When Crystal Greene opened her eponymous New York studio in 2021, the holistic aesthetician offered only one treatment: La Sculpture, a manual facial massage, which left clients as soothed as they were sculpted. That single — and singular — treatment quickly made its mark: today, everyone from supermodel Christy Turlington to the city’s top makeup artists and museum curators seek out Greene’s magic hands and minimalist mindset.
When it comes to prepping her own canvas, Greene keeps it similarly streamlined and restorative. After cleansing, she applies Skin Activator Serum—a potent blend of 12 active ingredients—with the same rhythmic motions that characterize her signature treatments. “You feel a tremendous difference the moment you put it on,” she says of the hyaluronic acid-, niacinamide-, and peptide-packed formula. Plus, she adds, “Hydrated skin is the foundation for having your makeup look seamless.”
From there, she layers on Vital Skin Foundation Stick where she needs it: “It’s really light on the skin but gives enough coverage, and it doesn’t feel like [makeup],” she says of the calming, antioxidant-rich formula, which melts in on contact. And for a healthy hint of sculpting color, Greene uses Face Trace Contour “ like a blush”—blending the rich mocha shade onto the cheeks, forehead and chin for a warm sun-kissed glow.
A sweep of clean black lengthening mascara on the tips of her lashes gives a naturally lifted and winged look.. “I like my makeup to look invisible,” says Greene — that is with the exception of her final (and favorite!) step: a bold dash of poppy pigment, courtesy of the Lip Suede Matte Lipstick in Pip. “I always have it in my bag, even if I don’t have it on,” she says.
“With red lipstick, the application has to be impeccable,” Greene notes as she defines the shape of her mouth with a precision brush before going in with the bullet to build to a supersaturated finish. The effect? “I feel like a superhero,” she says, beaming.
