The love for dewy skin in beauty is nothing new, but as a perpetually shiny girl I promise you there is a huge difference between looking shiny and dewy, juicy skin. My T-zone, especially around my nose and chin, gets greasy really quickly so I always have to have a face powder in my bag (no matter how small) to mattify my skin. However, this doesn’t mean I like my skin to look super matte– far from it, I love a healthy shine. So, it’s taken a while but I have finally found powders and a routine that takes down the shine in greasy areas while maintaining a glowy complexion.
Firstly, I opt for a light to medium coverage foundation if I wear one at all, and get my coverage from concealer. This makes my face look fresh and not cakey as I continue to powder throughout the day. For staying power if it’s a day-job-to-night-plans kind of day, I always wear a primer and this takes care of my foundation and concealer not sliding so the powder can just be for stopping the oil coming through. Then, after I’ve finished my makeup, I set under my eyes and around my nose with a loose skin-coloured powder.
Throughout the day I carry a small fluffy brush and a pressed powder to pinpoint target areas of shine so I don’t make my whole face look flat and matte but eliminate shine in unwanted areas. There is a common misconception that using powder makes the face look two dimensional but it doesn’t have to be, as long as you’re clever with the application.
Here are the best powders I have tried from translucent to shaded, pressed to loose.
MAC Studio Fix Powder Plus Foundation
When I’m doing a full-face look, I love the MAC Studio Fix Foundation but the powder formula is excellent for pinpoint targeting greasy spots. Make sure you match your skin tone for your T-zone but if you’re using under your eyes, you'll need a shade lighter.
Charlotte Tilbury Airbrush Flawless Finish Powder
This pressed powder has a subtle blurring effect so as it mattifies it maintains a realistic, healthy glow.
L'Oreal Paris Infallible 24h Fresh Wear Powder Foundation
This powder leaves a velvety finish and keeps me shine-free for hours. It can’t be layered up too much though so apply to set your face and opt for a translucent powder for further shine reducing.
Milk Makeup Blur + Set Matte Loose Setting Powder
Milk Makeup is renowned for natural looking dewy skin so even this matte powder doesn’t truly mattify, it just removes excess oil.
Morphe Bake & Set Setting Powder
Technically this is meant for setting the undereye but it’s so finely-milled I found it is really blurring for the T-Zone too.
Huda Beauty Easy Bake Loose Powder
With this powder you still have a hint of natural sheen without looking shiny– it’s wizardry. I sometimes carry the mini version around with me instead of a pressed powder as it’s super easy to use and not at all messy.
Lancôme Loose Setting Powder
I love how light this powder is. Whether you’re wearing a foundation or not it sets the T-zone seamlessly.
Anastasia Beverly Hills Loose Setting Powder
This is my ‘going out’ powder for when I’m doing a ‘look’. It’s very blurring and gives the skin a satin-y look.
Sleek Makeup Face Form Baking and Setting Powder
This loose powder is very lightweight and easy to blend in. The banana shade is great for setting and brightening the under-eye area.
Next up, the best shampoos for thin hair.
