The Makeup Tip That Could Make Patchy Bronzer A Thing Of The Past

When it comes to makeup, the list of things that can go wrong is endless. There's the chance of our false lashes sliding off at an event, our foundation being much too light or dark for our necks, and a bad episode of harsh contour that does more harm than good. But there is also another possible disaster that is really high on our #makeupphobia list: patchy bronzer.

Bronzer is one step that has remained incredibly underrated but always promises excellent results. And if you have no idea what bronzer does in your routine, L'Oréal Paris explains that when applied, a good bronzer adds warmth and depth to your skin, giving you a glowing and sometimes tanned look. However, like foundation and contour, bronzer can be tricky to apply and can cause your makeup to look too tanned or patchy. If you're having problems applying bronzer like a pro, beauty content creator Rose Siard has a trick that just might help. All you need is a fluffy brush, a healthy dose of bronzer, and, surprisingly, a lightweight face oil.

In an Instagram tutorial reel by beauty content creator and educator Rose Siard, she shared how to avoid a case of patchy bronzer using gentle taps of a brush and some lightweight face oil, which is normally part of a skincare routine rather than a makeup routine. To get her bronzer to blend in with her skin smoothly, she poured some drops of L'Occitane's Shea Bi-Phase Face Serum, which is lighter than a regular face oil, onto a fluffy foundation brush and applied it to her face before adding streaks of bronzer on her cheekbones and temples. By doing this, the face serum created a base for her bronzer to seamlessly blend into her skin, making for a much smoother, patch-free finish. Like Siard, many makeup artists use this technique to create the most skin-like effect with their bronzer, including Tom Pecheux, who has worked on several runway models. "It makes it so the models look like they're not wearing any makeup on their face," he told Allure.

For Balmain's 2015 fall show, Pecheux adopted a similar technique with face oil. Except this time, he poured the drops of face oil on the back of his hand instead of directly on his brush and dipped it in the bronzer before mixing it with the oil. Whichever method you choose, you are guaranteed to leave with amazingly applied bronzer at the end of your session.

Just as face oil promises a fantastic blend with your bronzer, this principle also applies to your other complexion products. Tom Pecheux mixed face oil with some foundation and blush on the models to get a glowy yet natural skin finish for the 2015 fashion show. However, there are precautions to take with this technique.

For one, you'll need to mix your bronzer and face oil thoroughly. "When you don't mix everything, the makeup sits on your skin in layers and creates a heaviness," he told Allure. It's also essential to use just a teensy bit of face oil. You can start with one or two drops and work your way up if you need more for the other parts of your face. It's important to take care when choosing your face oil. While Pecheuz opted for MAC Prep & Prime Essential Oils, Rose Siard recommends a lightweight oil that isn't too slippery on the skin.