Make-up techniques for achieving a slim face

Round face? Think you need to go to a plastic surgeon to shed all that baby fat off? No fear! You can actually achieve the same result with just a few deft strokes of your make up brush. And it only takes a few minutes!

Achieve this desired illusion of a beautiful V jaw-line by contouring with bronzer. (I personally love M.A.C’s Wonderwoman bronzer in Golden Lariat). Suck in your cheeks and sweep into the hollow in an angled up and down motion from your temples. Blend the remaining product in an E-shaped motion at the sides of your face, darkening the forehead edge, the cheek hollow and the bottom of your chin. And Behold! Contours have appeared on your once-round face, making you look enviably slimmer!

Fair girls, make sure that the shade of your bronzer is not too far from your original skin tone (atmost one/two tones darker) as it might look unnatural. But otherwise, have fun rocking this sun-kissed look!

Beautiful sculptured cheekbones are often the most defining feature of a slim face. Cheat your way to killer cheekbones by highlighting them so that they hit the light in the most flattering way possible. The secret? Shimmer, shimmer and more shimmer!

Use highlighters (no, we don’t mean the ones you use at school) which brighten up skin in an instant; these can be anything from commercial highlighters like e.l.f’s Shimmer Palette or just a simple white eyeliner pencil or eye shadow. The key here is to apply these glistening products to places where light naturally hits your face: such as your cheekbones or nose (See tip #3). This will make your round face appear more sharp and shapely.

If your cheekbones are seemingly non-existent, feel your face for the hard bone close to your eyes and apply highlighter parallel to the cheek hollow or bronzer strokes (See tip #1). A subtle stroke is best and your friends will start proclaiming their envy for your naturally gorgeous cheekbones!

Your nose is at the centre of your face and as such commands attention as an important focal point. Many of us with round faces may also have flat noses and this contributes to the impression that your face has a lack of contours, making it appear even rounder.

With a defined nose however, the attention is drawn away from chubby cheeks and gives the illusion of a shapely defined face! Apply highlighter (See tip #2) on your nose-bridge in a simple downward stroke. Do this with a light hand, especially for girls with oily skin as it may look greasy as the day progresses. Your nose looks instantly sharper!

To make the contrast even more obvious, use a darker tone of bronzer/foundation at the sides of the nose. Remember to blend well so that the effect is not harsh, but rather a flawless natural finish.

For women who aspire to have glowingly white and fair skin, this make up tip might be a tad tricky. Foundation is the building block of a flawless finish and finding the right shade for your own unique skin tone is an eternal search for many women.

Using a slightly darker foundation however, may actually be the key to a slimmer face! This works on the theory that darker colours slim! (Remember that slimming Little Black Dress?) So, after concealing your flaws and blemishes with a concealer, choose a dark foundation that is about two to three shades darker than your original skintone. Make sure that the foundation matches with your skin’s basic undertone (cool or warm) so that your skin looks fresh and golden instead of dirty. Also, remember to blend well with the neckline.

Now, enjoy your status as the golden ‘It’ girl with your beautiful slimmer face!

Make up is an art of colour, style and undoubtedly, proportions. For a slimmer, smaller face, employ the timeless trick of exaggerating and playing up other features so that a round face looks smaller in comparision.

Make your eyes look bigger with feminine light pastel eye shadow on the eyelids and then apply medium toned eyeshadow in the creases to add depth. Avoid dark shades as it will make your eyes look smaller. For fans of the classic black eyeliner, tone it down a notch and do not line your whole eye as it can close your precious peepers up and make them look tinier as well! White eyeliner (like Benefit’s gorgeous Eyebright Liner) can be a handy part of your beautiful arsenal and when done subtly, gives a wide awake doe eyed charm that reels in admirers in droves. With your eyes as big as manga characters, nobody is going to be looking at your (self-proclaimed) round face. Mission accomplished, girls!