When I’m on set shooting for a magazine spread or backstage at New York Fashion Week, I’m often asked about contouring and if it can change the shape and look of your face. The answer is yes — contouring can make a huge difference! Contouring is a huge trend right now because it is an effective way to achieve a perfectly re-touched makeup look in real life. Many fashion and celebrity images are re-touched, so our eyes are trained to see that perfect image. Celebrities wearing contour off the stage will actually look like their re-touched images. So many fine highlighters and easy-to-apply contour products are available now, making the overall effect even more popular, natural and seamless.

The key to contouring is to be subtle. You don’t want to see the actual contouring; you simply want to highlight the parts of your face that you love. Color and a light application is key. You can create higher cheekbones and new dimensions to your face instantly. Playing with your features can be fun!

If your goal is to make a wider nose look narrower, contouring definitely helps.The first step is to lightly apply some pressed powder, such as Boots No7 Perfect Light Pressed Powder. Next, take a small eye shadow brush, such as Maybelline’s Expert Tools Eye Shadow Brush, and gently stroke the sides of your nose vertically with a shadow that is a few shades darker than your natural skin tone. Make sure the eye shadow or bronzer you are using is matte, such as the e.l.f. Studio Contouring Blush and Bronzing Powder — using a shimmer powder will only highlight the area. You want the color to be a little “taupey” so it looks like the “shadow” of your skin.

For contouring cheeks, apply a matte bronzer or a taupe colored blush, such as Physicians Formula Super BB All-in-1 Beauty Balm Powder, to the hollows of your cheeks. Suck in your cheeks to find the hollow area. Use an angled blush brush, such as Studio 35 Beauty Professional Angle Blush Brush, and apply from the hollows, letting the blush fade up to the middle of your ear. Apply lightly and blend with a clean powder brush.

Under your chin, take a powder brush with a little bronzer or taupe-colored contour blush, such as CoverGirl Clean Glow Blush Bronzer. Tap excess product off your brush and apply with a quick side to side motion underneath your chin.

Contouring also is great for highlighting. Highlighting can make you look brighter, as if you have an inner glow or radiance. Along with shadowing certain parts of your face, the parts that you don’t shadow will protrude. You can exaggerate those areas by using a paler shadow or cream highlighter. Take a shimmery cream or liquid highlighter, such as L’Oréal Paris Magic Lumi Highlighter, and apply it with your fingers to the inner corners of the eyes, the upper crescent cheekbone area, below the outer corner of your eye, the bridge of your nose and cupid’s bow. I like a creamy or liquid product because it looks very real — like skin. Using your fingers to apply warms the product up so it can be easily pressed into the skin. I like a tapping, pressing motion.

Another great way to define your face is with your eyebrows. The trend right now is all about full, healthy brows — think model Cara Delevingne. Over-tweezing is the most important thing to avoid when maintaining your brows. Brows don’t always grow back, so we have to very careful about grooming. You want the brows to look as natural as possible. If your brows are sparse and thin, first fill them in with a brow pencil, such as Boots No7 Beautiful Brows Pencil, using short strokes to mimic hairs. Brush on an eyebrow gel or mousse, such as L’Oreal Paris Brow Stylist Plumper Brow Gel Mascara or Maybelline Eye Studio Brows Drama Tinted Gel Mousse, to set the brows. If your brows are a light shade, use the mousse or gel in a shade similar to your hair. This works great for a bolder look. Always brush up and out. If you find your brows look a little bit too bold, use a clean or brown mascara wand to remove some of the product.

EDITOR’S NOTE: This story appears in the spring issue of Beauty Within, Walgreens’ in-store beauty and lifestyle magazine (Eva Mendes is on the cover!). To read more Beauty Within stories, please click here.