Emma Chamberlain, Barry Keoghan, and Naomi Can Thank This Product for Their Perfectly Dewy Skin

I spend an embarrassing amount of time scrolling slack-jawed through red carpet photos and contemplating how celebrities achieve their perfectly luminous, dewy skin. Thankfully, I can categorize my insatiable curiosity as job research since I’ve been lucky enough to consult the very derms, aestheticians, and makeup artists responsible for those famous complexions. After chatting with many of these professionals about the art of event beauty prep, I’ve landed on the following thesis: Makeup can do much of the heavy lifting, but never underestimate the power of proper skincare. And when it comes to crafting an immaculate canvas, it turns out that an underrated—and oft-overlooked—product can make all the difference.

Lean in: The red carpet beauty hero is not an ethereal highlighter or jaw-snatching sculpting wand but a simple face mist—well, if you can consider a pricey potion infused with high-performing, skin-plumping actives “simple.” Below, discover how these little luxuries have quietly taken over the red carpet beauty scene.

The Case for a Luxury Face Mist

Look, I totally get it. A face mist that costs upward of $95 may sound a bit extra. Why drop a pretty penny for a product that provides no more than three seconds of bliss? However, I’d argue that a mist provides more than a spa-grade experience, especially if you’re prepping for an important event. Supplying your skin with a preliminary layer of hydration before any other actives can help those treatments do their jobs (plumping, lifting, firming) more efficiently. It’s no wonder celebrities flock to facialists like Iván Pol, Gavin McLeod-Valentine (aka Lord Gavin), and Adeela Crown, who consider misting an essential step for their pre–red carpet treatments.

“This luxurious product is a must-have during my facials, serving as the initial step to awaken the skin’s appetite,” says Pol of his Amuse Bouche mist. “It sets and primes the natural palette, balancing pH levels with harmonious, natural dewiness. The peony flower bolsters your own hyaluronic acid and boosts hydration while adding multi-molecular weight for a dew-like finish, perfect for achieving a refreshed look before any red carpet event.” FYI, he’s the skin whisperer responsible for prepping Emma Chamberlain, Lily James, Barry Keoghan, Tessa Thompson, and Sabrina Carpenter for the Met Gala (and they did appear perfectly dewy, didn’t they?).

McLeod-Valentine (who treated Emily Blunt, Lily Gladstone, and the iconic Naomi Campbell for the Met Gala) and Crown similarly rely on mists—Augustinus Bader’s The Face Mist and La Prairie’s The Mist, respectively—to prep the skin for subsequent serums and treatments. “Your skin is like a sponge. Dampening the surface of your face and neck can help the product absorb more effectively because when your skin is slightly wet, it’s more permeable,” Crown explains. The mists allow for deeper penetration of those hydrating, plumping serums, which then create a healthy canvas for immaculate makeup application down the line. It’s a fine balance, and one could argue it all starts with a humble spray.

Mists are also instant skin-refreshers, so aestheticians will typically use them as a finishing step, too. “They are also something we use to resuscitate makeup and to give us a bit more verve and glow,” says McLeod-Valentine. In fact, many celebrity facialists recommend their clients spritz just before stepping in front of the swarm of shuttering cameras. (A secret insider tip!) “Forget hair spray—skin mist is now usually the final step before a star takes to the red carpet,” Crown declares. “When the light hits the hydrated skin, it looks lit from within.”

What may have begun as a celebrity secret weapon is quickly becoming a popular product expansion for high-end beauty brands. Nordstrom beauty director Autumne West has certainly noticed an uptick in luxury facial mists on the market. (For reference, La Prairie’s mist launched on July 1, while Amuse Bouche and Augustinus Bader’s The Face Mist dropped in April.) “As we see an emphasis on glowing, healthy skin, both skincare and makeup enthusiasts are turning to mists for their versatility and multiuse purpose,” she tells me. And luxury brands are taking note.

Yes, they’re pricey compared to the average facial spray, but they’re often not as spendy as, say, a serum or face cream from the brand, despite oftentimes having overlapping ingredient profiles. “A lot of luxury mists include similar key ingredients to core skincare products, which can spark curiosity for customers to discover a new step to their otherwise simple routine,” notes West. With this in mind, I suspect face mists will become the new gateway product for luxury brands, a product with a more digestible price point for new consumers to enter a brand’s ecosystem.

Take Augustinus Bader’s The Face Mist, for example: It features the brand’s proprietary TFC8 complex to regenerate and protect the skin, and it’s tagged at $95. (The brand’s cult-favorite Rich Cream, on the other hand, costs $300.) “It is an amazing way to try the brand and its technology and results in an accessible way,” says McLeod-Valentine. “It can easily be integrated into your existing routine and will maximize your current roster of products.”

Sure, you could always buy a less pricey mist—there’s no shortage of options to choose from, and I adore more than a few! But there’s something so special about a luxury version of an everyday refresher, similar to how you might have a collection of drugstore lip balms yet invest in a gorgeous Prada version. There is space for both hydrators.

“True luxury, in my opinion, is more than just opulence. It’s a flawless balance of performance and refinement,” adds Crown, and I couldn’t agree more. Upgrading your everyday face mist likely won’t cause any drastic changes to your complexion, but I’d be lying if I said a gentle cloud of peony-scented spray à la Amouse Bouche doesn’t make me feel like a million bucks. Little luxuries indeed.

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