The Rainbow Contour Hack Achieves Glowing Skin In One Simple Swoop

The rainbow contour hack is one unexpected way to get flawless skin. The unusual makeup application is going viral on TikTok, and while the process looks intriguing — and slightly suspect — the final results are amazing. The rainbow contour is a foundation-free makeup routine that uses only concealer, contour, and blush to give a sculpted finish. TikTok has offered a plethora of unusual makeup tricks as of late. There's a viral blush trend that involves underpainting the face with red lipstick, blending, and applying foundation overtop to give a rosy, flushed finish. There's another hack for finding the perfect lip color that involves pinching the tip of your finger, and matching a lipstick color to this shade. Everybody's so creative! The makeup hacks are endless. 

What makes the rainbow contour hack so effective is that it basically takes the elaborate work of concealer, contour, and blush and makes it one step. Think of it as a one-pot dinner recipe for perfect makeup. Here's how to do it and what you need to make it flawless. 

To begin the rainbow contour hack, start by drawing a line of concealer under the eyes and carry it across the nose, so there's a full stripe of concealer going across the face. Under this, using a cream blush stick, draw a stripe of blush over the cheeks and across the nose. Draw the blush up towards the temples. Under that, draw a line of bronzer using a cream stick across the lower cheek bones and over the tip of the nose. Under the bronzer, apply one more stripe of concealer just above the jaw to brighten the lower area of the face. On the forehead, draw an arch of blush followed by a smaller arch of concealer. On the chin, draw two lines of bronzer on each side of the mouth followed by a line of concealer in the middle of the chin. Once the whole face is covered in this line work, set the face with setting spray. Then begin the blending process using a damp beauty sponge and get to work. Use dabbing motions to blend to avoid smearing any of the lines. Start at the chin and work your way up the face. 

The benefit of the rainbow contour hack is that you get perfect skin without any foundation. Plus, the process streamlines makeup application. All of the drawing happens at once, followed by a simple, full-face blending process. And since all of the products are blending together at once, the final effect creates a natural, dewy finish. 

To make the rainbow contour hack work, you need a few staple items. The first is a good concealer. One makeup user who tried the hack suggested trying LYS Beauty Triple Fix Brightening Concealer, which retails for $18 at Sephora. This was followed by the Victoria Beckham Beauty Cheeky Posh Cream Blush Stick for $42. For contour, she used the Rare Beauty Contour Stick for $23, also from Sephora. The setting spray she suggested was the Charlotte Tilbury Airbrush Flawless Setting Spray for $35. 

What makes the rainbow contour hack so great, though, is that the products don't need to be high end to achieve a polished finish. The e.l.f. Monochromatic Multi Stick is a great way to apply the blush, and it retails for $5. The brand also sells a Halo Glow Contour Beauty Wand for $9. A full coverage concealer that makes it on people's top lists is the NYX HD Photogenic Concealer Wand for $5. So the look is totally successful with drugstore brand makeup, too. No need to break the bank to explore this TikTok approved makeup trend.