The Surprising Trick to No-Makeup Makeup: A Beauty Dispatch from Milan

Milan Fashion Week’s biggest beauty statement has been more of an understatement—turning up on the Gucci runway in the form of perfect skin, a whisper of blush, and a slick of lip balm, and on the city’s street style stars, who balance bold prints with a bare face. The truth, of course, is that a supernatural complexion requires a fair amount of makeup—albeit stealthily hidden—and this season, mastering the no-makeup look of the moment may come down to one surprising backstage trick.

At Prada last night, Pat McGrath used a light foundation to even out the skin, then wiped it away again along the cheeks so only the most transparent hint of coverage remained. The technique turned up this morning again backstage at the Marco de Vincenzo show, where the idea was “making the skin as beautiful as possible with as little foundation as possible,” explained makeup artist Terry Barber of the fresh-faced runway look. After putting on the sheerest micro-layer of MAC Face and Body Foundation possible to even out the skin, he went back and pressed away any excess from the apples with a sponge. “There’s something nice that happens when the light hits that ruddy, pinkish area where you flush—you don’t want to cover that up,” he said of the sleight of hand, which can be repeated anywhere your foundation risks looking like a mask or along freckles on the bridge of the nose. “It’s about using foundation only where you need it and scaling back where you don’t.”

Once you’ve mastered the perfectly customized amount of coverage, the rest is easy, said Barber. He uses a peach-toned shade of MAC Studio Fix concealer, which neutralizes bluish undertones, “only on the dark area under the eye at the inner corners,” making it sheerer as it approaches the lashes and, again, using his fingers to tap away any excess. “It should be almost translucent,” he said. “If you can see the concealer, it’s too much.”  He finished by covering up any remaining blemishes on the face with a different yellow-toned concealer, setting the brows with a bit of gel, and slicking balm on the lips. “If you can learn to do that in five minutes,” he said firmly, “you’re set.”