How to Contour Fair Skin for a Subtle, Sculpted Look

Finding the right contouring products for fair skin is no easy feat. There’s a fine line between looking muddy and overly bronzed, versus naturally sculpted and defined. Not only that, but trying to figure out the correct contour placement and application techniques can make you want to ditch the trend altogether. That’s why we’re sharing this quick, step-by-step tutorial on how to contour fair skin, plus a few of our favorite contouring products. 

STEP 1: Start With a Primer

Begin by prepping your skin with a primer. The NYX Professional Makeup Pore Filler Targeted Stick helps blur imperfections and minimizes the appearance of pores. 

STEP 2: Apply Your Base

To make your contour look as realistic as possible, we recommend evening out your skin tone with a foundation that matches your complexion exactly. The Valentino Beauty Very Valentino 24 Hour Wear Liquid Foundation comes in 40 shades with warm, cool and neutral undertones. 

STEP 3: Highlight With Concealer

Before you add shadow and depth to the perimeter of your face with contour, start by highlighting the areas you want to accentuate in the center of your face, such as your under eyes, the middle of your forehead, the bridge of your nose and your Cupid’s bow. We recommend using a concealer that’s one to two shades lighter than your skin tone for this step. The Lancôme Teint Idole Ultra Wear All Over Concealer is a lightweight, full-coverage formula that’s available in 20 shades. 

STEP 4: Start Contouring

Bring out your bone structure by using a cool-toned contour product that’s one to two shades darker than your skin. Apply it anywhere you’d like to make appear smaller and more defined, such as underneath your cheekbones, down the sides of your nose, along the sides of your forehead and around your jawline. 

STEP 5: Blend, Blend, Blend

The most important step to faking a more sculpted look on fair skin is to blend the highlight and contour until they look soft and diffused. You can do so with a damp beauty sponge if you’re using cream products or a large fluffy brush for powders. 

Our Editors’ Favorite Contour Products for Fair Skin

NYX Professional Makeup Highlight & Contour Pro Palette

These eight velvety powders come in a wide range of shades that allow you to contour, highlight and bronze fair skin tones. Choose the lightest, coolest brown for your contour shade, then go slightly deeper to bronze.

Giorgio Armani Beauty Neo Nude Color Melting Balm in Cool Brown

For a natural-looking cream contour, reach for this fawn-colored shade. The emollient texture melts into skin for a subtle yet defined look.

Charlotte Tilbury Airbrush Matte Bronzer in Fair

This barely-there bronzer is ideal for contouring pale skin that has warm or neutral undertones. Anything too cool can read ghostly on your skin tone.

Photo: Chaunte Vaughn

Read More: 

7 Makeup Products That Have Skin-Loving Benefits

These Blurring Balms Will Make Your Skin Look Practically Poreless

6 Primers Our Editors Always Use Before Foundation