How to Master Kendall Jenner's No-Makeup Makeup, According to Her Makeup Artist

Without a doubt, 2020 has been the year of the most minimal of makeup looks. Of course, you're plenty welcome to wear whatever makeup aesthetic floats your boat any time, but for us, our goal is to achieve the ultimate no-makeup makeup look à la It girls like Kendall Jenner, Emily Ratajkowski, Chrissy Teigen, Hailey Bieber, the Hadid sisters.

That said, even though achieving a minimal makeup look sounds simple enough (and looks barely detectable on IG), any artist behind said looks will tell you they require heftier strategy, work, and products than you might think. Thus, we tapped one of the best makeup celebrity makeup artists in the business, Mary Phillips, to give us the 411 on the signature no-makeup makeup look she personally gifts all the gorgeous peeps listed above with. And yes, there are some tips and misconceptions about no-makeup makeup she wants you to know. For starters, skincare is important, but it's not everything.

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(Image credit: Getty Images)

"I think a big misconception about achieving a minimal makeup look is that people just do their skin and nothing else," she tells us right off the bat. "Makeup is required, and it's important to include eyes, lips, and cheeks so the look is still balanced."

According to Phillips, less is still definitely more when it comes to the products you're piling (or not piling) on, but strategically adding pops of color all over the face is key in order to give your face dimension and to achieve that covetable "sculpted" makeup MO models like Jenner and Bieber have made their trademark. (Oh, and using multipurpose products is an easy way to achieve a monochromatic, minimal look with the least amount of formulas.)

"Take time to experiment with products and see what makes you feel the most confident," Phillips adds. "Using quality products that you are comfortable with will help you achieve a no-makeup makeup look with ease." Want more? Here, Phillips shares her six best tips for nailing a perfect no-makeup makeup look along with her simple, 10-step process below. Keep scrolling!

Her Top 6 Tips for No-Makeup Makeup

1. Hydration, Hydration, Hydration!

2. Choose a Buildable Foundation Formula

3. Prioritize Cream-Based Makeup Products

4. Go for Earthy, Natural Colors

5. Use Powder sparingly 

6. Mist for No-Makeup Makeup Maintenance

Her Exact Step-by-Step Process

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Step 10

Beauty Director

Erin has been writing a mix of beauty and wellness content for Who What Wear for over four years. Prior to that, she spent two and half years writing for Byrdie. She now calls Santa Monica home but grew up in Minnetonka, Minnesota, and studied writing, rhetoric, and communication at University of Wisconsin, La Crosse. She studied abroad in Galway, Ireland, and spent a summer in L.A. interning with the Byrdie and Who What Wear family. After graduating from UW, she spent one year in San Francisco, where she worked as a writer for Pottery Barn Kids and PBteen before moving down to L.A. to begin her career as a beauty editor. She considers her day-to-day beauty aesthetic very low-maintenance and relies on staples like clear brow serum (from Kimiko!), Lawless's Lip Plumping Mask in Cherry Vanilla, and an eyelash curler. For special occasions or days when she's taking more meetings or has an event, she'll wear anything and everything from Charlotte Tilbury (the foundations are game-changing), some shimmer on her lids (Stila and Róen do it best), and a few coats of the best mascara-type product on earth, Surratt's Noir Lash Tint.