Makeup

I tried TikTok’s ‘cold girl make-up’ trend in the hopes to look as angelic as Hailey Beiber—here’s how it went

December 16, 2022

I am always freezing, so when the cold girl make-up trend started trending on TikTok (opens in new tab), it sounded perfect for me. That was until I realised, it wasn’t actually about chapped lips and smudging your make-up with a Kleenex every time you blow your nose. Nope, as with most things on TikTok, the cold girl make-up look is actually about creating a faux cold chill in a very polished way. According to TikTok, it’s time for the daily hot girl walk, to take a cooler tone.

At first, it does sound pretty wild, I know. Why would you want to fake being cold when it’s already freezing and snowing outside? My make-up (opens in new tab) and skincare routine (opens in new tab) is high maintenance enough in these cold months. Trust me, if I could find a way to look great while it’s this cold, I’d have done it already. But according to the cold girl make-up trend, that natural flush (read: red blotchiness) after a day on the slopes (or after a walk to your local Waitrose if you’re me) can look super cute—I just had to learn a thing or two.

With 163 million views and counting, the cold girl make-up trend is understandably having a moment right now—and I wanted to see just how doable it really is. You see, there were a few things I was skeptical about. For starters, I love a full coverage base (opens in new tab), meaning the natural cold flush (and rudolf nose) that forms the basis of cold girl make-up doesn’t exactly shine through.

When Hailey Bieber posted her cold girl make-up look, I knew it was my time to try it. Her doughnut-glazed nails (opens in new tab) were the top trend of 2022 so anything Biebs does, I’m doing too. That, along with the hundreds of videos on TikTok, told me I just had to give it a go.

Despite wanting to hate it (I really didn’t understand why you would want to fake cold), I can safely say it’s now the only make-up look I will be doing for the rest of the year and beyond. Here’s what you need to know about cold girl make-up and how I got on with my trial…

What is cold girl make-up?

Cold girl make-up is being faux flushed to perfection. It’s all about faking a wind chill moment (rosy nose and all).

And actually, it’s pretty simple to do—all you need is a blush, highlighter and your favourite gloss. Switch out a sun-kissed blush for a cool-toned blush without any shimmer. Similar cheek placements, but a completely different look.

“90’s trends have been reappearing everywhere, and the cold makeup look is another 90’s trend I love,” make-up artist, Demi Zissimou (opens in new tab) tells me. “It reminds me of J.Lo’s look in her All I Have music video.” Now that is the Christmas vibe I’m here for.

(Image credit: Getty Images)

“All cool tones create a gorgeous winter look,” says Zissimou. “Blusher, a frosty highlighter and a stained lip is the key.”

“The blush is the guest star in this look. It has to be the perfect cool-toned pink. The Dior Rosy glow blush (opens in new tab) would be perfect for this,” Zissimou tells me.

The most important part of the look? “The blush has to be swept across the nose to give the effect of a cold nose”.

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How to get cold girl makeup look

The best thing about this TikTok trend is that it’s surprisingly simple. You will probably already have the best blusher (opens in new tab) and highlighter for the job in drawers somewhere.

The cold girl look is all cool tones and highlight—think flushed and frosty. You just apply your make-up in four simple steps: blush all over the nose and cheeks, frosty highlight and a glossy (or stained) lip because although it’s cold outside, chapped lips are not on the menu.

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Step One: Ace the base

Dewy is out of the door—cold girl make-up works best when formulas are matte.

The catch? Your skin skill needs some hydration. I started by hydrating my face with my new favourite moisturiser, RoC Multi Correction Hydrate + Plump Moisturiser (opens in new tab)—it’s a game changer for getting hydration and SPF without the shine. When paired with ONE/SIZE Secure the Blur Makeup Magnet Primer (opens in new tab), it made for the perfect duo.

Then I dug out my best concealer (opens in new tab) and foundation (opens in new tab) to create a flawless base. I loved using the Vieve modern radiance concealer (opens in new tab)and a touch of Jones Road What The Foundation. (opens in new tab)

The key, I learned, is to matte everything down, so I reached for the Huda Beauty Easy Bake Powder (opens in new tab) and swiped it over my whole face to give things a matte, poreless finish.

I did learn that contour isn’t needed for this look. You can leave the bronzer or contour for post-blush application but only if you really need it—I found things looked better without.

Step Two: Blush, blush, blush

It’s time for the main event. In the case of cold girl make-up, there is no such thing as too much blush. My finding? Start with a small amount and build it up.

Chose a blush shade that mimics your natural flush. I usually use Nars Orgasm Blush (opens in new tab) every day, but for this I switched for something more matte and without a shimmer. I went in three times with the Gucci Blush Silky Rose in shade 01 (opens in new tab) and layered on a darker shade on top too.

The aim of the game is to sweep the blush across the apples of your cheeks, the tops of your cheekbones and across the tip of your nose. If you feel like it, you could try some on your eyelid, and over the brow bone, too. Basically, you place it where you would usually feel the cold.

I think a liquid blush (opens in new tab) would also work well, for easy placement and a glossy look.

Step Three: Highlight

All that shimmers is cold. Next it was time for me to apply my favourite highlight (opens in new tab) in the corner of the eyes and on my eyelids for a super-shimmery look—it’s giving snowflake vibes.

You can sweep some highlight over the cupid’s bow and over your favourite lip colour too for a frosty finish.

Step Four: Choose your lip

TikTok is divided when it comes to this one. There is either the glossy, highlighted lip (think lip oil, a light lip gloss and maybe even some highlighter on top) or the stained lip look (placing a dark colour in the middle of the lips only, creating the illusion of super-cold lips).

Make-up artist Zissimou suggests a stained lip for this look. If you really want to go all out with the cold girl look—you can even add a bit of blusher around your lips before applying lip products for frost bitten lips. I went with Zissimou’s suggestions, obviously.

My verdict

As somebody who is always cold (and looks it, too), I can safely say that I’m won over by the cold girl make-up look. It’s not often that I’m sold on TikTok trends (although I’ll admit the red nail theory (opens in new tab) won me over), but this is one that I can definitely get behind. Anything that makes looking cold chic gets a big tick in my books—especially when it’s this easy to do.