Try This Frosty Makeup Look for Your Next Holiday Party

November 21, 2023

By: Jordan Julian | Makeup.com by L'Oréal

ICYMI: The beauty world has been in the midst of a major Y2K obsession for the past couple of years, bringing the revival of throwback trends like chunky highlights and frosted eyelids. This fall, however, the frosty eyeshadow trend reached new heights with the surge in popularity of the frosty girl makeup aesthetic on TikTok and Instagram. Shimmery metallic lids are essential to the look, of course. But it also includes generous amounts of highlighter and an ultra-glossy lip for an overall frosted effect. The angelic, wintery vibes and festive glitter accents make frosty girl makeup the perfect look for the holiday season. Ahead, we’re breaking down how to get the look at home. So, reach for your sparkliest eyeshadow and keep scrolling to find out how to channel your inner ice queen.

Step 1: Apply Your Base Makeup

The key to the frosty girl makeup aesthetic is in the details — shimmery eyeshadow, highlighter and lip gloss. In other words, you can pretty much do your base makeup, meaning primer, foundation and concealer the way you normally would. Pro tip: Opt for a luminous finish foundation, such as the Lancôme Teint Idole Ultra Wear Care & Glow Serum Foundation, instead of a matte one to lean into the glowy, ethereal vibes.

Step 2: Frost Your Eyelids

The focus of your frosty look will undeniably be your eye makeup. The good news is that this look doesn’t require any fancy techniques. You’re basically just going to wash your eyelids with the shimmery, metallic or frosty eyeshadow of your choice. Stick to cool, icy shades like silver and baby blue. We love the Giorgio Armani Beauty Eye Tint Long-Lasting Liquid Eyeshadow in in Liquid Silver and the Valentino Beauty Dreamdust Glitter Eyeshadow in Skydust.

For an extra dose of sparkle, you can also line your lash line with a sparkly eyeliner, such as the Urban Decay Moondust Liquid Glitter Eyeliner in Pyro. Finish with a coat of your favorite mascara.

Step 3: Apply Blush

For your blush application, you can take a cue from last year’s viral cold girl makeup trend. The goal is to replicate the look of a natural flush from spending time outside in the chilly winter air. Apply a true pink blush (we like the L’Oréal Paris Infallible 24H Fresh Wear Soft Matte Blush in Confident Pink) across your cheeks and on the tip of your nose.

Step 4: Highlight, Highlight, Highlight

Highlighter will be your best friend when trying to capture that light-reflecting frosted look on your complexion. Go in with a generous amount of a cool-toned highlighter on the high points of your face, including your cheekbones, your brow bone, the bridge of your nose and the tip of your nose. Add some to the inner corners of your eyes and your cupid’s bow, too. In the market for a new highlighter? Check out the NYX Professional Makeup Jumbo Multi-Use Highlighter Stick in Vanilla Ice Cream.

Step 5: Swipe On Some Lip Gloss

Finally, tie everything together with a swipe of shiny, reflective lip gloss. With this step, there’s room to experiment. You can go for a basic clear gloss, or one that’s lightly tinted or has some sparkle. The Maybelline New York Lifter Gloss With Hyaluronic Acid is available in a few different shades that would work well for this look.