Including a setting spray that fully locks in your look

I’m a sucker for a summer wedding, but I have to admit: Nothing takes me out of the moment faster than makeup melting down my face during outdoor vows or late-night dance floor send-offs.

That’s why I tapped two professional bridal makeup artists, Shelby Ann Bell and Chloe Hunninghake (who have a combined 2.65 million followers across social media), to learn what long-lasting beauty products will actually stay on my face through hours of toasting, dancing, and crying at upcoming nuptials.

Below, find products that Bell says “wear really well through heat, humidity, and tears” while still allowing clients to “look like themselves,” from brands like E.l.f., Rare Beauty, Essence Makeup, Loréal Paris, and Maybelline. Their picks start at just $6. 

Expert-Vetted Wedding Guest Makeup Products

• Holy Grail Skin Prep: Embryolisse Lait-Crème Concentré Face Moisturizer and Makeup Primer, $32; Amazon
• Under-$15 Pick for Mature Skin: E.l.f. Halo Glow Liquid Filter, $14 (orig. $15); Amazon
• Looks “Beautiful” Under Makeup: Thayers Hydrating Milky Toner, $14 (orig. $15); Amazon
• Foundation That Looks Like Skin: L'Oréal Paris True Match Super-Blendable Foundation, $10 (orig. $14); Amazon
• Lasts Through the Tears: One/Size On 'Til Dawn Mattifying Waterproof Setting Spray, $34; Sephora
• Icing on the (Wedding) Cake: Dior Backstage Flow Maximizer Face Palette, $54; Sephora
• Great for Mid-Reception Touch-Ups: MCoBeauty Miracle Flawless Pressed Powder, $10; Amazon
• Lips That Last Through Toasts: Maybelline Lifter Liner Lip Liner Pencil, $8 (orig. $10); Amazon
• Stock Your Tool Kit: Morphe Best of Blends 8-Piece Makeup Brush Set, $42; Amazon
• Less Than $2 Apiece: AOA Studio Super Soft Paw Paw Wonder Blender, 6-Pack, $10; Amazon

Related: I’m Wearing a Bold Color to a Summer Wedding, so I’m Accessorizing with an Elegant Neutral Bag and Shoes from $32

Embryolisse Lait-Crème Concentré Face Moisturizer and Makeup Primer

$32 at Amazon

Hunninghake and Bell agree that the key to a long-lasting makeup look is quality skin prep. For the former, that prep starts with this creamy moisturizer by Embryolisse, which is packed with hydrating and soothing ingredients like shea butter and aloe vera. “It’s a moisturizer and primer in one that works like a charm,” Hunninghake shares. She’s not the only one who’s a fan — more than 23,300 Amazon shoppers have given it a five-star rating, too.

Thayers Hydrating Milky Toner

$15 $14 at Amazon

Bell calls this her “holy grail” skincare product and says it’s been a “staple” in her routine for “well over a year.” What’s so great about it? “It’s the perfect consistency — not too thick, not too thin — it’s hydrating, and it’s just beautiful” under makeup, she shares.

In a close second-place spot is the Byoma Phyto Mucin Glow Serum that can “double as primer” and acts like “glass skin in a bottle,” Bell explains, followed by the Thayers Exfoliating 2% AHA Pads, which are “gentle on skin” while “exfoliating dead skin cells and making sure the skin is nice and smooth” before makeup application.

More Expert-Approved Skin Prep Products

Byoma Phyto Mucin Glow Serum $17 at Ulta	Thayers Exfoliating 2% AHA Pads $10 at Amazon

Still a fan of traditional primers?

Bell suggests picking up a “grippy primer” to ensure that your makeup lasts all day. “I really love the Hard Candy Primers,” she says. “There’s one for everyone: There’s a sweat-proof primer, a mattifying primer, a glowy primer — any primer you can think of — and they’re only $7 at Walmart.”

L’Oréal Paris True Match Super-Blendable Foundation

$14 $10 at Amazon

Both artists said that a quality foundation can make or break a makeup look — especially on days that require hours of wear. Bell’s “favorite foundation of all time,” the L'Oréal Paris True Match line, works especially well on dry skin. “It isn’t matte by any means, but it definitely isn't super luminous either,” she explains. “It doesn't have any shimmer or light-reflecting properties, so it just looks like the skin.”

She adds, “If it's prepped with really hydrating products underneath, it looks absolutely stunning. Plus, the shade range is incredible.”

Related: Laura Geller Makeup Is Quietly Up to 76% Off at Amazon — Including Shopper-Loved Palettes and Primers

E.l.f. Halo Glow Liquid Filter

$15 $14 at Amazon

For those with mature skin — or anyone looking for a foundation with lighter coverage — Hunninghake recommends E.l.f.’s Halo Glow Liquid Filter. “This product is very sheer with a very radiant, glowy finish that really melts into the skin and avoids settling into any fine lines,” she says. 

One Amazon shopper said they love that it “gives a hydrated glow rather than an oily or glittery shine,” writing, “If it looks this good on 70-year-old skin, can you imagine how flawless it would look on younger skin?”

More Expert-Approved Foundations

Maybelline Super Stay Lumi-Matte Foundation $16 $12 at Amazon	Nars Natural Radiant Longwear Foundation $55 at Nordstrom
Rare Beauty True to Myself Natural Matte Longwear Foundation $38 at Sephora	Revolution Skin Silk Radiant Satin Serum Foundation $15 at Amazon

MCoBeauty Miracle Flawless Pressed Powder

$10 at Amazon

When it comes to preventing your makeup from creasing throughout the day, Bell prefers to keep it real with her clients: “Unless you're going to be completely still all day long and not move a single muscle in your face, your makeup is going to crease, and that is normal,” she says. Still, she continues, there are ways to minimize that creasing once you’ve left your glam chair.

“I do highly recommend touch-ups, and I love the MCoBeauty pressed powder,” Bell shares. “It’s really beautiful and such an easy product to touch up with on a powder puff. It’s great for under-eye creasing and for smile-line creasing.”

Dior Backstage Glow Maximizer Face Palette

$54 at Sephora

For makeup novices (and let’s be honest, professionals, too), whipping up an eye shadow look for a special event can be a daunting task. Luckily, Hunninghake has a hack for that: the Dior Backstage Glow Maximizer Face Palette. “These highlights are beautiful eye toppers and work great as a wash of shimmer/highlight on the eyes for a summer wedding,” she shares. 

Pro tip: When you’re done with your eyes, you can use each powder to set cream products, further ensuring they won’t budge.

How to look glowy, not sweaty, during summer weddings:

• Finish with powder highlighters: “They add such a beautiful, natural glow to the skin that doesn’t look chunky,” Bell explains. “I love using them because they give the glow back, but are still a powder, so we don’t have that sweaty look.”
• Get familiar with your face: “It’s important to know what areas of your face naturally sweat the most,” Hunninghake says. “These are the areas you want to set with more powder than you would areas that the sun naturally hits that give that ‘glow’ — like the top of the cheeks, above the eyebrow, and on the bridge of the nose.”

More Expert-Vetted Powder Products

Essence Soft Touch Bouncy Glow $6 at Ulta	Rare Beauty Positive Light Silky Touch Highlighter $28 at Sephora
L’Oréal Paris Infallible Blur-fection Loose Setting Powder  $16 $13 at Amazon	Nyx Professional Makeup Buttermelt Powder Blush $11 $10 at Amazon

Maybelline Lifter Liner Lip Liner Pencil

$10 $8 at Amazon

What wedding day makeup product often gets overlooked? According to Bell, it’s a long-wear lip liner. “It’s going to be key, especially when you're wearing makeup for a really long period of time and while eating and drinking,” she explains. Her favorites include the Maybelline Lifter Liner — “they’re really creamy but have a really high pigmentation,” she explains — the Catrice Gel Glide Long-Lasting Lip Liner, and the Nyx Professional Makeup Lip Lingerie Liner Stain. 

More Expert-Vetted Lip Products

Catrice Gel Glide Long-Lasting Lip Liner $6 at Amazon	Nyx Professional Makeup Lip Lingerie Liner Stain $12 at Amazon

One/Size On ‘Til Dawn Mattifying Waterproof Setting Spray

$34 at Sephora

The key to creating a makeup look that stays put until the last dance, both artists say, is a budge-proof setting spray. “This one is gold,” Hunninghake says of this One/Size setting spray. “I have seen tears run down full-glam faces locked in by this spray, without a streak in sight!”

Bell agrees that an aerosol spray is the way to go, citing the L'Oréal Paris Infallible 3-Second Setting Spray Mist as her pick. “It's a fantastic affordable option, and it has ingredients like copolymers that are really going to create that film over the top of the makeup,” Bell says. “So not only is it going to last for 36 hours, but it's also going to be waterproof, transfer-proof, sweat-resistant, and really just last through everything.”

More Expert-Vetted Setting Sprays

L’Oréal Paris Infallible 3-Second Setting Spray Mist $14 $11 at Amazon	One/Size Powder Melt Glass Setting Spray $34 at Onesizebeauty.com

Morphe Best of Blends 8-Piece Makeup Brush Set

$42 at Amazon

Another key part of creating quality wedding guest glam? “Really nice makeup brushes,” Bell says. “Morphe makes some of my absolute favorites, especially if you’re a beginner who wants to invest in some really good brushes.” With eight pieces in this set, each brush comes out to just over $5 apiece.

AOA Studio Super Soft Paw Paw Wonder Blender

$10 at Amazon

Bell’s final can’t-miss makeup product is actually one of the cheapest: a Paw Paw blender sponge. “They're so inexpensive, they're so soft, they're amazing at blending everything out, and I just think that that's a really great tool to have,” she gushes. “I think they make all the difference in the world.”

We independently evaluate all recommended products and services. If you click on links we provide, we may receive compensation.

Source link