In my job as a beauty editor, I spoken with a lot of makeup artists throughout my career. Being backstage at fashion week, nosying through kit bags and chatting with celebrity makeup artists, means you pick up a lot of intel on which makeup products really cut the mustard—the ones that are so good that they to make their way onto the faces of artists’ celebrity clientele.
If there is one makeup brand that I see popping out of every makeup artist’s kit time and time again, it’s Chanel Beauty. It’s unsurprising, given that Chanel has so many iconic makeup products that work equally as well for day-to-day and red carpet looks. The brand’s Healthy Glow Bronzing Cream is the best cream bronzer that I’ve tried, and Chanel’s foundations are second to none for a flawless base that is completely undetectable on the skin.
To find out what the best Chanel Beauty products are, I asked UK-based celebrity makeup artists to unzip their kit bags, trawled the Instagram pages of international Chanel MUAs and quizzed the Who What Wear UK team about their “I can’t live without this” makeup products.
Scroll ahead for the definitive list of the best Chanel beauty products to try.
Celebrity clients: Sofia Richie Grainge, Margot Robbie, Elizabeth Olsen, Simone Ashley.
Sofia Richie Grainge’s wedding makeup? That was Pati Dubroff. All of Margot Robbie’s epic Barbie press-tour glam? That’ll be Dubroff, too. The celebrity makeup artist calls upon a lot of Chanel makeup in her kit. Below are just some of the makeup products that she entrusts to help celebrities get their glow. Dubroff used one specific Chanel makeup product on both Richie Grainge and Robbie—Rouge Coco Baume in Pink Delight. It’s become so popular that it’s basically out of stock everywhere, but the tinted balm is also available in a few other shades that impart a sheer wash of colour and gloss to the lips.
When Dubroff used this tinted balm on Sofia Richie Grainge for her wedding makeup, everyone went crazy for it. It’s the perfect pairing of a balm and a wash of colour.
This is another staple that crops up in Dubroff’s kit time and time again. It’s a clear highlighting stick that imparts a glossy sheen to wherever you wish to apply it. It comes in a totally glitter-free transparent shade, but also subtle shimmer, bronze and blush tones. It never stays in stock for long, so if you see one, add it to your basket pronto.
Celebrity clients: Zoë Kravitz, Kaia Gerber, Hailey Bieber, Laura Harrier, HoYeon Jung, Taylor Russell.
I often find myself going down a rabbit hole when I look at Nina Park’s makeup. Working with some of the biggest celebrity A-listers including Hailey Bieber, Zoë Kravitz and Laura Harrier, Park is known for creating glowing skin and minimalist yet elegant makeup looks for her clients. For Hailey Bieber’s most recent Met Gala glam, Park used Le Volume De Chanel Mascara to impart glamourous volume to Bieber’s lashes.
Adds just the right amount of volume and drama to lashes without clumping.
This chic little pot is responsible for adding a realistic flush of colour to the lips and cheeks, making it a great dual-purpose product to have in your makeup bag.
From painting Rihanna for her Vogue Brazil cover to Alexa Chung, Jenna Coleman and Kiera Knightley calling her their makeup artist, I was intrigued to hear what Zoe Taylor’s go-to Chanel makeup product is. “Chanel Les Beige Healthy Glow Bronzing Cream is the closest thing you will ever get to a genuine tan. It glides onto the skin, blending perfectly into a moisturised face,” she says. “And don’t forget to apply on your neck for extra jaw definition.”
This universally-loved bronzer comes in a light, medium and deep shade and blends effortlessly for a sun-kissed complexion.
Celebrity clients: Kate Moss, Naomi Campbell, Nathalie Emmanuel, Gillian Anderson.
I’ve been lucky enough to sit in Marco Antonio’s chair. He’s not only a major celebrity MUA, but is also the fashion and beauty director for Hunger Magazine, creating avant-garde beauty moments for the title, as well as beautiful editorial makeup looks for just about every major fashion magazine you can imagine. He introduced me to Les Beiges Foundation, a product he often reaches for in his kit. “I am always in search for the perfect foundation, and Chanel Les Beiges is the one for me with its unique formulation,” he says. “Its silky texture and vast spectrum of shades can totally transform your skin whilst being invisible to the eye and imperceptible to touch.”
Lends skin a natural-looking radiance and sheer coverage.
When I met with Nummela at a Chanel event, she created an incredible lit-from-within makeup look on me, and I’ve since become captivated with her work on celebrities such as Priyanka Chopra and Gemma Chan. “A must-have in my makeup bag is Chanel Le Crayon Khôl in Ambre—the deep burnished red khôl pencil is perfect for creating a lived-in smokey-eye look,” says Nummela. “This shade beautifully complements any eye colour.”
Defines eyes with a soft, blendable formula for a smouldering result.
From Vogue covers to working with everyone from Christy Turlington, Lady Gaga, Rachel Weisz, Thandiwe Newton and Vanessa Kirby, it’s safe to say that Montano knows the best products in the game. “A good, natural nude lip is an essential in both my professional and personal makeup wardrobe, and Chanel Rouge Allure Velvet Matte Lipstick in Libre suits most fair-to-medium skin types,” she says. “It creates a cool ’60s vibe for darker skin tones too. I love it!”
Chanel’s Rouge Allure Velvet lipsticks coat lips in a lightweight, soft-matte finish.
“I swear by the Baume Essentiel highlighting sticks, and my favourite is the shade ‘Sculpting’ which has a touch of transparent shimmer to make cheekbones gleam.”
“When my limbs are looking lacklustre, I rely on this shimmering body oil to add a subtle sheen. It works amazingly on arms and legs, and it doubles up as a hair oil, too.”
“This is the most beautiful highlighter for spring and summer. I love using it on my cheekbones to add a subtle golden glow, but it also doubles up as an eye shadow, which is an added bonus. It has a soft, silky formula that’s easy to blend, and the palette comes with a large compact mirror, so I always throw it in my bag for any makeup touch-ups throughout the day.”
“I could get rid of everything in my make-up bag and only need the Baume Essentiel stick. This creamy, glossy highlighter stick is the cheat’s way to brighter skin in just one swipe. Dab along your cheekbones and down the centre of your nose for the easiest way to channel dewy, bronzed, holiday skin with just a hint of contour.”
“As I get older, I find myself gravitating towards lightweight formulas across my entire makeup roster, and Chanel is fast-becoming my go-to for natural-looking products that give good glow. My complexion has never looked better since I switched out my regular foundation for this water-infused base, on top of which the blush blends perfectly.”
“As for my lips, one slick of Chanel’s Rouge Coco Baume is all I need for an instant hydration hit, whilst the Natural Charm shade gives my lips a gorgeous flush. This is low-key makeup at its finest.”
“The Chanel bronzing cream may be a high price point, but it’s totally worth it, in my opinion. The cream-gel formula uses mineral waxes combined with light-reflecting pigments that provide a healthy, sun-kissed glow. Chanel recommends adding it where the sun would hit: across cheeks, nose, forehead, chin and décolleté. However I also use it in winter as a base on my face and neck for some added warmth. It’s a 10/10 from me.”
