Celebrity Makeup Artist Secrets You Can Actually Use

Looking for celebrity beauty secrets you can pull off at home? On All on the Table, host Katie Lee Biegel sat down with celebrity makeup artist and SPATCH founder Quinn Murphy for a master class in achievable glow-up wisdom. Below, you’ll find eight take-home strategies to help your skin, makeup, and sanity level up.

Murphy’s approach feels delightfully doable: He studies each face, lets his clients “in my chair lead the way,” and refuses to bury natural beauty under layers of product. The following tips stick to that same philosophy, keeping things practical, affordable, and easy to apply, even if you’re not walking any red carpets.

Quinn Murphy’s 8-Step Approach to Your Most Flawless Face Ever

1. Get your beauty sleep.

“Everything is about sleep. Sleep’s at the top of the pyramid,” says Murphy. When an A-list makeup artist calls eight hours a non-negotiable, believe it. Murray stresses that food, stress, and genetics matter, but a lack of rest shows first, especially after the age of 40. Prioritize shut-eye, and you’re halfway to red‑carpet skin before any product touches your face.

2. Stop over-moisturizing.

“I do think most women and men over‑moisturize,” he observes. The real goal, he says, is “maximum moisture without clogging your pores or causing more problems.” Murphy loves rich creams for travel days, but warns that overly emollient formulas can cause foundation to slide. Pare back and let your skin breathe.

3. Sunscreen + retinoid: the holy‑grail duo.

“The holy grails of skin care for anti-aging are sunblock, sunscreen, and a Retin-A type of thing,” Murphy says. Yes, those are his exact words—and yes, he buys prescription tretinoin for “$10 from the pharmacy,” proving great skin needn’t bankrupt you. Apply SPF as the final skincare step every morning and reserve your retinoid for nighttime use.

4. Color‑correct instead of caking on foundation.

When you need to color-correct, you’re putting on makeup that “cancels out” unwanted tones in your skin. “Anything red, you wanna put something green on,” Murphy says. “Anything brown, you wanna put something orangey.” Murphy developed SPATCH, a powder corrector, so clients with acne or melasma could “lift the brown out and brighten” without heavy coverage. Think of it as Photoshop’s healing brush for real life.

After concealer and a sheer foundation, he “goes in with SPATCH, like a retoucher” to neutralize the final imperfections.

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5. Layer, set, repeat.

“The key is to layer transparent sheer layers of coverage instead of just boom, putting something on,” he says. Build slowly: pinpoint concealer, feather‑light base, a dusting of corrector, and translucent powder in the T‑zone. Each veil melts into the last, maintaining a minimal texture and preserving its features intact.

6. Contour without the Instagram mask.

Grab a fluffy brush and something subtle (Murphy loves Kevyn Aucoin Medium). Dust under cheekbones, along the jaw, and pause. Add cream sticks only if you genuinely need extra depth.

7. Simplify your routine (and your bill).

If a nine-step ritual leaves you greasy, irritated, and broke, heed Murphy’s tough love. Drop duplicative serums and invest in essentials—cleanser, balanced moisturizer, retinoid, and sunscreen. Save splurges for professional treatments that make a difference.

8. Summer tweaks that matter.

Warm weather calls for lighter lotion, a primer that “equalizes” any skincare underneath, and sunblock on face and neck before makeup. Seal things with setting spray so sweat doesn’t send your hard work sliding south.

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