Coffee shades, ectoin skincare, balletcore makeup: Key beauty trends of 2024

Matte foundation is making a return as a trend, but with a luminous twist. Photo: Sephora

Welcome to 2024, and the beauty forecast is all about revamping classic trends, embracing fresh styles and ditching the outdated ones.

Players in the world of skincare and makeup have spoken, and the results are in.

Here are what the experts, and statistics from internet searches and social media impressions say are going to be the biggest beauty trends of 2024.

Colour me coffee

Toffee makeup leans into the nineties nudes trend with its brown colour palette. Photo: Instagram/Hailey Bieber

Last year, latte makeup made a splash in the beauty scene, and in 2024, similarly-themed brown shades are set to make an impact.

Beauty Pie’s 2024 Beauty Trends Report calculated the total search volume for hundreds of different trends to see the biggest growth in popularity and interest to predict which trends will be popular in 2024.

They discovered that of the top 10 biggest makeup trends for 2024, all centre around creamy-brown tones, with searches for “espresso makeup” shooting 678% in the past six months compared to the previous six months.

Espresso makeup is all about deep, rich browns – think brown smokey eyes, with softer brown mascara and a deep lip liner.

Toffee makeup, which utilises rustier pink and red undertones, is also going to make waves this year.

Glamour magazine explains that the trend leans into the nineties nudes trend with its brown colour palette, but with a richer alternative to caramel and honey hues.

Toffee-lined lips, sticky toffee lips, Matte toffee eyeshadow and all-over monochromatic toffee makeup all fall under the umbrella of the toffee makeup trend.

For starters, draw inspiration from the likes of Hailey Bieber, who has been sporting this look on more than one occasion.

Read more: With the smart use of makeup, you can do away with beauty filler injections

Skin solutions

Ectoin skincare is shaping up to be the biggest skincare trend in 2024, according to the Beauty Pie trend report.

It is an amino acid derivative used as a multi-functional skincare ingredient that strengthens the skin barrier and reduces water loss.

Coming in second in the skincare category for top trends is something called “skin streaming”, which advocates a slimline skincare routine to prevent damaging your skin barrier.

Essentially, it’s scaling back on your skincare routine to using just three or four products to address your skin’s needs.

The basics include a cleanser, antioxidant serum, moisturiser and sunscreen.

Number three on the list is spray SPF, with searches increasing by 90% in the past six months, as this is a great way to top up SPF throughout the day over your makeup.

A little illumination

Ethereal skin will be a bit hit this year. Photo: Innisfree

Makeup that gives your skin a dewy appearance has been a top favourite for a while now, as people love a healthy glow.

This year, Byrdie.com predicts that ethereal skin, whether a result of dewy or matte foundation, will be a bit hit among beauty enthusiasts.

Lit-from-within complexions are going to me more popular than ever, with matte skin making a return as a trend, but with a luminous twist.

Pretty in pink

Balletcore makeup pays tribute to ballerinas and their signature look – hair up in a chic bun and tonal blush colour palette.

To adopt this look, start with monochromatic blush and pink shades all over the face – eyes, lips and cheeks.

Like the silky texture of ballet shoes, use eyeshadow in frosted pinks, pearls and lilacs, suggests Glamour.

Play with highlighter to give the high points in your face an extra glow, and give soft-matte lip styles a try – using nude-pink shades.

Playful eyes

Graphic eyeliner and bold eyeshadow really took off in a big way in 2023, and these trends shows no sign of slowing down.

In 2024, go even bigger and bolder with graphic or structured eyeliner and splashes of striking eyeshadow, there are no rules!

Think bold shades, but if you’re not that adventurous, good old black is equally in trend.

Byrdie.com predicts that there will be a resurgence in blue eyeshadow and graphic eyeliner looks with a matte pastel twist.

Read more: To keep your skin looking soft and beautiful, just use steam from cooking rice

Lip trends

Ever since masks started coming off, lip colour trends have taken off in a big way. Ombre lips, the modern version of the 1990s darkly-lined lip is set to have its moment in 2024.

It might look tricky, but the look is essentially accentuating the natural colour of your lips by applying two shades of lipstick in the same colour family, but slightly different shades like a tan brown of rusty pink, advises Allure.com.

The cherry cola lip trend is inspired by the rich, deep colours of a cherry colour soda, according to British Vogue.

The publication described the trend as combining reds and browns with high-shine textures, letting your natural lips peer through a juicy layer of vibrant colour, to create the perfect summer pout.

Seen on Kylie Jenner and other celebrities, the trend is fast gaining traction among beauty lovers everywhere.

Another lip trend adopted by celebrities including Selena Gomez is romantic matte lips.

In 2024, the matte lip trend is getting refreshed with brighter shades, and blurred matte lip trends in romantic shades are set to dominate.

To get the look, slowly blend matte lipstick from the inner part of your lips to the centre and outward, in sheer layers, using a brush or your fingers.