It’s actually the latest big makeup tend and a quick scan of Instagrammed photos tagged #bakingtechnique reveals scores of women captured with various amounts of powder patted all over their faces.

Screenshot: "Perfect Under Eye Highlight, No Creasing + Baking Explained!" © 2015 YouTube, LLC

Baking, in the cosmetic sense, involves wetting the skin after foundation and concealer have been applied by using a damp sponge to dust powder over dark shadows or areas of the face that you want to highlight. As well as highlighting facial features, it also sets makeup to keep your look fresh throughout the day.

For perfectly baked under-eyes and covering up dark circles, makeup artist Heidi Hamoud recommends using an eye cream such as Bobbi Brown’s Hydrating Eye Cream to prep. She then suggests using a thick, pigmented concealer and dabbing it on the under-eye area, before blending out any creases and tapping the area lightly with a face powder like Laura Mercier’s Invisible Loose Powder to set the makeup. Former drag queen and makeup artist Mathias Alan also recommends using Urban Decay’s De-Slick Makeup Setting Spray over foundation and concealer for the ultimate bake.

Now it’s baking time! Using a damp sponge, you can then apply a generous amount of powder under the eye, before leaving it to set for five minutes and dusting off the excess with a makeup brush. However, Hamoud’s tip is to use a hard-pressed powder such as the Make Up For Ever Pro Finish Powder to go over the ’baked’ area with a brush, using light flicking motions to smooth everything out, buff off the powder and provide extra coverage.

It isn’t just eye bags that can benefit from the approach — the technique can also be used as a method of contouring when applied underneath the hollows of the cheekbones and to the chin or down the bridge of the nose for a baking hot look.