Welcome back to the #PaleGirls series, a feature here on Isobel Rose aimed at helping all of you lovely pale-skin beauties look fabulous. Now I know that this feature isn't for everyone, but being an extremely pale girl myself, I know how hard it can be to find makeup suited for our fair complexions. Something that I've always found quite tricky is finding contour colours that don't look ridiculous on my skin tone - most are too orange, whilst others can make you look like you've been in a bar fight the night before. But no more! I've found two powders that work for me even when I'm at my palest, and I'm here to share my wisdom with you all today. Now before we get going, I'm not saying that you have to buy high end products to get the right colour match, or that these are the only two contour colours for fairer skin, but these are the two I've come across that have always worked well for me. Starting off at the slightly cheaper end of the spectrum, we have MAC's Powder Blush in Harmony which comes in at £18 and does the job just nicely. The texture is beautifully creamy and easy to blend, and you get a hell of a lot of product for your money. Winner. Then we have a slightly newer release, the NARS Contour Blush in Olympia (£30) which does exactly what it says on the tin. I have written about Olympia here, but if I was to compare the two, I would say that the NARS shade is ever so slightly lighter than Harmony, but honestly I doubt you could tell the difference, especially once applied.

Okay - so we've got the contour colour picked out and ready, so now it's time to choose which tools to work with. In my experience, you can achieve different intensity levels of contour with a wide array of brushes, so my two picks in this post aren't mandatory. However, if you're looking to get a nice defined contour without ending up with random lines all over your face, I highly recommend the following brushes (if not something similar). First up we have the RT Flat Contour Brush - a rectangular shaped stiff face brush that allows you to place a good amount of product exactly where you want it before blending out. The thick density of the bristles on this brush means that you can really concentrate the colour, and it's shape aids even the clumsiest of contourers when placing it correctly. This brush can also be used to blend out the colour, but I honestly prefer something a bit fluffier, like the Sephora Pro Angled Blush Brush. I picked this baby up whilst in Valencia, and it's quickly become a favourite for blush and contour alike. The shape of the brush means that you won't end up spreading the contour colour too far from where it should be, but it's fluffy enough so that you don't end up looking too harsh.

Contouring is a skill that even I am yet to master, but I hope this post has been useful to all of you, not just my fair-skinned sisters out there. Good luck, and let me know if you have any favourite products/tricks for contouring!

27 comments

  1. Whilst I'm not a #palegirl myself - I can definitely appreciate the right contour powder! The two brushes sound great too. Out of the new Bold Metals range, the contour brush is definitely one that I would try!

    Tasha // shiwashiful.

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  2. I have my eye on that RT contour brush! I'm waiting to see if I can't get my hands on that Nars flat contouring brush first before I get this one! Also your blog looks lovely x x

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  3. The NARS contour blush duo looks absolutely beautiful! Loving this feature as a pale girl myself.

    Catherine, xo || Lady Liquor

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  4. I personally much prefer pale skin over tanned skin (not if one is naturally of a darker colour, but I simply dislike all this fake tanning), I love this series :) Usually I never contour, but if I want to I use a very light ashy brown shadow, if I use something that is too brown it can easily look as if I misplaced some bronzer :/


    victoriatheresia.blogspot.com

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  5. I know - I feel bad for excluding you tanned girls but it can be so hard to find makeup for lighter skin tones so I feel like I have to share my knowledge :) The darker shades of the NARS contour blush look really good too if you're looking for a powder. That was the only RT Bold Metals brush I wanted too ;) x

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  6. Thanks Katie - long time no talk! How are you? xx

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  7. Glad you like it Catherine! I'm a huge fan of your blog :) x

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  8. Yeah I totally get what you mean - my skin is far too dry to ever be able to fake tan effectively, but I like to embrace my paleness :) The NARS powder is particularly ashy, so that might be good for you :) x

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  9. YAY I am so glad, I like to befriend other pale girls who can help me out haha I have tried contouring before and it's looked so so bad with dark shades so I guess I need to spend some more money :'( wah hahah xxx

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  10. I think I'm slowly getting better at contouring, I love the Body Shop Honey bronzer, it's a lovely pale natural tan colour :)

    Kate xo // www.beautybabbles.com

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  11. Really like the new blog design! also, really need to try that Mac Harmony, been looking for something like that for a while! X

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  12. A bar fight that led to two slanted slabs of orange on each cheek? Damn, can't wait to see what the other person looked like ;)
    Personally, I don't have any shades cool enough to contour with, but that new RT brush is just divine to look at. How's that contour brush for blush/would it be appropriate for blush?

    Vanessa | Citron and Guavaberry

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  13. I love angled brushes for bronzer! And thanks for the #palegirl friendly recommendations ;) Light and cool-toned perfection! Surprisingly, I've really been enjoying the bronzer in the ELF contouring duo, despite the shimmer.

    Sheri | Behind The Frames

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  14. Love this post! I've had Harmony on my wishlist for ages!!!

    xprincessjas | ♥

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  15. I'm still trying to figure contour out! Haha. I have a Zoeva brush that is very similar in shape to the RT one, and I'm experimenting with it. For powders I'm playing around with NYX blush in Taupe at the moment.


    I'm very, very curious about the new range of Sephora brushes! Everyone talk wonders about them.

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  16. Ugh orange contouring is the worst! I know these are a bit pricey, but they honestly last AGES! xx

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  17. Yeah that is lovely - I've tried it out but have never made it mine! Maybe once I use a few powders up!! x

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  18. Thanks Karii! Thought I would shake it up a bit ;) Harmony is gorgeous and there's enough product to last you a lifetime! x

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  19. Hahah you never know - I could have been bitch slapped so hard that it caused bruising!! I'm sorry that I can't really recommend any shades for you, but the darker shades of the NARS contour blushes might be quite good? As for the brush, it's super dense so I don't think it would be great for blush - but you never know! x

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  20. Thanks Jasmine - good choice, it's definitely worth picking up! x

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  21. Haha no problem - us pale girls have to stick together! I've actually never tried anything from ELF! I guess because it's not that easy to get a hold of here. x

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  22. Oh me too Carla, don't worry! Ohh how are the Zoeva brushes? I'm so curious about them but I've never caved and bought any! NYX Taupe is supposed to be a great shade, but we don't have NYX here so I've never got the chance to buy it. The brush range is lovely, but I cannot find the big face brush from it that everyone talks about!! Maybe it's a US exclusive because I couldn't find it in Madrid or Valencia! x

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  23. Zoeva brushes are really awesome, I can't recommend them enough. The relation quality/price is just too good to pass. And now they are coming up with rose gold collections that just make me want to buy all the brushes in the world, lol.

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  24. Ahh they sound amazing, but I already have WAY too many brushes that I just could not justify buying anymore!! x

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  25. I'm well how are you? I'm back home in Ireland, planning my next escape ;) x

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