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They say if you got it, you should flaunt it. The fall makeup trends of 2026 are all in service of letting your best features take center stage, whether you want the focus to be on your lips, your lashes, or your glowy natural skin.
For those who take pride in their pouty lips (or their ability to talk their way out of just about anything), a swipe of lipstick and nothing else is a cool way to look put together without the hustle of actually putting yourself together. If you prefer an air of mystery (and less trouble eating salad), a deep berry tint is ideal. If you’re feeling your skin these days, an almost-bare face will get top billing, or add a touch of balmy sheen to give the eight-cups-of-water-a-day energy. And if your eyes are your favorite feature, play them up with sculptural lashes, a soft smoky eye, or a simple wash of cool-toned eye shadow.
The key to these trends is to let your other features sing backup. That way, everyone will be forced to reckon with your greatest superpower. Below, the experts break down this fall’s biggest makeup trends.
Meet the experts
- Christian Briceno is a New York City-based makeup artist.
- Joseph Carrillo is a New York City-based makeup artist.
- Nikki DeRoest is a Los Angeles-based makeup artist and Bobbi Brown global artist in residence.
- Priscilla DiStasio is a New York City-based makeup artist.
- Tim Quinn is a Palm Beach-based makeup artist and cofounder of Halo42 Skincare.
- Tisha Thompson is an Atlanta-based makeup artist and founder of LYS Beauty.
- Sarah Walsh is a Los Angeles-based makeup artist.
Lips only
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A bare face with bold lipstick is the kind of off-duty model look that telegraphs: It’s not that I didn’t care to dress up for your party. It’s that I didn’t need to. To look polished and powerful, all you need is a slip dress, a tube of Dior Rouge, and the Prada heels you keep tucked under your desk for such occasions. Simple as that.
Los Angeles makeup artist Sarah Walsh saw the look trending on fall and winter runways. “Skin was left almost bare, just a bit of coverage, a little dew to highlight the high points, and some mascara,” she says. “It’s a high-contrast look that exudes confidence and power.” The color is choose-your-own-adventure. Bright poppy red for the life of the party (try MAC Silky Matte Lipstick in Lady Danger) or a darker shade for a mysterious, who-is-she moment (Walsh likes Revlon ColorStay Suede Ink Lipstick in In the Zone, and Nars Explicit Lipstick in Ravenous is an Allure editor favorite).
Berry-tinted lips
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We have to imagine that Eve, after that whole fiasco with the apple, decided what’s done is done and went all-in on a tasting tour of the Garden of Eden. She would have found that sin could be kind of a chic beauty trick. Once she made it over to the fig tree and took a bite of one of its juicy, purple fruits, she would have been left with the perfect jammy garnet lip stain.
This fall, “people want more visible color, but many do not want the maintenance of an opaque dark lipstick,” says New York City makeup artist Christian Briceno. Fortunately, technology has come a long way since the Garden of Eden, and you don’t need a fresh fig or blackberry to get a deeply hued but transparent tint. “The stain category has evolved. Newer formulas come in oils, serums, gels, balms, and soft-matte textures,” he says. “I like that the person's natural lip color participates in the final result. You get the emotional impact of a dark lip without making the mouth look flat or too constructed.”
Briceno starts by exfoliating the lips and applying a thin layer of lip balm, letting it sit for a few minutes, and then blotting off the excess. A smooth canvas is key. “Deep stains can collect in cracks, around the inner rim of the mouth, and on any area that is drier than the rest.” Then apply a thin layer of lip tint (he likes Rare Beauty Soft Pinch Lip Oil Stick in Fortune or Fenty Beauty Poutsicle Hydrating Lip Stain in Berry Banger) at the center of the lips, gently moving the product toward the perimeter.
“Wait before applying another layer. Many stains become noticeably deeper as they settle,” Briceno says. “I leave it alone for a soft-matte finish or press a little balm or oil onto the center. I would not bury it under a thick layer of gloss because the tint itself should remain visible.”
Mineral-wash shadow
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Take a page from the book of earth signs. This season’s shadows are practical and grounded like a Virgo. That means a single wash of earthy, cool-toned, mineral-y color—slate, pewter, mushroom, greige, or a muted charcoal.
“To me, this is not simply a gray smoky eye,” says Briceno. “A smoky eye is usually built through several shades, depth in the crease, and darker definition around the lashes. With a mineral wash, one nuanced color creates the entire mood. It can be sheer or more saturated, but the skin should still feel present beneath it.”
Choose one color (Briceno likes Merit Solo Shadow in Nelson and Laura Mercier Caviar Stick Eye Shadow Matte in Cobblestone, while Walsh would opt for Kiko Milano Water Eyeshadow in Dark Grey for a bit more drama), and apply the shadow across the mobile lid, starting close to the upper lash line, then blend the remaining color upward. “For a softer look, I keep the color contained around the lid,” Briceno says. “For something more editorial, I extend it outward or slightly toward the brow. I do not automatically force every eye into the same winged shape.”
Sculptural lashes
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Batting your eyelashes is far more effective when they’re truly showstopping. How could anyone say no to you when your lashes look wet like a Bond girl emerging from the ocean or spiky and crisp like Spider-Woman?
“The lash is becoming a design choice rather than a standard final step,” Briceno says, who notes that lashes lately have been one of two extremes: either completely bare or highly sculptural. For the latter, “I like the negative space,” he says. “You can create drama around the eye while still seeing the eyelid and the person's natural eye shape. That feels lighter and more modern to me than a uniformly dense lash line.”
For a wet lash look, start with one regular coat of mascara. Briceno likes L’Oréal Paris Telescopic Instant Lift Mascara or Benefit Badgal Bang Mascara. “The first coat should lengthen and define the lashes without making them heavy. I need the lashes to remain flexible enough to manipulate,” he says. Then use the tip of the wand to place more mascara where you want the groupings of lashes to meet. “With clean tweezers or a precision lash tool, I gently join the ends of two or three lashes.”
If you want something even more editorial, like a spidery spike or heavy clusters, Briceno recommends going the strategically placed faux route. Kiss Lash Atelier Individual Lash Extensions Design Kit in Anime and Lashify Gossamer Lash in Cherry Stax both offer pre-mapped clusters.
Balmy sheen
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We’d love to enter the fall looking like we spent the summer resting, hydrating, eating organic farmers market heirloom tomatoes, and lounging in the sauna. Unfortunately, for most, that’s not terribly realistic. Instead, freshly moisturized skin with a few touches of balmy sheen will have to fake the effect for us.
It’s a “fresh, conditioned-looking complexion with moisture and reflection placed only where it benefits the face,” Briceno says. “The cheekbones, temples, and outer planes of the face can look supple and softly reflective, while the forehead, sides of the nose, undereyes, and other areas that need control remain refined.” It sits somewhere between the blurred, velvet finishes of last season and a true glass skin effect.
The key is targeting the right areas. “People are realizing their skin isn’t one-dimensional and different areas of the face need different things,” says Atlanta-based makeup artist Tisha Thompson. “This looks and feels like real skin because you’re cheating balance and dimension.”
“Coverage, powder, and balm are all applied selectively,” Briceno agrees. “It is not an allover wet face, and it is not a layer of metallic highlighter. The important part is the balance between sheen and control.” It sits somewhere between the blurred, velvet finishes of last season and a true glass skin effect.
Briceno starts with moisturizer—more in dry zones, less in the oily spots—and applies foundation “where it earns its place. Some areas may need foundation, while others may need nothing. That variation is what keeps the result believable.” He likes Giorgio Armani Luminous Silk Foundation for its flexibility. He follows by warming a transparent balm like Chanel Baume Essentiel or Tower28 SuperDew between his fingers before pressing it onto the high points of the cheeks and temples.
G-rated smoky eye
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After a club-hopping, party-going summer, we’re settling into a quieter season. Less smudgy black liner, more coy, first-date softness. This is the perfect time to bust out your trusty Urban Decay Naked Eyeshadow Palette. We also like Ilia The Necessary Eyeshadow Palette, which contains an array of warm nudes, and the Makeup by Mario Ethereal Eyes Eyeshadow Palette, which skews cooler.
“Color this season feels richer and more sophisticated,” says Palm Beach makeup artist Tim Quinn. “Think espresso, chocolate, olive, plum, and charcoal, and everything blended, so there are no harsh edges. It feels romantic, modern, and very wearable.”
“Start close to the lash line and build outward rather than immediately covering the entire lid,” explains Los Angeles makeup artist Nikki DeRoest. You can always expand the coverage afterward and diffuse with a fluffy shadow brush. “I also love working a dark pencil right into the roots of the lashes and smudging it so you don't see an obvious line.” DeRoest likes a Bobbi Brown Cream Liner Stick for this (try the shade Rich Chocolate to keep things soft), and Victoria Beckham Silk Kajal Liner also smudges out beautifully.
More blush, less contour
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There’s something lively and, well, cheeky about super-blushy, just-took-a-Pilates-class cheeks. So much so that New York City-based makeup artist Joseph Carrillo anticipates taking a pass on harsher contour and bronzer and opting for more blush this season.
“You can create shape with blush,” he says. “Berry, rose, nude, and even soft terra-cotta tones are being blended higher on the cheeks and diffused outward to create lift and dimension as if it were contour. It gives the face structure without looking overly sculpted, and the result feels much more modern and wearable.”
Carillo starts with a blendable cream formula (he likes Merit Flush Balm or Rhode Pocket Blush, and we love how pigmented and buildable the new YSL Make Me Blush Cream Blush is) and places it along the top of the cheekbones before blending upward to create lift (your fingers are a great tool for this).
“It brings life back into the complexion while adding subtle structure,” he says. “It’s less about sculpting and more about creating healthy-looking dimension.”
Skin-first beauty
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Helen of Troy would have no need for a vanity table. Her beauty routine was simply a spray of sea mist on her face and a cliffside Mediterranean breeze to style her hair. That’s the conceit of this organic, skin-forward beauty trend we’re seeing, thanks in part to a parade of Grecian-inspired Odyssey red carpet looks. If Zendaya does it, a million more will follow.
“I love that you still look like you,” says New York City makeup artist Priscilla DiStasio. “You can see freckles. You can see dimension. You can see actual skin. The complexion is even and polished, but it doesn’t feel masked.”
“The trick is not necessarily using less makeup everywhere. It's knowing where you actually need coverage and where you don’t,” she says. DiStasio likes to start with a small amount of No Makeup Makeup Foundation (Danessa Myricks Yummy Skin Blurring Balm Powder has similar light, buildable coverage) at the center of the face, blending outward. Follow with a touch of blush for that just-launched-a-thousand-ships flush. Carrillo likes the Patrick Ta Major Headlines Double-Take Crème and Powder Blush Duo—and voilà! Positively statuesque.
