Meet Catrice's Mattifying Dream Team

The one complexion trending hard at recent awards shows? Velvet matte skin. Celebs like Jennifer Hudson, Selena Gomez and Ariana Grande recently accessorized their red-carpet gowns with flawless matte skin looks. What makes matte skin modern this season is its creamy finish (no cakiness in sight!). The power of a matte complexion done well is perfectly polished-looking skin that still glows in all the right places. Here’s how to get the look with the newest product drops. 

The look: Matte Where It Matters

Gone are the days of applying heavy, matte formulas to your entire face. No shade, but if this is still your approach, please keep reading! Today’s matte formulas are more breathable and work best when applied strategically. Think T-Zone placement and dialling down super shiny areas of the face, like the forehead. This look is about working with, not against, your natural radiance. 

Start Your Matte Skin Journey With This Primer

Celebrity makeup artists always start their glam with a good primer because it helps even out the skin and refines the look of pores for a seamless skin effect. This mattifying gel primer goes a step further with a lightweight, hydrating gel texture and blurring finish. It’s also infused with skincare ingredients like hyaluronic acid, squalane and glycerin, so it quenches skin while keeping oil in check. Its finishing effect is so good that you can even wear it sans foundation. With a refreshing cooling sensation and instant skin-wakening effect, you’ll wonder how you ever lived without this mattifying primer.

Apply This GOAT Mattifying Foundation Next 

Foundation is the main character of every celebrity glam session, and we’re willing to bet that foundation is almost always a mattifying one. This mattifying foundation lives permanently on the best-seller rotation for a reason. It helps you achieve a natural matte complexion with the perfect combo: lightweight texture meets high-coverage formula with skin-loving niacinamide. It’s super long-lasting (up to 24 hours), meaning you won’t have to worry about it fading fast, especially if your pores are overachievers and magnets for excess shine. The beauty of this foundation is also in its application. Use the dropper on your cheeks, chin, nose and forehead, and blend it in well using a good buffer brush or damp beauty sponge. 

You Also Need a Mattifying Powder to Finish Your Look

 No red-carpet look, or everyday one for that matter, is complete without a dusting of mattifying powder. The reason that mattifying powder is a makeup pro must is that it locks in your makeup look while providing insurance against excess shine later. Another reason to incorporate mattifying powder into your daily makeup routine? Baking. This is a technique where you apply a generous layer of mattifying powder to areas where makeup tends to crease or fade, and then let your natural body heat set the product. Then you just dust it off to reveal the perfect, long-wear finish. For these techniques, you’ll need a powder puff to get an airbrushed finish.

This mattifying powder blurs imperfections and doesn’t have any flashback, which is the white cast that can appear on skin when a camera flash hits it a certain way. Whether you choose a translucent or tinted formula, your skin will have an airbrushed, celeb-worthy finish with this mattifying powder. It’s also touch-up friendly and perfect for giving your skin an instant velvet matte finish.