Baking 101 - What is baking and how to bake properly?

Hi, dolls!
This is part three of my 101 series focusing on baking, setting sprays and contouring. Today, we are focusing on baking because I usually do it before I apply contour or any highlight products. If you're interested to learn more, let's get right into it!

Other parts of the 101 series:

The term baking actually comes from the drag community who have been baking for years and it actually means to let you powder sit on the face for usually around 10 minutes. By doing so, you allow the powder to set properly onto the foundation and concealer that has been applied before and it leaves the face with a creaseless and flawless finish. I have been very into baking myself because it truly can keep your makeup in place for many hours looking like it has just been applied. I hope that you find this post interesting with all the tips I will be sharing with you guys on how to bake properly. and also a small review on some of my favourite baking products out there. 



Kim Kardashian West is known not only as the contour queen but she has also been baking her face for years. I remember there is an old picture of Kim using a banana powder, Ben Nye, which later on would be sold out everywhere. Up until now, you can type Banana Powder on google and a picture of Kim will most likely come up. Mario (Kim's makeup artists) has however later revealed that he has actually used a different product on Kim and Ben Nye was just lucky that people were buying their products like crazy. 


Both, Kim Kardashian West and Huda Kattan are very known for their baking and contour tips and the pictures attached show you ways you can bake. Fun fact - when you type contouring or baking on google, most likely Kim Kardashian or Huda Kattan will pop up for you. There are many videos on youtube where Huda shares her tips on contouring the face as well as baking with the recent baking powders she came out with. 



Step by step on how to "bake" your face:

1. Make sure your foundation and concealer are on before you start baking. Also, ensure you have a loose setting powder you can use to bake with.

2. Use either a brush or a beauty blender to apply the powder onto your face. Some people use a wet beauty blender and some use a dry one. It's important to experiment and see what works well for you. 

3. Apply the powder under your eyes, especially in places where your concealer has been applied. The powder can then be applied onto the chin, forehead, nose, T-Zone, smile lines and cheekbones. Applying the setting powder on cheekbones can help in making contour very sharp, which I love to do. 

4. Leave on for about 10 minutes, and brush it off. Set the rest of your face with a normal powder and finish your makeup as you'd normally do.

Baking is fun and can definitely impact how long your make-up will last. Usually, after baking my face my make-up will look good even after an 8-hour shift. However, not everyone has the time to sit around and bake their face every single day and that is okay too. I have also been there and not baked for a while because I just didn't have the time. There are still many people that don't bake at all and their make-up looks fine without it. But I honestly think baking helps a lot, and even if you want to do it on a night out or special occasion it will be life changing!


I have been testing a couple of baking powders for this review since September and I will be sharing my honest opinions on all of these below. Can you guess which one is my favourite?


Laura Mercier Translucent Loose Setting Powder 
29g/1oz
£30/$39

This is definitely the Holy Grail product for baking. Everyone in the beauty industry has spoken about this product at least once, so I'm sure that most of you are aware of it. I am actually on my third Laura Mercier powder at the moment. It's a powder I will continue to use no matter what as I still haven't found one to replace it. If you didn't think the hype for this wasn't real - trust me, it's real!


Beauty Bakerie
14g/0.6oz
£19/$24

I've actually learnt about Beauty Bakerie when I found their setting powder on sale on Cult Beauty. Their cute packaging sold the product to me immediately and I love the entire concept of the brand. The powder itself is also very good. It's not expensive but it's also not the cheapest out there, however it's definitely one everyone should try out. It sets your face well and the effect lasts for a good 6 hours. I wish I knew about this brand before and I'm definitely looking forward to trying more of their products. 


Revolution Baking Powder in Lace
35g/1.22oz
£5/$7 

I love Revolution, so I also wanted to test out their setting powder seeing as it's the cheapest out of them all. I decided to reach for the shade "Lace" as it looked the closest to what I'd assume is translucent. I have to admit I didn't have the best experience with this product and it sucks because I do love Revolution. I see no difference after using this product and the finish is not as flawless as you'd want it to be. Yes, it's cheap but it's not worth the money at all as it doesn't do anything a baking powder should do.


Revolution Bake and Finish Powder
8g/0.28oz

I actually had no plans in trying another Revolution baking powder as the last one was a fail, however this came in a gift set I received for Xmas, so I might as well review it. It's an exclusive item, so not too sure if it's still available but I was happy this formula was no where as bad as the Lace powder. This finish powder made my face look nice for a good 4 hours and brighten my under eyes well. 


Huda Beauty Easy Bake
20g/0.7oz
£28/$34

 When the queen of baking comes out with a baking powder, you already know it's going to be great. Everyone has been comparing Easy Bake powder by Huda Beauty to Laura's, so I finally decided to grab it and see for myself. Firstly, I love the packaging and the sweet scent this powder has. My skin is very sensitive to scents but this is very pleasant unlike her other products. I chose the lightest shade - Sugar Cookie and I love the large range of colours available. Honestly, this might be the powder replacing my Laura's powder. Easy Bake makes my face look so smooth and set for a very long time. It leaves my face looking flawless for the entire day and it brightens my under eyes pretty well. I want to try out the next shade in this which is more translucent as at times Sugar Cookie can be too light, but overall I love this powder and I knew Huda wouldn't disappoint!


Revolution Bake & Blot
5.5g/0.19oz
£5/$7

This product differs from all the ones I have spoken about already but it's still aimed for baking and I think many of you will find it interesting. Recently, Revolution has introduced a new Bake & Blot powder in 10 shades, which is for baking on the go. It does the same job as any other loose powder and it's perfect for any of you that don't have time to wait 10 minutes for your powder to set in on your skin. There are many shades available, so I think everyone will be able to find one matching their skin tone well. I recommend this Bake and Blot powder with all my heart as I see myself constantly using it from now on!
 
There are many more baking powders, so let me know down below which baking powder is your favourite at the moment! I'll definitely be reviewing more in the future, so don't forget to follow my blog and stay tuned for more reviews coming soon!

Love, Olivia xo

30 comments

  1. I love this 101 kinda thing! I just started getting into makeup and I still don't know how to do a lot of things!
    I hope you do more of these!

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    1. Contour 101 and Highlight 101 is coming soon to follow this, so stay tuned! xo

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  2. Definitely have to bake under my eyes for sure! I haven't tries any of those brands you talked about but for sure the Laura Mercier is on my list!

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    1. You will see so much different after baking the under eyes! Laura Mercier is the one to go for, let me know when you try it out!

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  3. So informative!! I love how detailed ur post are and TBH: I don't know EXACTLY what baking was for or where it came from I just knew I needed to have a setting powder to keep makeup in place, before contouring or anything like that. Lol, SMH...oh well that's where Olivia & Beauty blog comes to the rescue...ingorm inforthat I NEED, WANT & LOOK FORWARD to reading more of! Btw: i voted for beauty bakery setting powder and WILL NEVER EVER buy the Huda powder bc she straight up stole BB entire concept....RUDE!!🤷🏻‍♀️ ANYWAYS, congrats on the amazing post and tysm for all the info and the prices in USD is much appreciated! (liacallahan4 #twitterfamily)

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    1. I'm glad you enjoyed this post! I totally understand & respect your view, Beauty Bakerie powder is also very good to try out! xo

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  4. Nice 101 blog. Love the review of the products

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  5. I had never heard the term Baking in regards to makeup before! Thanks for teaching me something new!! I must try a setting product and bake away! As I am menopausal this would really help with perspiring!

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    1. Glad you have learnt something new! :)

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  6. I've always wanted to try the Laura Mercier. Its good to baje if you have oily skin like myself

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  7. I always wanted to try Laura Mercier powder! Always been on my list but never had the chance to try it out, I bet it's amazing

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  8. ive been wanting the Laura one for the longest! Can't wait to try it out one day :)

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  9. finally something about baking thank you! am always afraid to bake my face but your post is full of advices im in need of. beauty bakerie loose powder speaks to me the most - its theme is so delicious,, its the one i would be looking forward to checking out the most

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  10. I have always wanted to try baking and i found your blog entry to be quite useful and informative

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  11. I love how descriptive you are on this blog post ❤️! I’m all about baking my face!! Dying to try Laura Mercier ����

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  12. I really want to try the Huda one and at the same time i dont want to support her😂

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  13. I've recently bought a sample size of the LM powder. God it's amazing! Never loved my under eyes more. I just wish it wasn't this expensive.

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  14. There is this korean brand "innisfree". They have a mineral powder, it's the best powder on the earth. So fine and smooth and also not a single harmful ingredient. It's my favorite!

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  15. Enjoy the article on this. Have never done this before. I wouldn’t know which one to try.

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    1. Send me a message in the contact section or on my twitter and I'll be more than happy to help you pick the right powder

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  16. I would love to try out laura Mercier powder or the Revolution blot and bake

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  17. I really enjoyed reading this Baking 101 blog. Thank you so much for being detailed in explaining and comparing all of the different options. I think the Laura Mercier would be the best but I voted that I’d be most likely to try the Beauty Bakerie mostly because I’ve been really wanting to try it plus it’s a little more affordable.

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  18. I’m so happy I found your blog to read! It’s so well written. I think I’d love to try out the Beauty Bakerie one since I own the Laura powder already. Great post, I followed to your blog also. Contouring is something I’m waiting to read about

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  19. Always been dying to try the Huda Beauty Easy Bake powder but your post made me wonder if Revolution Blot Powder would do any wonders for my face

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  20. am i the only one who doesn’t find baking fascinating? i’m very curious about the blot powder 🤔 can u recommend it ?

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    1. Yes, 100% can recommend it. It's so good and I've been loving it ever since I got it :)

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  21. I will go with Laura Mercier, nothing beats a good original goodie :)

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  22. Please do differences on bronzing vs contouring would really find that helpful

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    1. I would go for huda or lauras

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    2. oh wow this has helped me to bake... I was doing it all wrong..

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