9 Makeup Trends We’re Trying In 2024

2023 was The Year Of The Makeup Trend. Beauty movements happen all the time, but in 2023 specifically, it felt like every week there was something new being “coined” or rediscovered and reimagined. Social media dominated the conversation and our faces became food, whether it was “strawberry girl,” “latte makeup,” “blueberry milk,” or “lavender matcha tea latte with oat milk” (I made that last one up, but doesn’t it sound amazing?). Millennials continued to warn the younger generation against the makeup choices they’d already made, like when “concealer lips” nearly had a comeback. All in all, it felt like 2023 was the year beauty lovers were just trying to have fun with makeup. With 2024 now here, we’re more excited than ever to see what’s coming in the makeup trend scene next — so we talked to some of the industry’s biggest names for the biggest trends we'll be trying and loving come the new year.

The most surprising makeup trend to emerge in 2023 was embracing the abstract. Whether it was graphic, structured eyeliner or blurry and glossy lips and cheeks, we’ve seen a lot of looks that play with shape, placement, and colour. This will only continue into the next year: “The trend in eyeliner is stylised with no rules,” says Terri Bryant, makeup artist and founder of Guide Beauty. “While bold shades will be everywhere, classic black is equally on trend; striking yet artfully subtle. In contrast to bold, graphic lines, we’ll see a diffusion of pigments for skin, cheeks and lips.” 

“Splashes of colour were seen on the [catwalk at] Fashion Week, and it showed it could be done in a way that isn’t intimidating and can be fun,” encourages L’Oréal Paris League of Experts celebrity makeup artist, Allan Avendaño. Whether it’s a brush stroke of colour, like Danessa Myricks Beauty Colorfix, £20, a wash of eyeshadow in a shocking, duo-chrome chartreuse, like Victoria Beckham Lid Lustre in Velvet, £33, we’re just having fun with makeup now. And for those who aren’t too handy with a brush or a liner, eye stickers like e.l.f. No Budge Shadow Stick, £6, allow you to use your face as the ultimate art canvas. 

Blue eyeshadow is as iconic as ever — take inspiration from Alina Tulah on Instagram. “The cool thing about blue is that I’ve never seen it on anyone where it didn’t look really good on them,” says Half-Magic co-founder and makeup artist, Donni Davy. “There are so many options within the blue world, from warmer electric blues and grungy navy blues to baby icy blues.” Davy suggests wading into the (blue) waters with a light and shimmery, semi-translucent shadow. Try MAC Eyeshadow in Tilt, £20. You might like to graduate to a bold eye paint like Half Magic Chromeadditction Matte in Off The Deep End, £16.10. “Eye paints are totally the lazy girl’s eyeshadow,” says Davy. “If you don’t have a lot of time and you want your eyeshadow to pop, a matte eye paint will get you there fast without any fall-out.” Cobalt blue eyeliner, like Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-On Waterproof Eyeliner Pencil in Chaos, £20, is also an amazing alternative to black or brown when you want to wear just a bit of colour.

Frosted pastel eyeshadows and icy lips are having a major comeback in 2024, but with a modern twist. “We’re in a total Y2K revival,” says Davy. “For some, it’s cringe; for others it’s heaven and so refreshing to break the cycle of the idea that frosty lips are outdated.” Gone are the powdery, patchy eyeshadows of the early aughts. We’ve moved into liquid-to-powder formulas like Glossier Skywash in Pool, £18, VIOLETTE_FR Yeux Paint in Nuage de Lilas, £33, and eyeshadow sticks like about-face Shadowstick in 2002, £18. Pair them with a glittery, shimmery (but not gloopy) lip gloss, like Half Magic MAGIC Drip in Frosty B*tch, £18, or Magic Brownie, or the ultimate ‘90 throwback lip, MAC Cosmetics Lipglass, £22. You may not be able to sing like Christina Aguilera, but you certainly can look like you belong in the “Come On Over” video.

Who would have thought we would be taking inspiration from cocktails? If TikTok is anything to go by, olive-green makeup and green, really, of all sorts, is going to have a major moment in 2024. Martini makeup, in particular, combines shades of green, gold, emerald, and olive in a shimmering eyeshadow look. When paired with a deep red blush or lip colour, you’ll look as classic as the tipple. Some of our favourite olive shades include MAC Eyeshadow in Humid, £20, RMS Beauty Eyelights Cream Eyeshadow in Eclipse, £29, and Merit Solo Shadow in Viper, £26.

Sugar plum makeup is the perfect mashup of “strawberry girl” (bronzed skin, pink flushed cheeks, glossy lips) and “cold girl” (flushed cheeks, a glossy highlight, and a bit of a frost-bitten lip tone). This glowy, ethereal look popped off with who else but Hailey Bieber in the late weeks of 2023, pairing a soft pink blush, such as Makeup by Mario Soft Pop Plumping Blush Veil, £30, with a dewy, slightly pink-toned highlight, such as Charlotte Tilbury Beauty Highlighter Wand in Pinkgasm, £30. What lends itself to the “fairy” vibe, however, is a natural wispy lash to accent the eyes. Celebrity makeup artist Erika La’ Pearl explains that the wispy lash look is going to be the trend of 2023: “It’s a fine and feathery everyday look that makes your eyes pop while also looking natural. I think it will work perfectly for that ‘on the go’ girlie who loves a simple lash." Try e.l.f. Lash 'N Roll Mascara Black, £6.

Whether it’s a heavy, dark lip liner paired with a juicy gloss or a variation on the brown lip liner and red lip gloss “Cherry Cola” trend, lips have dominated the beauty space. Ombré lips can be dramatic and striking or subtle and flattering. Avendaño is a huge fan of ombré in all forms: “Use shades that [suit] your skin tone — they don’t have to be super bold, they can be more subtle, like in nude or soft brown shades. It just makes your lips look fuller and kissable,” he shares. No matter what, a clear gloss like L'Oréal Paris Glow Paradise Balm-In-Gloss 400 I Maximize, £9.99, Kosas Wet Lip Oil Glossin Jellyfish, £20, or Fenty Beauty Gloss Bomb Universal Lip Luminizer in Glass Slipper, £18, will sit perfectly atop any lip liner shade. 

After years of perfectly groomed brows and matte foundations, we’re seeing a move back to full-lined, smudged eyeliner and a "clean" face, like Kate Moss and Naomi Campbell in the mid ‘90s. Avendaño loves dark grey or taupe eyeliner that’s smudged out along the eye and looks intentionally a bit unkempt. Try L’Oréal Paris Grip Mechanical Gel Eyeliner in Intense Black, £5.99, or Taupe Grey or Sephora Collection 12 Hour Contour Pencil Eyeliner in 51 Stone, £8.99. “Creating this look is quite easy and takes the pressure off perfection,” Avendaño says. Davy also loves the look of a tight-lined eyeliner (liner on the upper water line) and chunky mascara on the bottom lashes to accentuate the eyes, not hide them. We love ILIA Fullest Volumizing Mascara, £28, and Huda Beauty 1 Coat WOW! Extra Volumizing and Lifting Mascara, £20.

Vampy makeup is the perfect hybrid of dark, glamorous, and smoky, and it dominated the fashion runways this season. If you hear “monochromatic makeup” and think of neutrals and beiges, the vampy makeup trend turns that concept on its head, using dark, rich reds and black eyeshadows instead. “I’m obsessed with the vampy lip,” says La’ Pearl. “Using a liner to define the lip before the dark hue is simple and elegant.” There’s also something dramatic and eerie about combining a smoky black eyeshadow with a cranberry or plum matte lip, like MAC Locked Kiss Ink 24-Hour Lip Color in Vixen, £32, or Maybelline Super Stay Vinyl Ink Longwear Liquid Lipcolor in Royal, £11.99.

More than ever before, it seems like we’re looking for products that not only give a lot of bang for their buck but perform well and last a long time. "Gone are the days of the basic lip gloss" says KIKO Milano North America regional managing director, Shelagh Wong. Now, we want gloss with nourishing ingredients and high-tech formulas that aren’t sticky or messy. There’s a reason why makeup brands like Morphe and Urban Decay have reformulated its bestselling setting sprays to add more skin-nourishing ingredients. The rise of “serum-infused” foundations and skin tints like MAC Studio Radiance Serum-Powered Foundation, £39, Rose Inc Skin Enhance Luminous Skin Tint Serum Foundation, £39, and L'Oréal Paris True Match Nude Plumping Tinted Serum, £14.99, are popular among makeup artists and beauty enthusiasts alike. Makeup that does a little bit of everything is vital now that we’re busier than ever.

Wong also sees 2024 as the last call for the large-format makeup palette. Instead, we're going to move towards smaller palettes or single-colour shades to supplement what’s already in our existing kits — a conversation that Refinery29 led last year.