How to Fix Cakey Makeup Like A Pro

If you’re a full-face foundation fan or love a powder product all over, then you know cakey makeup is real. What starts out as flawless and camera-ready, shifts to a crease-y mess after a few hours, settling into lines you didn’t know you had and ruining all of your hard blending work. Sound familiar? It’s happened to the best of us. To ensure that it never happens again (and that your meticulous work no longer goes to waste), we tapped Global Hourglass Makeup Artist Chanel Temple who’s an expert at achieving flawless skin. See her expert tips, ahead:

Cakey makeup often occurs when there is too much of one product on the skin, causing buildup. Another reason could be the product you’re using. According to Temple, “Makeup can also look cakey when your skin doesn’t react well to a specific product and the makeup starts to separate.” To avoid this, try formulas designed for your skin type.

A good first step to banishing cakey makeup altogether, says Temple, is moisturizer. She prefers light, gel-based moisturizers for makeup prep (we recommend It Cosmetics Confidence in a Gel Lotion Weightless Moisturizer) and allows it to settle into her skin before applying anything else. Layering helps avoid cakiness as well. Temple recommends using a little product at a time and layering to build up coverage. This method offers more control of the finish and helps you to see how it settles before applying more. Setting your makeup also helps to avoid cakiness, whether it’s with a powder or spray. If you’re concerned about looking too powdery, Temple recommends applying it with a wet sponge. If your fear is that you’ll look less glowy with a powder on top, try a setting spray like Urban Decay Setting Spray to lock your makeup in place all day.

If you’ve already applied a full face and need to fix cakey makeup on the go, Temple recommends using a dense brush like Hourglass Vanish Seamless Finish Foundation Brush to buff out the built up product or sheering it out with a damp sponge. While this might reduce the coverage level of your foundation, your skin will look much more even. Don’t, however, add more products on top — which will only increase the cakey effect.