Natural beauty is having a moment. Last year, Hailey Bieber was crowned the queen of the 'clean girl' aesthetic thanks to her glassy skin and barely-there makeup. Pamela Anderson is embracing bare-faced beauty on red carpet events, and at the 2024 Oscars, radiant skin and minimalist makeup reigned supreme - with not a red lip in sight.
Margot Robbie's refined and polished beauty look at the 96th Academy Awards was courtesy of CHANEL makeup artist, Pati Dubroff. Pati is all about prepping the skin to create a luminous, hydrated glow before applying the base.
Rather than heavy layering, she uses minimal products to create gentle contours and a natural finish. If you opened up Margot's makeup bag at the Oscars you'd find nothing but CHANEL Beauty, which would set you back around £584 if you wanted to purchase everything Pati used on her face.
As a beauty fan on a budget, I'm always on the lookout for affordable products to recreate my favourite red carpet beauty looks. But do they stand up when it comes to Hollywood-worthy glamour?
Here, see everything I used to recreate the Barbie star's leading lady makeup look.
Getting a hydrated, glowy base
Pati is all about prepping the face before she begins the makeup. Margot wore CHANEL Beauty's Sublimage La Creme (£350) but I chose to set my face with Maybelline's Fit Me Hydrating Primer (£9.99). It's a lightweight formula that visibly minimises the appearance of pores and has a seriously dewy finish that gives your skin that ultra-glowy look.
Margot's red carpet-ready skin was achieved with Les Beiges foundation (£47). For an affordable alternative, I used Collection Cosmetics' Gorgeous Glow Filter Finish foundation (£7.99) because it's infused with Vitamin E and Glycerin, which has an illuminating effect on the skin.
I'd be tempted to leave it at that on a 'good skin day', but I had particularly dark circles and a few blemishes to conceal. My go to is always Collection's Lasting Perfection Concealer. At £4.99, I think it has the components of a really premium concealer, with a good coverage and 16-hour wear. Perfect for a long night at the Oscars…
Contouring the eyes
Pati isn't the first MUA to favour a cream contour stick over powder eyeshadow. I replicated her "carving" of the eye using Collection's Filter Finish Liquid Wand Contour in the shade Tan (£5.99). This product goes on extremely heavy, so for precise application I'd always recommend applying it with a brush, rather than directly onto your skin. I found it blended best with my fingers for that effortless, smudged effect.
Add a healthy dose of blush
Margot's rosy cheeks were achieved with CHANEL's Joues Contraste Powder Blush in the shade 'Jersey' (£37). I used a combination of Collection's Filter Finish Liquid Blush (£5.99) and the powder blush in the shade 'Pleasure' (£4.99) for an instant radiant glow.
Nude on the lips
I was surprised to see a lack of classic red lips at the 96th Academy Awards, with most A-listers opting for softer shades and hydrating glosses. To mimic Margot's peachy nude, I used a Kiko Coloured Balm (£6.49) for added hydration, and defined the lips with Collection's Lip Definer in 'Pink Nude' (£2.99).
It wasn't an exact match, but a little buffing with my fingers blended out the shades and left a natural, sophisticated nude on the lips.
What's my verdict on affordable beauty products?
I don't claim to be a makeup artist, but as a self-confessed beauty addict, I've tried a fair few products over the years. I've learnt that as long as you invest in your skin prep, and finish with a long-lasting setting spray, you can easily substitute affordable products for high-end makeup.