Let eyes detract from a wide nose

By Al Varela

Dear Al: I am unhappy with my wide nose and have heard that contouring makeup can help it look better. How is makeup used to make my problem less noticeable?

Contouring makeup is used effectively in situations where other people have a distant view of your face such as in stage or television performance or runway modeling. It is also useful when the lighting is low or controlled such as an evening out or when used in photography.

The makeup techniques used for contouring are not effective for everyday use since people would be close enough to see the powder marks and lines that even the best makeup artist would be unable to hide. The result would be a hard and unnatural look that would actually call more attention to your problem.

Everyday makeup calls for an application that would accent your eyes in a way that people are less likely to notice your nose.

Let us start with probably the least defined area on the eyes, the eyebrows. With a wide nose the eyebrow can be filled in or allowed to grow a little closer to the bridge of the nose. This gives the illusion that the area above the nose is not wide and starts to give a nice slant to accent the eyebrow.

Next apply a black, gray or brown eyeliner to give definition to the eyes. The liner should not be a hard line around the eye but slightly smudged for a smoky look.

Use two colors of eye shadow to finish out your eye focus. There should be a light color as an overall base color then a contrasting, accent color to highlight the outer area of the eyes. And always follow with a coat of mascara to give the lashes the depth and contrast the eyes need. Colored mascara should only be used for evening wear. Finish this look with a very neutral lipstick to keep the focus on the eyes and allowing the nose area to become secondary.

A simple technique that can be used with photography begins with highlighting the middle of the nose from the bridge to the tip. Then use a contour powder from the inside of the eye area down the side of the nose, around the tip, and up the other side to the eye area. Blend with a fine makeup brush, then powder.

When the picture is snapped the strobe will highlight the center of the nose and the rest will be contrasted resulting in the appearance of a more shapely nose.

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