As we mature, the contents of our makeup bag mature with us. We often swap the boldly colored eyeshadow of our teens with more neutral tones, but we should also be keeping tabs on formula shifts for our skin. Powder makeup gets a bad wrap when it comes to mature skin because it tends to fall in fine lines and accentuate them. However, there’s a technique to create powdered products that don’t have this issue and actually work exceedingly well with mature skin. If you haven’t tried baked makeup yet, we’re about to blow your mind.
Featured experts
- Laura Geller is a former makeup artist and founder of Laura Geller Beauty, which specializes in mature skin
- Ginger King is a cosmetic chemist
- Colleen Timpone is the vice president of product development at Saie
- Kelly Dobos is a cosmetic chemist
What is baked makeup?
Baked makeup may look like any old powder at first glance, but it actually starts its life as a cream. “It is then baked on terracotta tiles, which gives it that unique, velvety texture and keeps its hydration unlike pressed powders, the same way a terracotta pot helps a houseplant retain moisture,” says founder of Laura Geller Beauty, Laura Geller. This process creates a unique texture that’s not cakey or dusty, explains cosmetic chemist, Ginger King. “The result is a formula that has the hydration of a cream but blends with the ease of use of a powder and offers a lightweight, breathable, beautiful look on skin,” says Geller.
“This process gives the powder a smooth, skin-like finish that doesn’t cake or feel heavy,” says vice president of Colleen Timpone, product development at Saie. “Regular pressed powders, on the other hand, are made by compressing loose powder with a binder into a metal pan. They tend to be denser, sometimes chalky, and don’t blend as easily. Baked formulas really shine when you want something that looks natural and feels weightless.”
The benefits of baked makeup
“Because it starts as a cream, baked makeup is incredibly forgiving. It doesn’t settle into wrinkles or cling to dry patches the way traditional powders or liquids can. It sits on top of skin and gives a soft, radiant finish,” says Geller. Another benefit is how buildable baked powders are, so you can layer on additional coverage without worry about caking or creasing, she adds.
King notes that baked formulas offer better blendability and are often able to feature more skin-loving ingredients than traditional powders. “Additionally, baked powders allow for the incorporation of greater quantities of fragile pearlescent pigments as well as larger pearlescent pigment particles. These multidimensional pigments reflect light and give the skin a radiant glow or glittering appearance depending on particle size,” says cosmetic chemist, Kelly Dobos. “The process for making baked powders also allows us to create unique marbling patterns by swirling together different slurries of pigments.” Another small win is that they don’t break as easily as standard powders, notes King.
Why are baked powders considered better for mature skin?
“As we get older, our skin craves hydration. Baked formulas are perfect because they offer that moisture-rich feel without being heavy,” says Geller. “They glide over the skin, helping to smooth and soften the look of fine lines and wrinkles, instead of calling attention to them.”
That additional moisture is thanks to the ability to include higher concentrations of skin-conditioning ingredients like jojoba seed oil and caprylic/capric triglyceride, says Dobos. “These types of ingredients can help create a smoother finish on drier, more mature skin,” she adds. Timpone notes that baked formulas also help provide a “seamless, airbrushed look.”
Additionally, since baked powders lack the dusty element many other powders have, it won’t fall into fine lines and accentuate them, says King. “Baked powders often also need lower concentrations of fillers like talc and starch, which can also settle into fine lines and emphasize texture,” adds Dobos.
Baked powders to try
