Highlighter can take your makeup look to the next level. With a few well-placed brush strokes and a bit of blending, highlighter can enhance your features and make you look lit from within. Ready to learn how to apply highlighter like a pro? We’re here to review everything you need to know, including:

• How to use highlighter makeup

• Highlighting techniques

• Highlighter application tips

• More highlighter tips and tricks

How to use highlighter makeup

Highlighter is a type of makeup with light-reflecting pigments. You can use highlighter to help accentuate your features, make your face look more lifted and give you a radiant, glowing look. Because highlighter is both lighter in color than your skin tone and also reflective, it naturally adds dimension and draws attention to the place you apply it. Highlighters come in powder, liquid and cream forms and can be applied to bare skin or on top of a full face of makeup after your foundation and concealer.

Highlighting techniques

One thing to keep in mind about highlighter is that it’s not an all-over product, but rather, it’s meant to be applied strategically to places on your face that naturally catch the light. Here are some of the most popular places to apply highlighter and our favorite highlighting techniques to try.

Nose: You can apply highlighter along the bridge of your nose and at the tip of your nose as well.

Cheeks: Applying highlighter to the peak of your cheekbone can give the impression of high, lifted cheekbones.

Browbone: Try applying highlighter to your brow bones, right under the center of each eyebrow.

Inner eye corner: On days when you’re feeling especially tired, a touch of highlighter applied to skin near the inner corners of your eyes can help brighten your entire eye area.

Lips: To help make your lips look more full, you can apply a touch of highlighter to your cupid’s bow, which is the point your upper lip curves down into a V-shape.

Chin: A dab of highlighter applied to the center of the lower end tip of your chin can help your face appear to be elongated.

It may take some trial and error to get a feel for what areas of your face look best with a touch of highlighting. With some experimentation, you’ll settle into a routine that works for you.

Joey Lasher, LovelySkin Med Spa Team Lead and licensed esthetician, likes to use the Glo Skin Beauty Contour Kit, a four-palette set with two highlighters and two darker contour shades, along with the two-sided Glo Skin Beauty Contour/Highlighter Brush. “I use the flat end of the brush to apply highlighter under my eyes following the lash line and the center of my forehead right above mid-brows. This really opens up the eyes and magnifies my lashes with the glow,” she says. “Then I will use the other end of the brush, which is stubby and round, to make a light swipe down my nose and pop a little highlighter above the cupid’s bow of my upper lip to make them appear more plump.”

Highlighter application tips

If you’re wearing a full face of makeup, you’ll want to apply highlighter after your concealer, foundation and bronzer. As for how you should apply it, that depends on the type of highlighter makeup you choose.

Pressed powder highlighters come in single pots or palettes with two or more shades to choose from. Loose powder highlighters are a similar option. We love to apply pressed and loose powder highlighters with a fan brush or a dome-shaped brush.

Cream highlighters come in a pot, crayon or twist-up stick. You can apply the highlighter cream directly to your face and then blend with a blending brush, makeup sponge or even your fingers.

Liquid highlighters might come with an eyedropper, pump or doe’s foot applicator. After dispensing a bit of liquid highlighter onto the back of your hand, you can use a makeup sponge or your fingers to dab a few small dots of highlighter onto your skin and gently blend.

A light touch is the key when it comes to highlighter application. You can always add more! Blending thoroughly with a blending brush or makeup sponge will also help you achieve a natural-looking finish.

Other highlighter tips and tricks

Now that you know how to use highlighter makeup, the next step is to select a shade that will work for you. Look for a highlighter that is one to two shades lighter than your skin tone. Thinking about your skin’s natural undertones can also help guide your selection. If your skin has warm undertones, you could consider a highlighter that has gold, yellow or warm pink undertones. If your skin has cool undertones, a highlighter that leans more toward silver, white or cool pink might suit you best.

Highlighters can also range in luminosity from barely pearlescent to a heavy shimmer. A more subtle highlighter works well for a natural no-makeup look, while you might choose a more metallic highlighter if you’re going for full-glam makeup.

Here are five of our favorite highlighters to consider adding to your makeup collection.

Youngblood Mineral Cosmetics Light Reflecting Highlighter

This pressed powder highlighter has a finely milled texture and a subtle sheen. Bonus ingredients such as coconut fatty acids and vitamin E help condition and soften skin with every application. Shades range from Quartz (a shimmery ivory for fair skin tones) to Fiesta (a rich chocolate brown for deep skin tones).

Glo Skin Beauty Skin Glow Powder Highlighter

Another solid go-to for a pressed powder highlighter, this option from mineral makeup company Glo Skin Beauty offers buildable color and soft luminosity. This formula also contains skin-loving antioxidants to help combat free radical damage, including vitamin E and ascorbic acid, a form of vitamin C. Fans of rose gold will love the warm-toned Rose shade.

Ere Perez Vanilla Highlighter

If you prefer a cream highlighter, you’ll love the way this formula melts into your skin to provide a dewy finish. Cocoa butter and avocado, grapeseed and olive oils combine to create a balm-like texture that’s easily applied with your fingers. Choose from shades such as Sun Halo (a warm glowing gold) and Falling Star (a cool shimmery silver), both of which contain natural vanilla extract for a subtle pleasant scent.

Laura Mercier RoseGlow Liquid Highlighter

Does your look demand a touch of sparkle? This liquid highlighter from Laura Mercier is ready to deliver with RoseGlow Pearl Blend, a mix of pearl pigments inspired by rose gold metal. Three different shades (Peach Bronze, Gold Glow and Champagne Pink) have both cool and warm undertones so they work well on any skin tone, from fair to deep.

jane iredale Glow Time Highlighter Stick

When it comes to highlighter application, it’s hard to beat the convenience of a stick formulation for travel or everyday use. This creamy highlighter stick from jane iredale has a radiant pearl finish with a touch of color to brighten the inner corners of eyes and make your cheekbones pop. Getting ready for a special occasion? You can use this highlighter stick to add a touch of glowing shimmer to your collarbone, shoulders or legs as well.

If redness is one of your top skin concerns, you can learn more about how to use green makeup and concealer to counteract redness on the LovelySkin Blog.