How to Contour Your Nose

Learning how to contour — your nose, for example — can have a huge impact on your overall look. Whether you have a long, elegant nose like Solange or a perky one like Carey Mulligan, contouring can help create dimension if you’re looking to define a bit.

Before we get to the point (sorry — can’t resist a good nose pun), make sure you have the Beautyblender Micro Mini, this teeny blender is the perfect size for detailed work like blending contour. And take a second to refresh your contouring basics:

— How To Contour Your Face takes you through all the steps (contour, highlight, bronze, blush)

— Round, Oval, Square, or Heart Shaped drills down on the best tips for your face shape, and

— How to Apply Highlighter Like a Pro teaches — you guessed it — how to apply highlighter like a pro.

How To Contour Your Nose

1. Lay The Foundation

Start with the usual steps:

— Use Selfie Shield Primer, which has SPF 38 and goes on clear, so it works for all skin types and colors.

— Wet, squeeze, and bounce your foundation.

— Finish your prep work with BOUNCE Airbrush Liquid Whip Concealer.

2. Find Your Light

The easiest way to create a seamless contour is by highlighting first. Using a concealer that’s a shade or two brighter than your natural skin tone, start at the bridge of your nose and apply a thin line of concealer down your nose with a small brush. Make sure to stop before you reach the tip.

If you’re using BOUNCE Airbrush Liquid Whip Concealer, you get double-bonus points for perfect application because the wand that comes with our concealer is already a teeny, tiny Beautyblender, so you have the right tools at your fingertips.

3. Blend, Baby, Blend

Use your Beautyblender Micro Mini to soften the stripe and blend out and down to the sides of your nose.

4. Shade The Sides

Grab your contour product — aka a concealer or foundation, try going two shades darker than your base but in your same undertone family (stick to neutral if you’re unsure). Use the tip of a clean Beautyblender Micro Mini to shade straight down from the inner corner of your eye to the tip of your nose. Repeat on the other side.

Here’s where you’ll need to use different steps depending upon what you’re trying to achieve:

— If you want to shorten your nose, dot your contour color just on the tip of your nose and swipe a tiny bit around the curves of your nostrils. Darkening the end of your nose can help it appear shorter.

— If you want your nose to look longer, add a little extra highlighter to the tip.

— If you want to make your nose look wider, draw your contour lines further apart and fill that space with highlighter. The larger the highlighted space, the broader your nose will seem.

— If you want to make your nose look straighter, ignore the natural lines of your nose and draw your contour lines straight. Use an extra highlighter to draw attention away from spots you don’t want people to focus on.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by beautyblender (@beautyblender) on Mar 6, 2020 at 10:05am PST

5. Blend Again

Using your OG Beautyblender, blend out any harsh lines until you achieve a flawless, natural look. Finish your look with powder and blush as you normally would.

6. Glow & Go

To set off your look even further, try a touch of our Glass Glow Crystal Clear Shinelighter. The smooth, colorless balm adds an extra boost and glow, especially at the tip of your nose and on the apples of your cheeks. Once that’s done, set it and forget it. You’re ready to glow.