Bronzer is a tricky thing, if you apply it right you'll have that radiant just-off-holiday glow, but if you do it wrong you could end up looking a muddy mess. Thankfully we are here today to arm you with the ultimate bronzer guide, helping you to get it right everytime. From choosing your product to application, we've got you covered.

PREP

Know Your Colour

Choosing your perfect colour is one of the most important factors when buying a bronzer, you want it dark enough to give that sun-kissed look but not so dark that you look muddy. For a natural look, it is best to choose a bronzer two shades darker than your own skin tone. Its also a good idea to think about your skins undertones, for example if your skin has warm undertones then a golden brown will suit you best, whereas if you have cool undertones then neutral bronzers are best. Make sure to do lots of test swatches when you're shopping to see what really works for you.

You also need to consider what your skin's undertones are. If your skin has warm undertones (check for green veins), you can use most golden brown bronzers. If you have cool undertones (check for blue veins), you should stick with neutral shades and avoid red-toned bronzers. 

Choose a finish

The next step is to choose what finish you want your bronzer to have. Some people like a shimmer finish to give a radiant glow, while others prefer a matte finish to focus soley on the sunkissed colour. You can also buy combo palette with a matte bronzer and shimmer powder for the best of both worlds. What you choose is, of course, down to you but its good to keep in mind that shimmer finish bronzers reflect the light and can end up making oily skin look more oily - a good way to combat this is to choose a shimmer finish bronzer with ultra fine glitter particles. Below are some of our faves for each finish!

MATTE

1.MUA Bronzed Perfection / 2. Tarte Amazonian Claty Bronzer / 3. Benefit Hoola Bronzer / 4. Bella&Bear Bobcat Angled Brush / 5. Too Faced Chocolate Soleil Bronzer / 6. NYX Matte Body Bronzer / 7. Urban Decay Beached Bronzer / 8. Nars Sunwash Diffusing Bronzer / 

SHIMMER

1. MakeupRevolution Vivid Shimmer Brick / 2. Makeup Revolution Skin Kiss / 3. Bourjois Bronzing Powder / 4. Sephora IHeart Cushion Bronzer / 5. IHeartMakeup Blushing Hearts /  6. Rimmel Radiance Brick / 7. Bobbi Brown Shimmer Brick / 8. Bella&Bear Jungle Cat Tapered Highlight Brush / 

COMBO

1.Morphe 9Bz Bonzer Palette / 2. Lancome Star Bronzer Palette / 3. IHeart Makeup Bronze and Glow / 4. Elf Bronzer quad / 5. Clarins Bronzing & Blush Duo / 6. Charlotte Tilbury Bronze and Glow / 

Choose the best brush

A good rule to go by is to use a soft fluffy blush for your bronzer - our Jaguar angled brush is ideal. If you use a brush which is too dense (like a kabuki) the colour will come out too dark right away, not giving you a chance to build it up and make it look natural!

APPLICATION

A simple way to remember is to apply in the shape of a 3. Work from your temples round to your cheekbones and back down to your jawline. This will give ultimate definition and structure. We are using our Bella&Bear Bobcat angled brush to do this.

To really add to that fresh-from-the-beach look take your brush and gently sweep some bronzer over of the bridge of your nose. The sun would naturally hit this area so its good to give it a slight dusting of product.

That's it! You're bronzed and good to glow! Looking radiant and sun-kissed, nothing can stop you! We hope you found this guide handy and don't forget you can shop all of the Bella&Bear pieces seen here (and many more!) in our online store right now!

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