How to Contour Your Nose

Co-authored by Ashleigh Grounds

Last Updated: September 5, 2024 Approved

Contouring is a handy little makeup trick that can help you to create your perfect nose shape. By using a sculpting powder, or a foundation or concealer 1-2 shades darker than your skin tone, you can simulate shadows that can help you mimic the appearance of a shapely nose. Contouring the nose is typically part of a full face look, and should be done after you put on your foundation, but before you set your makeup. Remember, though, that slightly different techniques are used to make the nose to look thinner, shorter, longer or straighter.

Method 1

Method 1 of 4:

Make Your Nose Look Thinner

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1
Draw two lines down the sides of your nose. Do this on top of your foundation. Use an angled eyeshadow brush to draw the contour lines. They should begin at the brow bone and go all the way to your nostrils.^{[1]
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Ashleigh Grounds
Makeup Artist & Hair Stylist

Expert Interview. 22 April 2020.} Make sure to keep the lines light at first - it's easier to build product than to take it away.^{[2]
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- If you're worried about placement, start by tracing the line down from just below the inside corner of your eyebrows. Travel straight down the length of your nose on each side, and end each line at the inside edge of your nostrils.
- Try rounding off the lines right at the end of your nose for a natural look.^{[3]
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  Ashleigh Grounds
  Makeup Artist & Hair Stylist
  
  Expert Interview. 22 April 2020.}
- There are several different products you can use to contour your nose. A darker foundation or concealer, a matte bronzer, a sculpting powder, or a shade from a contour palette will all do nicely. Just make sure that the color is only 1-2 shades darker than your natural skin tone, and that it matches your natural warm or cool undertones. Cream products can also be used to contour, but powder is easier to work with, especially for beginners.
2
Highlight the bridge of your nose. Choose a highlighter 1-2 shades lighter than your natural skin tone and use it to highlight the bridge of your nose. Lightly apply the highlighter in a thin line from the top of your nose down to the ball of your nose.^{[4]
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- Be careful not to make the line of highlighter too wide. Highlighter emphasizes the area it's placed on, so applying too much will make your nose appear wider rather than thinner.
- If the bottom or tip of your nose is wide, only apply the highlighter halfway down your nose.
- To highlight your nose, you can use a specific highlighter product, an off-white or nude eyeshadow, or a foundation or concealer a shade or two lighter than the foundation you're wearing.
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3
Blend away any harsh lines. After drawing your initial lines, blend them away until you're just left with subtle shadows. You don’t want the product to look too obvious.^{[5]
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Makeup Artist & Hair Stylist

Expert Interview. 22 April 2020.}
- Use a fluffy blender brush or a makeup sponge to blend both the contour and highlighter lines.
- Be careful not to blend the lines together - you want them to look subtle, yet distinct.

Method 2

Method 2 of 4:

Make Your Nose Look Shorter

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1
Darken the tip of your nose. Applying darker shades can make certain features recede. To make your nose appear shorter, apply a little matte bronzer or eyeshadow to the tip of your nose, on the curve between your nostrils.
- Make sure to use a matte bronzer or eyeshadow to do this, you don't want the tip of your nose to shimmer!
- Blend the powder well using a soft blender brush or sponge.
Apply highlighter to the bridge of the nose, stopping about halfway down. Applying highlighter only halfway down will give the illusion of a shorter nose.
Make your nose appear shorter and thinner at the same time by applying shading down the sides of the nose, as well as on the tip. However, to avoid adding length, you should only begin the contour lines parallel to your tear ducts, rather than at the brow bone.

Lisa Eldridge, Make-Up Artist

By the 1920s, contouring had become a popular technique in Hollywood, with stars like Joan Crawford and Marlene Dietrich using shading and highlighting to sculpt their features on screen. Today, contouring has become a mainstream technique, with many makeup artists and beauty enthusiasts using it to create a more defined and sculpted look.

Method 3

Method 3 of 4:

Make Your Nose Look Longer

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1
Begin contouring at the brow bone. To make your nose look longer, you should begin shading the contour lines at the curve of the brow bone, then work all the way down to the tip. Using an angled brush, follow the curve of the brow bone to the top of your nose, then continue in a straight line all the way to the end. Repeat on the other side.
- The line at the brow bone should begin just underneath your eyebrow.
- Always work from the top to the bottom, as you want the line to be darkest at the brow bone.
To make your nose appear longer, you should apply highlighter all the way down the bridge of your nose, right to the tip. But most importantly, you should extend the highlighter up between your brows, until it's parallel with the highest point (usually the arch) of your eyebrows.^{[6]
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Method 4

Method 4 of 4:

Make Your Nose Look Straighter

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With a small angled brush starting at your brows, draw two straight lines down the sides of your nose using a powder 1-2 shades darker than your skin tone. Connect these lines at the bottom, at an angle, between your nostrils. It should look like a downwards arrow.^{[7]
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Using a fluffy shadow brush, blend the shaded lines well, concentrating on the outside of the lines.
Using a highlighting powder or a brightening concealer, draw a very fine line between the center of your brows and down the bridge of your nose. Blend. Then dab the sides of your nose, near the nostrils, with the concealer and blend.

Expert Q&A

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Question

What are your top tips on how to contour my nose?

Ashleigh Grounds
Makeup Artist & Hair Stylist
Ashleigh Grounds is a Makeup Artist and Hair Stylist based in Austin, Texas. Ashleigh has over 11 years of cosmetology experience. She studied cosmetology in Dallas, Texas and completed a two-year hair salon apprenticeship in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia with Toni & Guy Hair Salon. She is accredited by the International Board of Cosmetology, is a certified Babe Hair Extension Professional, and is a certified Brazilian Blow Out Professional. Ashleigh was voted the best Hair Stylist in Austin for 2012 by RAW Artists and was voted in the top 20 salons for 2020 in Austin by Expertise. Ashleigh's work has been featured in Talentmagazines, BlogTalkRadio, KXAN, and Studio 512.

Ashleigh Grounds

Makeup Artist & Hair Stylist

Expert Answer

Beginning with a contour brush, start where your eyebrows begin and work the contour down just on the side of your nose, like the side of the bridge. Go all the way down to your nostrils, then round it off on the tip. Blend that through, then put a lighter color right on the center and a little on the tip of your nose, and blend it again.

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Question

Apart from contour powder, what can I use to contour my nose?

Sasha1408

Community Answer

You can use foundation darker and lighter than your skin color. You can typically get this in a pallet. Matte eyeshadow will also work.

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What products can be used for nose contouring?

Community Answer

You can use eyeshadow, as it works really well.

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There are many videos about contouring you can watch online.

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It is also possible to contour your cheekbones.

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