Ladies, gentlemen, and all beauty enthusiasts — it's time to let your natural radiance shine! Highlighter is an incredible makeup product that adds a fresh, radiant glow to your face and enhances your features like no other.
We have an array of highlighters designed to make your skin gleam and a guide full of recommendations on how best to apply them. The only question left is… are you ready to glow?
While you don’t need highlighter as part of your makeup routine, there’s no denying that nailing your look can make you feel confident — and it can make others perceive you as confident, too. Highlighter can be great for pulling your look together and giving you that perfect finishing touch you need to really shine.
The magic of a highlighter lies in its ability to give you that coveted glow from within. So, what exactly is a highlighter? It's a makeup product — available in liquid, cream, or powder forms — that attracts light, creating the illusion of brightness and height, hence that lit-from-within look.
Some highlighters are infused with glitter or shimmer pigments to give you a sort of ethereal glow. Others use light-reflecting technology to give the appearance of radiance without shine. Which type of highlighter works best for you just depends on your skin type and preferences!
A good highlighter can amp up your daily makeup routine and provide an extra dimension to your face. It's all about creating a luminous sheen that accentuates your natural skin and bone structure.
Are you ready to discover the secret spots where highlighter truly shines? These are the areas where light naturally hits your face, and enhancing them with a little bit of highlighter magic can make a significant difference!
This is the most common and well-known spot to apply your highlighter. Just sweep your chosen product along the high points of your cheekbones to make them stand out. It’s not about changing your face… it’s about enhancing what you’ve already got!
A little dash of highlighter just beneath the arch of your brow can lift the whole eye area, making you look more awake and vibrant. After all, the shape of your brows frames your entire face. So much so that how your brows look is actually fundamental to how other people perceive your face.
Doing everything you can to keep them looking clean, defined, and shapely can really enhance your look. Adding a bit of highlighter in addition to your usual brow routine is the perfect way to achieve this.
Running a thin line of highlighter down the bridge of your nose creates the illusion of a longer, more defined nose. But be cautious here — too much can augment the natural shape of your nose.
This is a small but mighty trick! Adding a touch of highlighter to the inner corners of your eyes can make your eyes appear bigger, brighter, and more youthful.
Highlighting the cupid's bow helps define your lips and makes them look fuller. It's a subtle touch that can make a world of difference in your makeup look.
Highlighter application is all about using the right tools and mastering the technique to achieve that gorgeous, sun-kissed look.
What are the tools of the trade? Here, we have brushes, sponges, and, yes, your own fingers! Brushes are perfect for a precise application — just sweep it where you want that heavenly glow.
Sponges, on the other hand, are ideal for liquid or cream highlighters — they help to blend the product seamlessly into your skin. But don't underestimate the power of your fingertips — they're especially useful when dealing with cream formulas, helping to melt the product into your skin for a natural look.
Now, to the technique! Swirl your tool of choice in the product, tap off any excess, and gently apply it to the high points of your face. The magic is not only in the product, but in your hands. Blend it out, and voila — you're radiating beauty!
However, quality tools don't have to mean breaking the bank. And neither do quality highlighters. To help guide you on your journey to a gorgeous, natural glow, let’s talk about some of our favorite options.
There are so many different highlighters to choose from, and it can be difficult to know which texture and color family is going to be perfect for your skin. We won’t lie — sometimes, finding the perfect product is going to take a little bit of trial and error.
But we’re here to hold your hand through it, so to help you get started, we’ll highlight (nudge nudge) a few of our favorites.
For every ying, there is a yang — and that’s why this Bronze Booster Highlight and Contour Palette is perfect. You can easily lean into the highlighter on its own if that’s your vibe, but it’s great to have the option to indulge in a full-on contour when your mood or an event requires it.
The sheer, satin shimmer of this powder highlighter will give you an otherworldly glow, while the bronzing tone can help to set off your cheekbones and balance out your new, radiant glow.
On the flip side, this MegaGlo Blushlighter blush and highlighter duo is ideal if you’re more of a rosy-cheeked kind of person as opposed to a sculpted and contoured kind of person.
The magic of this palette is that it does the work for you — rather than having to apply these shades in the right place, you can sweep your brush along the palette and load it up with both shades, which you can then transfer directly to your cheeks.
This portable quad of four satin bronzing shades from e.l.f. gives you everything you need to highlight, contour, and emphasize all of your best features. If you’re looking for a one-stop shop when it comes to highlighting and shaping your features, look no further than this palette to get everything you need in one place.
In addition to using all of the palettes individually to highlight and sculpt every part of your face, this e.l.f. palette can be used as your own artist’s palette too. You can blend two shades together on your hand in different proportions to achieve the look you’re after with ease.
Knowing your face shape can be a real game-changer in your beauty routine. It’s all about working with your unique structure to highlight your natural beauty! Here’s a quick guide on how to apply highlighter for different face shapes.
If you have an oval face, your forehead may be slightly wider than your chin. Light up your face by applying highlighter on your cheekbones and browbones.
With a round face, you want to make it look a little longer. Apply your highlighter in a vertical line from your forehead to your chin, passing through the bridge of your nose.
If you have a square face, the goal is to soften the sharp angles. Apply your highlighter on the middle of your forehead and chin and along your cheekbones.
Heart-shaped faces are broader at the top and narrower at the chin. Highlight the area under your eyes, and add a bit on your chin to balance things out.
It is important to note that these are just guidelines, not rules. The most important thing is that you feel beautiful and confident in your own skin! So if your favorite look doesn’t correspond to your face shape, that’s totally okay — no one knows better than you do when it
You're now armed with all the knowledge you need to get your glow on with your chosen highlighter! Beauty isn't one-size-fits-all — it's unique and individual, just like you. It's about enhancing your natural features and feeling beautiful, inside and out.
Whether you're a makeup beginner or a beauty guru, remember to focus on how best to enhance your natural beauty rather than trying to hide it.
Even if you’re not totally sure what you’re doing when you get started, don’t hesitate to explore, experiment, and, above all, enjoy your journey to find the best products for your individual skin so you can develop a makeup routine that works for you. Highlighter is just one of many ways to highlight your assets, so it’s a great place to start as you’re building your signature look!
Sources:
Your Skin | Food and Drug Administration
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