Concealer & Contour Go Hand-In-Hand In This Breakout Blurring Hack

Covering up acne is almost never as simple as dabbing on a spot of concealer. Our skin is already textured and pigmented — add in inflamed, irritated skin, and you're dealing with complex terrain. Of course, your first option is to leave it be; everyone gets acne, and there's nothing wrong with leaving a spot uncovered, especially if you want it to heal quickly. But if you're in the mood for smoother-looking skin, your best option may just be a clever contouring hack.

Acne is tricky to cover because it's a raised spot on your skin. Even if you coat it with a thick layer of concealer, you'll still be left with a bump, only now, it's also covered in cakey makeup. So instead of immediately reaching for your concealer, try approaching your acne with a contour method.

As demonstrated on TikTok by makeup artist and Huda Beauty founder Huda Kattan, you can use a contouring technique to flatten the appearance of your acne before applying concealer. This method also works great for cystic acne and acne scars, and you probably already have the products you need to pull it off.

Contouring bumps and pimples on your skin is easy, at least the way Huda Kattan explains it in her video. Start by making sure that your skin is clean so that your makeup won't trap more dirt and oil around your acne (and potentially make it worse!). If you have any discoloration on your pimple, Kattan recommends applying a color corrector before anything else. She then uses a small concealer brush to pick up a bit of powder highlighter and applies it to the perimeter of her spot. Afterward, she takes a darker contour color (also a powder) and lightly dusts the center of the blemish.

By using color to reverse the depth of the inflamed area, the pimple now looks much flatter and less prominent against the rest of her skin. Kattan completes the process by gently patting foundation over the pimple and, for good measure, pressing on a touch of setting powder to keep everything in place. Since the contouring does most of the work via a visual illusion, this method requires minimal foundation and has a much more natural result than piling on a traditional concealer.

The one caveat of this spot coverage hack is to be careful with how much product you use. The method involves several products, so you only need a little bit of each. Skin with acne is very sensitive, and you don't want to make it worse by layering on a bunch of makeup.

For this reason, you should be conservative with each step of this process. For instance, only use a color corrector if your acne is a significantly different color from the rest of your skin. If you pick the right color corrector, you really shouldn't need to use that much of it on a pimple. Remember, choose a color that's on the opposite side of the color wheel from your blemish. For the contouring step, use the smallest makeup brush you have and tap off the excess powder before applying it. Depending on how sensitive your skin is, you may want to skip the foundation for that day and wear a tinted moisturizer instead.

Acne isn't fun, but it's not the end of the world. With a quick makeup strategy like contouring, you can easily cover up your breakouts and show off your gorgeous skin with confidence.