According to the pros, the blurred makeup trend is in for 2026—centered around diffused color across the lips and cheek, with a soft matte base.
If dewy skin was for 2024, and butter skin for 2025, then blurred makeup is primed to be the defining finish of 2026; and all of the Hollywood It girls are proof. Mia Goth and Charli XCX, for example, have been rocking the look thanks to celebrity makeup artist Nina Park who imparted a soft-focus finish via blurred lips, diffused blush, filter-like concealers.
Per Merit’s CMO Aila Morin, it was only a matter of time that the pendulum swung back in favor of mattes. “Trends are always cyclical—we’ve seen high-shine lip oil and balm products dominate for the last few years, so shifting to a softer, blurred look feels fresh,” she says. While the clean-girl aesthetic required a precise hand, blurred finishes offer easier, effortless application. “It looks like you’ve lived your life, and your makeup moved with you, which is how modern beauty should feel.” Pro makeup artist and Chanel beauty ambassador Kate Lee shares this sentiment. “Full glam requires a lot of precision and time, whereas the soft-focus approach can be achieved in a relatively short period of time,” she explains, drawing similarities to ’90s-era matte makeup. And while the mattes of that time felt heavy or cakey, formulas today are a lot more advanced. “Today’s matte is no longer about flat, heavy coverage or masking texture, and is much more breathable and flexible thanks to new ingredients and formulations,” Morin says. “The new generation of matte is all about diffusion and comfort, which is exactly what consumers have been asking for.” This is the thinking behind Merit’s latest launch, Signature Lip Blush: a blurry, balmy remix of the brand’s existing lipstick collection. “Historically, it’s tough to achieve a matte formula that’s comfortable, lightweight, and non-drying,” Morin continues. The focus then became on creating a sheer-matte color that wears evenly rather than settling into fine lines, thanks to gel-wrapped pigments. “The formula applies more like a balm, but sets into a soft, velvety finish that won’t feel tight or dry.” The blurred surge, of course, traces back to K-beauty, where this finish has been popular for years. “No matter the product, the finish is always soft and blurred—never a harsh contour or an overdrawn brow in sight,” former editor in chief of Allure and K-Beauty World’s CMO, Michelle Lee previously said. We predict the blurred finishes to be one of the top makeup trends of the year, so how should we go about achieving the look at home? Ahead, experts break down the lip, cheek, and complexion products for diffused, soft-focus color. Read all to learn more. There are plenty of approaches you can take to achieve a blurred lip. Lee recommends building depth with a natural-toned contour on the upper and lower lip line, right at the center. “Making a kissing shape is a great way to see where the natural crest of the lip lies,” she says, noting that instead of drawing any hard lines, she buffs product into the lips. “Apply the lipstick to the back of your hand and use a soft, domed brush and buff it into the lips, working from the center outwards and taking care to stay within the boundary of the shadow you have created .” Then, Kate Lee advises using a cream concealer to clean up the corners of your mouth. For balmy, semi-sheer lipsticks, Merit and Violette_FR’s options are unbeatable. Meanwhile, Victoria Beckham Beauty’s contour stylus adds unmatched precision. For those keen on lip liner, Refy’s chubby lip blur yields a similar effect. When Lee is crafting blurred blush looks, she keeps two products at the ready: Chanel’s Jous Contraste Intense and a soft, fluffy brush for thorough blending. For K-beauty bestsellers, Fwee’s Blurry Pudding Pot and Rom&nd’s Juicy Roll Cheek are popular for the Seoul cool set. Meanwhile, NYX and Glossier offer blurring cream-to-powder formulas, too. While technically a pressed powder, Ilia’s latest soft-focus blush launch acts as a blurring setting powder, delivering a subtle matte wash of color. “Sometimes it’s handy to work with a shading color that works for your skin tone,” she adds, noting it can be the same shade used to contour your lips, across the cheekbones, and even the temple. “This helps to create the illusion of depth, and then you can go in with whichever color you love.” Again, she advises sticking to cream formulas for ease of blending. Blurring technology goes beyond just coverage coverage, creating a soft-focus veil that optically diffuses imperfections for a smoother, more refined finish akin to the soft-matte look we’re accustomed to. Prada Beauty and Charlotte Tilbury’s latest concealer launches harness micro-powder technology to deliver this sought-after effect. Meanwhile, Danessa Myrick’s Yummy Skin Blurring Balm Powder has become a cult-favorite for achieving a soft-matte, airbrushed base under any complexion heroes. Kate Lee is an LA–based Chanel celebrity makeup artist. Her roster includes Kate Winslet, Keira Knightley, Charlize Theron, Kristen Stewart, and Jessica Chastain. Aila Morin is the founding Chief Marketing Officer at Merit. Michelle Lee is a beauty industry adviser and former editor in chief of Allure.
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