The job of a beauty professional is to help clients look their personal best. Accentuating each individual’s most flattering features by identifying their face shape, providing the best look for that shape and educating them with practical application techniques is the key to unlocking their unique “beauty code.” It all starts with a face shape analysis.
All makeup artists begin with the same elements — eyes, cheeks and lips, however no two faces are exactly the same. Each face is unique, and a makeup artist’s role is to enhance a client’s natural beauty and individuality by focusing on certain traits, balancing their face shape while highlighting their most beautiful features.
IDENTIFYING FACE SHAPE
Identifying a client’s face shape is a simple relationship of proportions. Faces can be oval, round, square, triangle, diamond or heart shaped (or a combination of several). Each shape has its own unique characteristics.
Round
(Charlize Theron, Kirsten Dunst) Resembles a circle, with wide cheekbones and a tapering jaw and forehead.
Square
(Jennifer Garner, Rachel McAdams) Wide at all points, with a broad forehead, strong cheekbones and an angular jaw.
Oval
(Eva Longoria, Jessica Alba) Forehead is somewhat broad, with narrower cheekbones and a tapering jawline.
Diamond
(Scarlett Johansson) Highly angular with wide cheeks, tapering toward both the forehead and chin.
Inverted Triangle
(Kerry Washington, Kim Kardashian) Cheekbones are wider than the chin and forehead.
Heart
(Christina Ricci, Reese Witherspoon) Broad forehead, strong cheekbones and a small chin.
Oblong/ Rectangular
(Sarah Jessica Parker) Resembles a tall rectangle with rounded corners. It has a broad but even forehead, jaw and cheekbones.
Pear
(Kelly Osbourne, Minnie Driver) A broad jawline; the cheeks may be wider than the eye area and taper toward a narrow forehead.
To identify your client’s face shape, start by taking the following key measurements:
- Width of forehead
- Width of cheekbones
- Width of jawline
- Length of face
You will need the following materials:
- A large mirror for the client to view themselves.
- Hair clips or a headband to pull hair from the face.
- A cape or gown for client to wear to minimize distractions from their face.
- Light (either daylight or professional makeup lights). Avoid overhead lights since these create more shadows on the face and make it hard to view its perimeter.
- A set of makeup brushes, eyeliners and lip liners.
Now follow the simple face mapping steps below:
- Have your client look straight ahead at a mirror in a well-lit environment.
- Instruct them not to smile during this analysis, as it can alter their face shape.
- Using an eyeliner or lip liner, draw a point at each corner of their forehead and in the center of the forehead (staying on the perimeter of the face).
- Place a long makeup brush across the upper bridge of the nose and hold level. Then draw the points at the outer cheekbones (staying on the perimeter of the face).
- Draw a dot at the widest points of the jaw, and at the point of the chin.
- Connect the dots to verify the measurement that’s the widest or longest and confirm which shape the face most closely matches.
CUSTOMIZED BEAUTY
Once you have identified your client’s face shape, you are ready to do a makeup application tailored to their features.
Square
To help soften angular features, create a makeup look that’s soft, feminine and ethereal with shimmery textures. Apply blush onto the apples of cheeks, and a sheer gloss to lips to soften an angular jawline. Play up lashes with two coats of mascara for a feminine finish.
NOTE: Avoid strong eyeliners or lip colors for square faces, as they can create harsh lines.
Round
Add definition to this face by trying an overall bronzy look accentuated by smoky eyes. Blend a deeper bronzer underneath cheekbones to add cut. Sweep highlighter on top of cheekbones to add shape. Opt for angular shaped brows to downplay face roundness. Try lightly filling brows to add definition to the arch. Smoky eyes with strong liquid liners add definition to this face shape.
Oval
To help cut the length of the face, apply a rosy or bronzy blush horizontally across the cheekbones; this further defines the eyes and lips. Next, blend a bronzer in an up-sweep motion under cheekbones from the apples of cheeks toward temples to create width. Line lips, then apply gloss or lipstick to add definition to your chin. Apply a light, sheer eye shadow, blending to a medium shade at the crease.
Triangle
To help balance the upside down triangle shape of the face, minimize width across the forehead and visually add width to the jawline. Apply bronzer to the corners of the widest part of the forehead to soften edges. Apply highlights to the chin, center of forehead, under eyes and bridge of the nose to add visual width. Apply a soft matte blush on apples of the cheeks, followed by a well-defined brow with a slight arch. Apply a soft smoky eye and a neutral lip for softness.
Heart
To draw focus away from a prominent chin and cheekbones, wear soft, feminine, sheer tones and add a pop of color to lips and cheeks. This pop downplays strong cheekbones. Play up the apples of cheeks with a matte blush. Avoid adding highlighting, sheen or glow on cheekbones, as that pronounces the already defined cheeks. Wearing soft feminine tones in a sheer finish on lips and cheeks help soften the heart shaped face.
Oblong
To help the face appear slightly shorter and broader, use bronzer along the hairline, blending downward, then to the bottom of the chin and just under cheekbones, blending up toward the hairline. Apply blush to the apples of the cheeks. Play up eyes with cat eye makeup, bold eyeshadow colors and dramatic lashes; extend eyebrows outward toward temples.
Diamond
To help soften the angularity of the face, apply bronzer to the outside of the cheekbones, tip of the chin and along the temples, blending toward the jawline. Apply blush to the apples of the cheeks sweeping upward. Define a natural brow line, avoiding a dramatic arch, and apply shimmery shadows with plenty of mascara to enhance eyes. Highlight under the cheeks and along the jawline, and add a natural creamy lip shade.
Pear
To help soften the width of the lower half of the face, use a matte bronzer to contour the jawline. Apply blush along the cheekbones toward the temple. Highlight the bridge of the nose, the center of the forehead, under the eyes and over the cheekbones to make the face appear more centered. Accentuate eyes with smoky shadows and downplay lips with a neutral shade.
Hold An Educational Workshop Bring additional business and traffic into your spa or salon by hosting an educational workshop about makeup application for face shapes. Encourage all your clients to come and bring their friends. Clients love learning about their own unique attributes and how to best enhance them. Consider creating complimentary partnerships with other beauty experts, or vendors that can offer additional insights and products; this type of workshop is a great place to educate your clients on how to choose eyeglasses, hats and enhance their necklines with jewelry. Educational workshops can serve as valuable tools to build your client loyalty and position you as an expert in your field. Connection, analysis and education are vitally important in sustaining long-term relationships with clients and growing your business.
“The goal is to Create balance and enhance the center of the face”
COMBINATION FACE SHAPES
Many people can be considered a “combination” face shape. It is key to balance any face shape by highlighting areas you want to bring forward or appear larger, and contouring areas you want to recede or appear smaller. Apply these key makeup techniques for combination face shapes:
Square jawline, with rounder forehead
The goal is to create balance and enhance the center of the face; contouring the square edges of the jaw line with bronzer, slightly bronzing the corners of the forehead to create a more oval shape, and highlighting under the eye, bridge of the nose, center of the forehead and center of the chin. Apply blush toward the nose to bring more focus to the center of the face.
Oval forehead with heart-shaped lower half of face
To balance this shape, broaden the chin by highlighting it to bring attention to the middle of the face. Highlight the center of the face and contour the cheeks and temples to make it appear narrower.
Square forehead with diamond cheekbones and chin
This face shape has a lot of angles, so the goal is to soften these angles. Broaden chin by highlighting it and round the forehead by darkening the upper corners. Apply a light blush just under the cheekbone to draw attention away from the angularity and widen this part of the face.
