Four Easy Party Makeup Looks To Try For New Year's Eve

Planning your New Year’s Eve look? While we can’t help with your wardrobe, we have created four show-stopping makeup looks to ensure you see in 2026 looking and feeling radiant. From rich brown tones to the clumpy lash look that was seen across the autumn/winter 2025 catwalks, we have plenty of makeup inspiration to ensure you’re look is covered…

Glitz & Grunge

Nostalgia for the ‘90s has been a big beauty trend for 2025. For New Year’s Eve we’ve put a glamorous spin of the iconic silvery grey tones and tightline eyeliner. The trick is to simply add a wash of shimmer across your eyes.

Celebrity makeup artist Gina Ford used the VIEVE Eye Wand in Concrete across the eyes, blending the colour into the lids with a brush. Depending on how sparkly you want to go, add a shimmery or glittery eyeshadow on top, across the centre of your lids so it catches the light. We love the About-Face Holographic Eye Paints and Laura Mercier’s iconic Caviar Shimmer Sticks.

To ensure your tightline eyeliner sees you into 2026 make sure you use a waterproof formula, like the Hourglass one Gina used. Apply the liner onto the waterline of your upper and lower lids to add instant definition.

The finishing touch? A swipe of Laneige Lip Sleeping Mask to give lips a low-key glossy finish with an essential boost of hydration. Gina used the Hot Cocoa flavour for this look.

Get The Look

Garnet & Gloss

A red lip is a classic party makeup look, and the spectrum of shades ensures there’s something for all skin tones and vibes. For New Year’s Eve, we’re going for a rich burgundy number (thank you, Kulfi!) with an optional high-shine gloss.

“If you’re going for a strong lip, it’s important to prep your lips first,” says Gina, who recommends using a lip scrub to gently remove any dry skin. Before applying your lip colour, use a balm or hydrating treatment to moisturise the area.

While it might be tempting to skip the lip liner step, it will give your look a sculpted finish and help the colour last for longer. Both Lisa Eldridge and Victoria Beckham Beauty offer nourishing, long-lasting formulas that glide on effortlessly.

There are countless burgundy lipstick shades from the likes of REFY, Lisa Eldridge and Charlotte Tilbury, and you’ll feel the most comfortable and confident when you find the one for you. Gina used Kulfi’s bestselling Lassi Lips Staining Lip Oil in Fig to create this glossy look.

Get The Look

Graphic & Defined

It’s official, clumpy lashes are in - or at least, intentionally clumped lashes are in. Spidery graphic eyelashes were seen across the autumn/winter 2025 catwalk at the likes of Chloe, Vaquera and Harris Reed. We’ve pared the look back slightly without losing the defined impact.

“To create this kind of look you have to use single lashes, like the Sweed ones I used here, and then be over generous with your mascara,” says Gina. Opt for a hard-working volumising formula like the high impact Milk Makeup Kush Big Hit Volumizing Mascara or Kosas’ bestselling Soulgazer Mascara.

Bold eyeshadows will create a very dramatic look, so we recommend finishing your eye makeup with a soft shimmery eyeshadow or an eye gloss, like Gina did.

Get The Look

Shimmer & Spice

Brown tones have been another huge beauty trend for this year, again nodding to the ‘90s. Whether you want to go low key with soft satins or make heads turn with a bold shimmer, the beauty of brown as a colour is that it suits almost every skin tone.

Victoria Beckham Beauty’s Eye Wardrobe in Cocoa is your one-stop-shop for creating the ultimate brown eye. The matte brown eyeshadow works as the base and can be layered up to create a rich brown shade, while the shimmery shades can be used to add shape. Gina used the shimmery champagne shade to brighten the inner corners and the Victoria Beckham Beauty’s Satin Kajal Liner in Cocoa along the lash line. The eyes were finished with the Milk Makeup mascara Gina used for the graphic lashes.

“If you’re going for a full brown look, play around with your textures to add depth,” says Gina. “Start with a creamy base layer, you can always add powder on top but start with creamy to create that seamless finish.” To achieve the sculpted, bronzed cheekbones, Gina used Westman Atelier Face Trace and for the lips she opted for Kay Beauty Hydra Crème Lipstick in Panache.

Photography by Agness Trawczynska, Makeup by Gina Ford, Hair by Yoshitaka Miyazaki, Nails by Emma Welsh, Art direction by Abigail Volks, Beauty direction by Victoria Hall. Models: Keisha @ Models1 and Ksenia @ M&P