You're Doing It Wrong: How to Make Translucent Powder Undetectable—Even With Flash on

Celebs are guilty of this beauty mishap too

You might not be on the same level as Taylor Swift, Demi Lovato or any other celeb constantly in the limelight, but you are equally at risk of being caught wearing less-than-perfectly-applied makeup.

If you recall, earlier this month Taylor slayed in her usual cat-eye and otherwise on-point makeup, only to be photographed with poorly applied HD finishing powder under her eyes. The same thing happened to Demi not long before. To the naked eye, unblended HD powder is invisible but flash photography reveals every detail. Even if you have no plans on being photographed up close, New York makeup artist Ashley Rebecca insisted that best practice is to be prepared for anything. To make sure that you never get caught with unblended finishing powder, Ashley shared her tips.

There Is a Point to Using Powder: "The point of using this powder is to mattify oily skin, smooth out fine lines for photographs and to make sure that concealers don't start creasing under the eye area," said Ashley. 

Prep Your Skin: If you know that you are going to be in front of a camera, Ashley recommended a day-before mask. "Use a mask the night before your event to shrink your pores and help control oil," said the celeb makeup artist. Ashley loves to smear on the June Jacobs line of masks, concentrating especially on your t-zone where most people tend to be the oiliest.

Pick Your Powder: The issue of camera pick up happens most often with white, translucent HD powders, so a safer bet is to sub in flesh-colored powder. "I like to use a powder that matches the natural skin tone," assured the pro. Ashley avoids thick, heavy foundation powders and instead opts for finer consistencies like NARS Loose Powder and Giorgio Armani Luminous Silk Pressed Powder with blendable textures.

There Is Such a Thing As Too Much: The translucent color paired with over-application is a surefire formula for camera pick up. Even if you pick a skin-colored version, over-applying the product will set you up for a makeup mishap. However, to avoid the problem altogether, Ashley's answer is to pair a skin-colored formula with a light-handed application.

It's All in the Technique: To ensure that HD powder gets absorbed properly, "I like to use a brush and press it against the skin instead of rubbing it all over with a brush," shared the pro. By adapting this application technique, Ashley noted that you will avoid the mishap completely.

No Need to Reapply: Reapplying powder throughout the evening is just putting yourself at risk of being caught with powder under your eyes. Instead of carrying touchup powder, which can cake if reapplied multiple times, Ashley recommended carrying blotting papers like Boscia's Green Tea Blotting Linens that will sop up oil and won't ruin your makeup.