The Right Way to Contour a Heart Shaped Face!
Ever feel like your makeup doesn’t quite flatter your heart-shaped face the way you want it to? You’re not alone! With a wider forehead, prominent cheekbones, and a pointy chin, heart-shaped faces have their own unique charm, but they also need a special approach when it comes to contouring. The good news? Once you know where to apply your contour and highlight, you can totally transform your look in the most flattering way. In this post, I’ll show you the right way to contour a heart shaped face (step by step) so you can enhance your natural features and feel confident every time you pick up that contour stick.
Contour Strategy for a Heart Shaped Face
When it comes to contouring a heart-shaped face, the goal is all about balance. Since this face shape typically features a wider forehead, prominent cheekbones, and a narrow, pointed chin, the right contour placement can soften those angles and create a more harmonious look.
Here’s the strategy:
- Soften the width of the forehead by contouring the sides (especially the temples).
- Define the cheekbones without making them look too sharp — a light, blended contour just under the bone works best.
- Minimize the pointy chin with a small amount of contour along the bottom edge.
Think of contouring a heart-shaped face like sculpting a soft hourglass silhouette for your face — it’s all about bringing the focus to the center while gently shadowing the outer edges.
Steps to Contour and Highlight a Heart Shaped Face
Ready to contour your heart-shaped face like a pro? Let’s break it down. This step-by-step guide will walk you through everything — from product picks to placement, blending techniques, and those tiny tweaks that make a huge difference.
Contour Placement
Here’s where the magic happens! The way you place your contour on a heart-shaped face makes all the difference.
1. Forehead
Apply your contour along the temples and upper corners of your forehead. This creates the illusion of a more balanced, narrower upper face. Also, blend upward into the hairline so the shadow looks natural and seamless.
2. Cheeks
Start just under your cheekbone: not too high and not too low. On heart-shaped faces, contouring too high can make the cheeks look overly sharp, while too low can drag the face down.
Angle the contour slightly toward the center of your ear and stop halfway toward your mouth. Blend upward with a sponge or dense brush.
3. Chin (Minimize the Point)
A sharp or prominent chin is common with heart-shaped faces. To soften it, lightly dab contour just under the chin (not on it). Blend well to create a subtle shadow that draws less attention to that area. If you have a slightly longer chin, contouring just beneath the bottom lip can help visually “lift” it.
Highlight the Right Spots
Highlighting is just as important as contouring. It helps bring light back into the face and makes your features pop in all the right places. Here’s where (and how!) to apply your highlight or concealer:
a. Under the Eyes
Using a concealer that’s 1–2 shades lighter than your foundation, draw an inverted triangle under each eye. The base of the triangle sits just under your lash line, and the point should land mid-cheek. This shape lifts the face, covers dark circles, and adds a soft brightness right where your cheekbones begin.
Tip: Blend this area with a damp beauty sponge to avoid creasing or harsh lines. Press, don’t drag!
b. Nose
Lightly swipe a thin line of concealer or liquid highlighter straight down the center of your nose. This creates a natural-looking sculpt that gives your nose more structure without harsh contouring on the sides (which can look too sharp on heart-shaped faces). Also, Stop just before the tip of your nose to avoid making it look overly long.
c. Center of the Forehead
Apply a small amount of highlight in the very center of your forehead: right between and just above your brows. This catches the light beautifully and draws attention to the eyes while balancing the width of your forehead.
d. Chin
A tiny dot of concealer or highlighter right in the center of the chin helps bring subtle symmetry, especially since the chin on heart-shaped faces tends to be narrow or pointed.
Blush
Blush placement matters a lot for heart-shaped faces. Apply it just above where you placed your contour, slightly on the outer part of your cheeks, not the apples. This will create a soft, lifted look and keeps the center of your face from looking too full.
Don’t blend too far!
When you start blending after all of this just make sure to not Blend too far, especially downward! Always blend contour upward to lift the face, not drag it down.
Summary
If you want to Contour a heart-shaped face, focus on softening the forehead, sculpting the cheeks, and minimizing the chin. This way, your face will have a beautifully balanced look that highlights your natural features.
