Basic Training: How to Get a Natural Glow

Photo: Rolando Robinson

In our series, Basic Training, we’ll be giving a crash course on simple hair and makeup tricks that you still haven’t quite mastered.

We all want to give our skin a nice, healthy glow, but if bronzer isn’t used correctly, our makeup can quickly go south. Joanna Schlip, celebrity makeup artist for Physician’s Formula, gave us three easy steps for getting the perfect subtle bronze.

Step 1: Choose the right bronzer.
Because you apply bronzer in so many areas, you want to go with a matte bronzer and save any shimmer bronzer you have for your cheeks. “When you use shimmer over the entire face, you’re losing definition at that point,” says Schlip. She also advises that you pick a color that’s two shades darker than your natural skin tone.

Photo: Rolando Robinson

Step 2: Be strategic with your bronzer.
Instead of putting bronzer over your entire face, just hit the key spots. Sclip says to lightly apply bronzer around your hairline, underneath the cheeks bones and underneath the jaw bone. Once you’ve applied it, start buffing and blending upward.

Step 3: Don’t forget your eyelids. 
It may sound strange, but to really make your glow look natural, you need to put a little color on your eye lids. You can use the same bronzer and apply it wet or dry.

Read more: Instant Makeover: Natural Bronze Makeup