Everyone knows contouring the face can create killer cheekbones and brow arches to rival Elizabeth Taylor’s, but did you know that you can create a sculpted six-pack or spectacular tits with a bit of clever make-up? If this all sounds a bit Kim Kardashian you’d be right. Ask any make-up artist and they’ll happily share the tricks they use on small-boobed celebs or how they’ve created a sculpted six-pack that looks genuine to the naked eye.
So if you can’t afford a personal trainer to pimp your body into shape, just grab some bronzer two shades darker than your natural skintone and get shading. It’s the new body art on the block…
The five-minute boob job
We all want what we can’t have. I have an ‘A for Androgynous’ bra size, and while my peers have always gone on about how ‘lucky’ I am because apparently I can wear what I want (believe me, I can’t), I’ve tried anything and everything to get a bit more going on upstairs. Luckily, I’m now a dab hand at boosting my bra size without the need for gel-filled cups 24/7 and it’s all down to some simple streamlining and clever shading techniques. You don’t even need GCSE art.
1.Taking a large face and body brush, swirl it into your bronzer (make sure it’s matte, you don’t want everyone knowing you’ve spent time titivating the twins), tap to get rid of any excess powder, then run it down the crease between your boobs to create a hollowed out effect. Here begins your volume and definition.
2.With a highlighter (again something non-sparkly), trace an ‘m’ shape over the top of your boobs with the v falling between the crease. Make sure you scoop it round either side of your chest too as you want to fake in those curves nature didn’t bless you with.
3.To finish, return to your bronzer and brush and follow the same ‘m’ shape, this time just above where you applied your highlighter. The opposite of contouring your cheekbones where you create an uplift effect, this creates a shadow from above, forcing the eyes down to where the light now naturally bounces off your spotlit bust, giving the illusion of a plumper, perkier pair!
**Nip & tuck toolkit: **
Guerlain Terracotta Moisturising Bronzing Powder, £34.50; Laura Mercier Matte Radiance baked powder highlighter, £24; The Vintage Cosmetic Company Large Powder Brush, £17.50
The swan neck dupe
If nightmare flatmates, overdrafts and hangovers aren’t enough to contend with, we’ve now got to deal with the new ‘techneck’. Yes, it’s official: your chances of going from swan neck to turtle neck have accelerated as a result of constantly looking down at your phone to Tweet/Insta/Text/Tumble. Yes, it’s a thing. My advice? From now on, hold your phone out at arm’s length and always at eye level. Failing that, reach for your bronzer.
1.The same rules apply in beauty as they do in fashion – horizontal stripes widen, vertical stripes slim, so if you want to elongate your neck, you need to be applying your bronzer from chin to chest, not ear to ear. Not sure of the right placement? Run your fingers from just behind your earlobe to the dips in your collarbone and use this as your guide.
2.Taking a contouring brush and your bronzer, go over the imaginary line you just created, dusting it on in an ‘up and down’ motion. A body brush or anything bigger will force the bristles outwards, causing the colour to spread and preventing you from nailing that swan-like silhouette. You have been warned.
3.Not vital, but if you’re convinced you’ve got neck rolls to rival a British bulldog, dot some highlighter in the centre of your chin. By placing a paler colour on the highest parts of the face and body, it slims down any excess chub.
**Nip & tuck toolkit: **
Illamasqua Sculpting duo, £26; Real Techniques Retractable Kabuki Brush, £11.99
The leg lengthener
The supermodel status bar. If you haven’t got legs up to your armpits (and really who has, it’s just a stupid, not very well-thought-out saying), you can add an extra inch or two with some more clever bronzer application. It even works when you’re wearing pumps, so if you’re not ready to go back to tights and would prefer not to wear giant heels every time you want to make your legs look longer, get shading.
1.When it comes to limbs, you want to swap your powders for liquids. They spread further and are less likely to go patchy if you get caught in a tropical storm (totally feasible!). Apply the product onto the back of your hand then dip your brush directly into it – it’s less likely to streak this way rather than if you just whack it directly onto skin.
2.Pop on some heels (just for now) to instantly define your calves then run your brush down either side of your legs, buffing it in by gliding the brush from ankle bones to just below the knees. When you get to the ankles, use circular motions to blend the colour in so you don’t have any obvious lines.
3.Who needs lunges when you’ve got illuminator? Skim some down the centre of your shins to stretch, lengthen and add a reflective sheen but whatever you do, avoid your knees – no-one wants to see that nobbliness going on there.
Nip & tuck toolkit:
Chanel Soleil Tan de Chanel Bronze Universel, £32; NARS Illuminator, £22.50; EcoTools Sculpting Brush, £8.99
The tummy trickster
The crop-top trend isn’t going anywhere, even autumn’s first drop of jumpers fall at that just-below-the-ribs height rather than the much more over-18-friendly, over-the-bum level. If you’re embracing the look but don’t have the washboard stomach you want, invest in a gel bronzer, or better still, Charlotte Tilbury’s new Supermodel Body. A creamy formula that comes with a clever metal rollerball applicator, it’s your one-stop-shop to a gymbod. Keep it for dry land, though because while these tricks are good, they won’t do you any favours in your bikini – water and sweat = streakage.
1.Using the unique metal ball applicator, glide the cream evenly down the centre of your stomach from the ridge between your ribcage to your belly button.
2.Next, you want to enhance your natural muscle definition so sweep it in a horizontal line through your belly button, where your body folds when (read: if) you do regular ab crunches. That’s your four-pack right there.
3.Want more? Apply some extra in one of these crazy bracket shapes { } on either side of your stomach from under your bust to your hip bones just above your bikini line. Gisele, eat your heart out.
Nip & tuck toolkit:
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This article originally appeared on The Debrief.