5 Favorite Products Of A Celebrity Makeup Artist

5 Favorite Products Of A Celebrity Makeup Artist
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For Teen Vogue, by Tina Ferraro.

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Photo: Photo: Courtesy of Instagram/@patrickta

Scroll through any InstaGirl's feed, and you're bound to stumble across a selfie or two with Patrick Ta. As Hollywood's freshly minted, in-demand makeup artist, he has contoured, strobed, and beautified famous faces from Gigi Hadid and Kylie Jenner to Hailey Baldwin and Shay Mitchell (a star he now counts as one of his closest friends IRL). If you're one of Ta's 400,000 followers, you know full-on glamour is his 'thing.' What you wouldn't gather from his star-studded gallery is that he got his start just a few years ago by trolling the 'Gram for makeup tricks between classes as a college student at Arizona State University.

Patrick, who had no formal makeup training, says Instagram was the game changer that enabled him to turn his greatest passion into a full-fledged career. "I analyzed how other makeup artists experimented with color, learned their tactics, and then made them my own," he recalls. "When Mario Dedivanovic started following me, I freaked out. He basically created the Kardashian look!" (Patrick shares this fond memory from the slopes of Aspen where he is currently giving touch-ups to the famous family.)

It took some time for Patrick to perfect his technique, though. "Makeup is all trial and error," he notes. "The key is to never stop learning." We spoke to the pro to bring you a few of the best tricks in his makeup bag -- click through to get skin as glow-y as Gigi's and lashes that rival Shay's impossibly long ones.

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Photo: Courtesy of giorgioarmanibeauty-usa.com

1. All About That Base

"Everyone is all about the no-makeup makeup look -- but lightweight foundations don't last as long, especially on the carpet. My favorite foundation is the Giorgio Armani Designer Lift Foundation. It's on the heavier side but it's really wearable if you break it down a little bit with oil. All you need is to add a few drops!"

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Photo: Courtesy of Sephora

2. "I love mixing Cover FX Custom Infusion C + Lemongrass Radiance Drops with it -- it's a sheer fluid so foundation doesn't feel as heavy when it's applied to the skin."

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Photo: Courtesy of maccosmetics.com

3. Going for the Glow

"If I want to add a subtle glow but still make it appear very natural, I'll mix in MAC Strobe Cream. Like oil, it sheers down foundation to create a natural finish but gives a hint of illumination. I keep it in my kit at all times because it's so easy to work with."

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Photo: Courtesy of Nordstrom

4. No Filter

"La Mer's The Powder is an unbelievable product. It's an airy, translucent powder that I use to set the face. Makeup lasts for hours after just one pat, no joke -- and a bonus is that it doesn't leave skin looking unnaturally matte or feeling dry like powders usually do. Skin actually looks super dewy. For me, it's all about maintaining really fresh skin with makeup on. Plus, this powder is packed with tiny mineral particles so when you take photos for Instagram, the light reflects off them."

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Photo: Courtesy of patmcgrath.com

5. Day Glow

"I experiment with tons of different highlighters, but my newest obsession is Pat McGrath Labs Skin Fetish 003! It is seriously amazing. The cream double-edged illuminator creates such an expensive-looking finish. And depending on the look I'm going for, I'll use the powder to top off the cream or dust it along the cheekbones alone."

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