The Difference Between Contouring and Bronzing

(I hate hate this photo)
Ever since I have started this blog I have noticed the reluctance to begin bronzing or contouring, and the confusion between the two. Up until a few months ago I was still pretty scared of contouring but now it one of my favourite parts of my routine. I thought I would do a post on the difference between them both, and how to contour and bronze to try and help some of you out.

I see so many videos and blog posts where they alternate between using the words bronzing/contouring and basically don't use them correctly, which is incredibly infuriating! So first of I thought that I'd explain the difference between them both. Contouring is creating an 'outline' in order to define the particular shape or form of a structure, where as bronzing is used to make a person or part of the body suntanned. There is not a particular way to contour or bronze however there are ways in which I find work better than others in order to define my cheeks or give my face a gentle glow. However, first of all I think that the most important part is to find a suitable shade and product.

For Bronzing, I like to choose a shade thats a single shade darker than my own skin tone and I also like to choose a shade that has a warm glow with tiny specks of glitter as I find it brightens my complexion and gives a natural warmth. (My personal favourite Bronzer is the Marc Jacobs O Mega Bronze, or the Mac Bronzing Powder in Golden). I use a powder brush to apply bronzer (Real Techniques if your wondering!) and brush it across my temples, cheeks, jaw, and chin. (In a '3' formation) - You can apply bronzer almost anywhere, but you want to focus your attention in the areas where the sun is most likely to tan your face! But you don't want it to be too dark as you would like it to look natural so make sure you sweep a clean powder brush across your face to blend it in and dust any excess.

As for Contouring, I choose a shade thats two shades darker than my own skin tone and in terms of glitter I keep it as minimal as possible - none, if possible. (My favourite contour is Benefit Hoola but a drugstore alternate is the NYC Smooth Skin Bronzer! - Again see what I was saying when products are branded wrong!) I use a small doomed brush that fits into the hollows of my cheeks - although I personally don't like angled contour brushes! I apply my contour in the areas that I want to define and make apparent. To contour my cheekbones I apply it just below my cheekbones as it creates a shadow just below them and they begin to look more defined. As for my nose I use a small lip brush (what are brushes if you use them for there two purposes eh?) and create two parrell lines from the end of my eyebrows all the way to my nostrils and create a 'v' at the end of my nose to join them together. I then use the brush which I had previously used for concealer in order to blend the harsh lines. If required I use a bit more concealer to ensure that I've completely blended it together!

I find that a lot of products are advertised as 'bronzers' when in actual fact there contours, and vice versa. Typically contour shades look fairly 'muddy' and are matte and smooth where as bronzers typically have glitter and are a warm shade of brown. The pigmentation in contour is also a lot stronger than the likes of bronzers. It's also very easy to define the difference when you try out the products, once bronzer is applied it should give a warmth and glow to the face. Alternatively, contour should come across a lot stronger, darker and define the bone structure of the face far better. Almost like a shadow effect!

So I hope this helps, please leave me a comment letting me know if this was helpful and let me know what your favourite bronzer and contour are! Also please forgive me that this post wasn't updated when it was planned, it was quite a long and difficult post to write as there was so many ways you could write it! Also I now have a twitter for my blog so if you wish to follow me (which you totally should because I upload sneak peaks, photos and it allows me to talk to you!) It is @daisyteenbeaut in case you were wondering!