orangeish tube)

NARS Laguna Bronzer

Urban Decay Baked Bronzer, or Flushed palette

Benefit Sun Beam


Benefit Watts Up, Moon Beam, or High Beam

Bare Minerals Luminizer compact

Tarte Blush and Glow in Moonlight (in the pinkish tube), also they have a powder highlighter but I can't remember the name to it

NARS Albatros


Hope this all helps and if you have any questions, ask away!  XOXO (sorry this was so long)


Re: Someone please help me with bronzer!

[ Edited ]
(0) Hearts

I'm happy I got a long answer to my long explanation! Thank you so much for all your help. I took a look at some of the products you mentioned and decided to purchase Charlotte Ronson 3X Charm Pallette. Its seems a mixture of what you were saying. What do you think? I've never even thought of using a darker shade of foundation for contouring before! I absolutley can't wait to try it! It sounds the best idea I've heard yet. And after looking at my picture a couple times I think I get what you mean about using a shade or two darker foundation. Theres a big contrast between my face and my neck/chest skin tone. Though it does match my neck which is frustrating. I have Irish/Romanian skin so I get all kinds of coloration problems from freckles, tans, just plain bright spots, acne, dry spots, oily spots, the worst.  I think I'm the only person I know with the opposite of a T-Zone. Where people are usually oily in their T-Zone I'm dry there and oily on my cheeks and chin only.


Warm Regards!


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