Have you ever looked at a photo of a celebrity from a red carpet and thought, I wish I could recreate that? Celebrities have fantastic makeup artists to give them these perfected looks for swanky events.

But, as everyday folk who want to achieve these looks for a fraction of the cost, is it possible? It will just take some time, practice, and even studying, but yes.

When you see your favorite celebrity rocking a killer smokey eye or a contour to die for, don’t just scroll past it thinking you’ll never be able to do that. Instead, find every photo you can of them from that event.

Check out different angles and lighting. See photos from multiple sources. This will give you a fuller picture. You will be able to see colors, shadows, and finishes when you have more examples.

This is where the studying comes in. You’ll need to get a close look at these photos or maybe even find some video footage so you can see the look moving.

This will help you decipher the tones of eye shadow, blush, and bronzer. Different angles can also help you figure out if the celebrity you admire is wearing false lashes or just mascara. You can often see the shape of the lashes as well. Are they cat-eye? Maybe they are doe-eyed.

From there, do some research. Look up the makeup artist who did their makeup for the event. It is pretty standard for celebrities to tag their makeup artist in their photos to help them gain exposure and give them credit. From there, you may be able to find out the exact products worn by the celebrity.

If that isn’t an option, look up interviews with that celebrity to see their favorite makeup products or brands. Makeup artists often use products they know the celebrity likes or things that work well on them.

This way, you aren’t going in blind. You will have some sort of idea of where to start. You can look for dupes of more expensive products or copy them exactly. You can even see what you already have in your collection that is close enough.

You don’t usually need the exact products to recreate a celebrity look, just something similar. Once products blend into your skin, they tend to be a bit more forgiving. So, don’t get too hard on yourself about the exact products. Just use those as a guideline.

Finally, practice. If you want to recreate this celebrity look for an event, practice. Use new colors and blending methods and see what works. Use the celebrity photo as a guideline for the look. Remember, you are trying to get their look, not look like them.

Even try the look out for a day at work or home so you can see how it lasts and if you really like how it looks on you before trying something new for a big day.