The Only 8 Beauty Tricks You Need to Downplay a Large Forehead

The right way to use makeup to your advantage is by calling attention to your favorite features while downplaying the things about your face that you aren’t so fond of. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with a large forehead (just ask Tyra Banks!), but if it’s a source of insecurity for you, then there’s no reason not to use the power of makeup to draw attention away from it.

These eight beauty tricks will only serve to enhance your natural beauty—and some are as easy as just switching up your hairstyle.

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Consider Proportions

High foreheads usually are a result of high hairlines or low brows, and sometimes even thinning hair in the front area, so camouflaging a large forehead is all about proportions, says Wendy Lewis of Beauty in the Bag. Bangs or shorter layers in the front are the first step to detracting attention from the area, but wearing hair up in a tight, pulled-back style will only serve to make your forehead more prominent.

Shape Your Brows

Brush eyebrows up and make sure they’re defined, says makeup artist Jennifer Trotter of Lip Service Makeup. Brushing your eyebrows up and into place can lift your face and minimize the visual distance between your eyebrows and hairline. Plus, it opens your eye area and creates balance.

If your brows are sparse, fill them in a bit with pencil, powder, or pomade, says Trotter. Just be sure to use short, hair-like strokes in a shade that matches brows for the most subtle look, and keep it all in place with a dab of brow gel.

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Create an Optical Illusion

Use contouring techniques, but keep it subtle by just using two shades of foundation, says Trotter. “The first one should be just one shade [lighter than] your natural skin tone, the second one should be one shade darker than your skin tone,” she says.

Use the lighter one in the center of your face and the darker one around the perimeter of your face. Dot on sparingly and blend well. “There should be no lines or streaks on your jaw line. This technique is a more subtle version of highlight and contour, but when done correctly, results in a soft effect that pulls the eye towards the center of your face and can really minimize your forehead,” says Trotter.

Change up Your Part

A center part will continue to draw the eye up, so it isn’t the best way to draw the eye away from your forehead, says Amy Bobeda, a licensed cosmetologist in San Francisco. A side part, however, will draw the eye in a different direction.

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Add Bangs

Try long, heavy, rounded bangs, covering the brows and almost touching the eyes, says Christi Mariah of Latest-Hairstyles.com. These look best on long and oval faces as a great way to cover a larger forehead and shorten the look of a long face. To style, blowdry with your hands or a large round brush straight down, or at an angle until they lay perfectly straight. Flat iron if needed.

Increase Volume

By adding width through a voluminous hairstyle, the forehead seems to shrink, says Bobeda. The same goes for adding texture around the face, like subtle curls or waves. Body-enhancing shampoos and styling creams lend a good helping hand as well.

Try a Bold Lip

This trick works especially well if you have medium to full lips, Trotter says. Wear a bright red or berry lip to pull focus from your forehead and call attention to your lips and smile. Color on your lips prevents a “monochrome” look: If your face is all neutral, your forehead will really stand out.

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A version of this article was originally published in May 2016.