Tip Tuesday: The Do's & Don'ts of Bronzing

Welcome to Tip Tuesday of this weeks special edition Bronzing week here at Winky Pink! I Absolutely LOVE bronzers! It's no lie. I contour with them every day of the year, and warm my pale skin with them all day every day during the summer and warmer months. Today I'm going to tell you some do's and don'ts that I rigorously follow when applying bronzer.

DO

• use a fairly fluffy brush when your are applying your bronzer. I've seen so many people flub up their makeup by thinking that they can draw lines on their face to make it look more contoured. NO! fluffy brushes are your friend when you are contouring your face. The last thing you want are streaks on your cheeks. My favorite brush to use right now is the Eco Tools fan brush (pictured above).
• use a shade that is only few shades darker than your natural skin tone. This will make it look way more natural and blend seamlessly into your skin.
• use a matte (or skinfinish) shade if you are contouring with your bronzer. There are so many sparkly bronzers on the market. Trust me. Sparkle draws attention, and if you are trying to contour, that means you are trying to NOT draw attention to that particular area. Matte bronzers are your best friend for this purpose! My favorites are Too Faced Chocolate Soleil, Tart Park Avenue Princess in Matte, Revlon Photoready Bronzer, and Essence Sun Club Matte Bronzer.
• make sure you know exactly where you need to place your bronzer. You don't want it all over your face. Contouring is your best friend. So, unless you want to look muddy, only take your bronzer where you absolutely need too.
• take it down your neck a little. You want your neck to match your face. No white necks with tan faces. It looks horrible!

DONT

• over do it. I know that the idea of looking skinnier is appealing, there is definately a line that can be crossed. You want things to look natural. 
•  use too much product. A little goes a long way people. Only pick up a small amount on your brush. You can always add more if you think you need it.
• use a shade that doesn't flatter your skin tone. Know what your undertones are and know what looks best on you. There are orangy bronzers out there that look stellar on some people. Guess what? Those people usually have orange under tones, which means that they have a lot of red and yellow pigments in their skin, as apposed to more blue and red. I heard so many ladies rave about NYC Sunny bronzer, and when I picked it up and tried to use it I looked like an Umpa Loompa! Badly! So, I try to steer more towards cool toned bronzers. But, trust me NYC Sunny is so so so pretty on lots of skin tones, just not mine :)
• put bronzer on your skin where clothing will be rubbing it. Especially if you will be wearing white! A white collard shirt can quickly yuck up if you pull your bronzer down your neck a little too far. Just be mindful and careful with this.

That's all for my do's, and don'ts. Let me know if you have any other tips or tricks that you use when applying bronzer!