Contours and highlights the hot new makeup trend

The spring face is typically about fresh pops of color on lips and eyes, but this year, exaggerated lines are strong.

If a little flick of eyeliner winged out before, it’s time to go bigger, thicker and longer. Where black was a good place to start, new bold blues, oranges, greens and yellow surprise.

But the biggest trend for spring is the return of the dual techniques of contouring and highlighting to sculpt the face, creating the illusion of hollows and cheekbones where there may be slim to none. The look will be on full view when Sephora creates the makeup looks for Ala Moana Center’s Shop a Le‘a fashion shows Saturday and Sunday (see schedule in sidebar). The cosmetics boutique is also offering free, 15-minute one-on-one Contour Mini Makeover services. Just walk in and inquire.

We last saw contouring in the 1980s, when between the gym and plastic surgery crazes, people started to sculpt their bodies and faces with aerobics or scalpels instead of dark and light makeup. By the time the natural and minimalist ’90s kicked in, contouring was perceived as an old studio trick, unnatural in everyday life and best relegated to movie sets and photo studios.

But with the rise of social media, selfie culture and the permanence of online imagery has come the desire to be ready for one’s closeup at all times.

Last year, a poll of 2,700 members of the American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery found a 10 percent increase in rhinoplasty, or nose jobs, in 2013 over 2012, a 7 percent rise in hair transplants, and a 6 percent increase in eyelid surgery over the same period.

Contouring and highlighting provide a less expensive and less invasive method of obtaining similar results. And let’s not discount the Kim Kardashian effect. Never mind that few share her camera-ready bone structure. When she started posting selfies of her nonblended, contour-mapped face, her fans followed.

"Millennials who are into social media see what goes on behind the scenes at professional photo shoots so they’re interested in bringing into real life what’s in magazines," said Heather Saffery, who represents the Laura Mercier brand in Hawaii. "Initially, people were told to use bronzing powders to sculpt, but bronzing powders add warmth, not shading."

Now, cosmetic companies are introducing contour kits that take the guesswork out of picking the right colors. The Laura Mercier Flawless Contouring Palette ($50), as one example, delivers three contour and two highlight shades that represent "an artist’s approach to makeup," Saffery said.

Contour products range from sticks and powders to creams, and makeup artist Yesenia Delacruz said beginners might find it easiest to start with powders that don’t require much blending.

A funny thing about that lined, masked look. Saffery said whenever she’s performing makeovers around town, she always comes across women who "like to stripe it on. It’s what they see on posters and online and they like that exaggerated look."

But she said the aim is to tone it down. "It’s about creating an illusion. You still want a naturally sculpted look that makes it look like you were born that way."