Maskcara’s IIID foundation has changed my makeup routine. No matter how much time or effort I want to put into my makeup on any given day, I can turn to these products. With a coverage that can be sheer to full you can’t really beat it. Chances are if you are reading this, you already see the allure or may have already purchased some. This will be a very basic application tutorial. I will explain in detail each step in the order they were intended to be applied. The beauty of makeup is that it is art and there are really only a few true rules to live by, otherwise have fun, try out new techniques or create your own. You will find what works best for you. If you aren’t a reader, I have posted a video with the same steps at the bottom of this post. You will have to excuse my hair in the photos. I had just got done shooting a makeup video while in a hurricane tunnel, but my children were sleeping, so I work when I have time to work.
Step 1: Contour
Contour is the darkest shade in your palette. You may be comfortable with contouring already, or you may be completely freaked out. My first and most important contour tip is do not be afraid of really getting some pigment onto your face. Our natural tendency is to go light, and while the product that is packed into these tiny tins do pack a punch of their own, I want you to get the full desired effect. To do that, you are going to have to trust me. Lets begin. Grab your 30 second HAC brush and flip it to the more full, fluffy end.
Place the contour underneath your cheek bones. To do this, angle the brush up and press against the cheek bone starting at the top of your ear and bringing it down to where the apple of the cheek, or the most prominent part of the bone begins. Here you will curl up just slightly. A few rules to remember is not to go any further than the outer edge of the pupil of your eye (thats the black part in the center). The line itself should not go too far down either. Draw an imaginary line connecting the top of your ear and the corner of your mouth. Do not bring the contour lower than this line. The idea with contour here is to give a lifting effect to your face. Too low and you will do the opposite.
The next place to apply contour is along both sides of your nose. Now you can change the size and shape of your nose if you wish, but today, lets stick with the basics. If you look at yourself in a mirror you will notice the sides of your nose are a darker shade due to shadowing. So contouring isn’t all about changing you, sometimes it is just about maintaining the dimension of your face. Maskcara’s classic saying is, “You aren’t one dimensional, your makeup shouldn’t be either”
Last, if you have a large enough forehead, apply the contour along your hairline. If you do not have much of a forehead, skip this part as it serves to shadow and frame your face and it will make your forehead appear even smaller.
Step 2: Highlight
This is the shade that will appear to be closest to your natural complexion. This will be applied everywhere the contour was not. Be sure not to cover any of the areas you applied contour. I want to stress the importance now of the amount used. Not much is needed. It is a highly pigmented cream. Go light and build as needed. If your makeup seems textured, heavy, or it is separating, chances are you are either applied too much or you have the wrong shade. Contact your artist for help. If you do not have an artist, I would love to help you sort out any issues. Now flip over that 30 second HAC brush to the more pointed end.
The highlight will be applied in a triangle under the eyes, down the bridge of your nose, the bottom half of your forehead (or the full forehead if you opted out of the contour there), around your mouth, on your chin and along your jaw bone. You may feel a little pale. Never fear! That is what blush and blending is for.
Step 3: Blush
That’s the pretty one, duh! Flip that 30 second HAC back around or grab the more dense side of the Bsquared if you are so lucky to own one. Go easy on that lip and cheek. I cannot stress enough how pigmented these beauties are. Place the blush on the apples, or most prominent part of your cheeks. A good rule to follow is two finger lengths away from your nose and two away from your eyes. Applying it anywhere else will draw the face down and make you appear older and most people don’t want that.
I’ve met a lot of people that don’t use blush. Don’t be one of those people. If the shade is chosen correctly, blush brings back the warmth and life in a face. You want to still appear like you, just a brighter more vamped version.
Step 4: Blend
When I say blend I don’t mean take that perfector sponge and go to town. You have followed these steps and carefully placed your product, don’t go dragging it all around town.
Take your sponge and run it under some water, ring it out and pat dry on a towel. You want to work with a damp sponge that is double it’s original size. Spray this sponge with your Stay setting spray and gently tap over your face. Marry the colors together, blend to give it a natural finish, but keep them in the same general area you placed them. The setting spray is optional here, but it will hold the makeup longer and give it an even more comfortable wear. It comes highly recommended, the bottle lasts a year if you use it daily and you can even get one with some SPF.
Step 5: Illuminator
The final step. Apply the illuminator on the very top of your cheekbone, on the bridge of your nose, cupids bow above your lip, on your brow bone. Anywhere you want the light to catch. This will give you a candlelit glow. A natural dewy look to your skin.
And here is the before and after. I used some contrasting colors here so the step by step process would show up better for you. Check out the video below to watch the same steps and subscribe to my youtube channel.
Thanks for reading. I hope you found this helpful and feel a bit more confident about the products you purchased. Make sure to tag me on instagram @bloomwithbekah if you try out these techniques. I would love to stay connected.
Remember, KEEP BLOOMING! ~Bekah
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