#theSOproject Bronzer

Well I have been totally AWOL from my blog for a whole week now - I have been poorly and feeling sorry for myself but #theSOproject is the perfect way to beat the blues and kick myself into touch.  The biggest problem of being a teacher - new germs from all the children at the start of a new term!

Anyway, on with today's post all about bronzers.  I am not one of those lucky people who look stunningly beautiful with porcelain skin.  My skin tone goes so uneven, with pinkiness and red blotches when I do not have a tan so I am a big fan of daily face tanning lotion, the kind that works like a moisturiser too.  I tend to use this all year round to get just a slight hint of sun-kissedness on my skin, which means I think I use bronzer everyday that I wear make-up to complement this.

Different Textures of Bronzer

I have a lot in my collection, but only the MUA was bought at full price (which is cheap as chips anyway), the rest were either from blog sales, 3 for 2 offers, gifts or part of value sets.  It really pays to shop around and keep your eyes peeled for those bargains!  I like to use different textures for different jobs - cream for contour or blending with foundation, powder for a light tan all over the face or in place of powder if I have a strong summer tan.

Even within the 'cream bronzer' category, textures can be vastly different.
The Chanel is much firmer than the Bourjois.

Powders come in a massive range of colours and finishes, from matte to sparkly and pinky, through brown to orangey.
EXPERIMENT!!

 Bronzer does 3 main jobs.  The first - and this can be done by anyone, even if you don't like the 'bronzed' look - is contouring.  Applying a darker shade to the shadow areas of the face (under the cheek bones, jaw line and temples) can slim the face down and give the appearance of a more pronounced bone structure.  There are great video tutorials of this on YouTube which show you how to achieve the look.  

Secondly, bronzer can be used to warm up the complexion, adding a subtle tan to the skin.  This can be done by lightly (and I repeat, lightly!) sweeping a bronzer over your entire face, or focussing on the areas which tend to be hit more by the sun: the cheekbones, nose and forehead.

Thirdly, a cream, mousse or liquid bronzer can be mixed in with foundation to alter its colour (check out my #theSOproject foundation post) which I find saves me a heap of time and money matching foundation to my ever changing skin tone!

Some cream and liquid bronzers (blended underneath)

As with foundation, the key to avoiding the tango look is blend, blend, blend; buff, buff, buff.  Don't overdo it but build a subtle colour without harsh edges and you will achieve the sun-kissed, rather than carrot effect.

What are your favourite bronzers?

If you are part of #theSOproject, leave your links!