Stressing over New Year’s Eve makeup is seriously underrated. Everyone preps for the big night by blowing money on a sequin-covered dress (that they’ll only wear maybe twice a year) and a fresh blowout. However, does anyone actually take into account how important your makeup is? If you plan on going big, it only makes sense that your face says the same thing. I mean, it is after all, the very first night of the new year, aka a big fucking deal. This means you’ll need to look ~on point~ for everyone you’ll be spending it with and the army of skanks that follow you on Insta. If you haven’t even begun thinking about WTF you’re doing for NYE, not to mention which eye shadow you’ll be using, NBD. I’ve found five makeup ideas that are the perfect inspo you need to get started.
1. Smokey Eye
This is one we’re all too familiar with, but can hardly pull off without looking like we have two black eyes. Whether you want to go dark with blacks and grays, match the scheme of your outfit, or do something in between and neutral, make your life easier by using a colored sculpt pen like Burberry’s Eye Colour Contour Smoke & Sculpt Pen to blend the shades together seamlessly.
2. Glitter Fest
NYE is always about all that glitters. Even if you hate wearing dresses that are extra af, you can obvs still low-key incorporate a full-out glitter fest with your makeup. After using whatever color you wish as the base, add glitter eyeshadow right on top (try Urban Decay’s Moondust Eyeshadow in any of the bajillion colors offered). You’ll have everyone’s eyes on you the whole night, regardless of what you wear. Jeans and a crop top? Still staring at you.
3. Bold-Colored Eyeliner
Maybe you just really love makeup, or I guess you just like the attention. If you’re looking for something bold, finish and wing your go-to liner with a bright af color. Urban Decay Razor Sharp Water-Resistant Longwear Liquid Eyeliner comes in a ton of bold colors and goes on seamlessly. Use a complementary shade like red, blue, or violet so it doesn’t look like a Halloween costume.
4. Red Lip
When in doubt, just do a red lip. It’s the most basic, yet classic look for a reason. I get it, no one has time to make a masterpiece out of a million eye shadow colors. Apply a neutral shade on the eyes and finish with everyone’s fave red, Rouge Dior.
5. Natural
My personal favorite, this is a look that will get a ton of compliments after only putting in the minimal effort. It’s not so much an “I just woke up like this” look because this is like, New Year’s fucking Eve, but it’s so simple, you can’t fuck it up. All you really need is a decent contour, a true nude palette (preferably one with a hint of shimmer) like the Too Faced Natural Love Palette, and the most basic af rose gold lip shade.
Image: Andreas Fidler / Unsplash
Remember the chubby kid from elementary school gym class who always cost your kickball team a win? Well, he might have been on to something when he said “first is the worst, second is the best,” provided he was talking about which Coachella weekend to attend, and not the game at hand (being optimistic about losing is total nice girl behavior, and we’d never condone it here). You see, Coachella style is a slippery slope. One minute you feel like the most beautiful sequined snowflake on Earth, the next you realize that you’re just wearing the knockoff version of exactly what Kylie Jenner has on, and your sequin glue is not compatible with sweat. With that in mind, it’s probably in your best interest to watch people fuck it up during weekend one, learn from their mistakes, and totally slay for weekend two. For those of you looking to roll into week two with a vengence, makeup is one of the best ways to turn a regular festival look into something totally amazing and Coachella worthy, so here are a few makeup Instagram accounts to creep through for makeup inspiration. Alternatively, you can just take shrooms.
1. @mrtndamex
Who thinks to use liquid lipstick for eyebrows and straight glitter for a highlighter? This betch. Like pretty much every other aspect of our lives, sparkly makeup can go really wrong really fast, but Martina has a few sick tricks.
2. @gogetglitter
Like I said, glitter is a total hit or miss, but Go Get Glitter is a cosmetics brand that seems to be doing it right. However, according to a law I just made up, I have the right to change my stance on this at anytime. For example, if they come out with a Disney Princess line, I’m out. Go Get Glitter clearly heavily contributed to the trail of glitter that now probably permanently exists in Coachella Valley.
3. @makeupshayla
According to Shayla’s Instagram posts, she fell down a flight of stairs at Coachella and still looked like a rock star. (If you didn’t read that in Cady Heron’s voice, you can literally never sit with us.)
4. @beautymeetsvideo
Beauty Meets Video is an account filled with makeup done by British betches, which I’ll admit are always ahead of the curve in the beauty world. Plus, they have a YouTube channel, which is pretty helpful for anyone whose cosmetic experience consists of mostly last-minute decisions to wear winged eyeliner halfway through a pregame.
5. @jvongphoumy
Flower crowns are definitely out, but floral makeup might just be the next move. Joanna’s feed is filled with rainbow lips, crystal liners, and other creative makeup ideas that you haven’t already seen more times than your ex’s new girlfriend’s Instagram feed.
Read: The Best & Worst Dressed Celebs At Coachella Weekend 1
