Twenty-twenty-three was a big year for beauty trends. We saw all manner of aesthetics – quiet luxury, cottagecore, Barbiecore, just to name a few – and each brought a slew of curated trends across hair, makeup, and even skin. Very few stuck around for long; before we even mastered the “indie sleaze” makeup look or got an appointment at the salon to try the latest food-inspired hair color, we were on to the next one. This makes it a little hard to put a finger on just five trends that summarize the year as a whole, but we’re going to try.
This past year, more than ever before, the hottest beauty trends were formulated by social media creators on TikTok rather than celebrities. But that’s not to say celebrities like Hailey Bieber, Sofia Richie, and Rihanna didn’t have any pull. Richie’s wedding singlehandedly put the quiet-luxury look on the map, while Bieber’s major chop early on in January set the tone for super-short haircuts to reign for months to come.
Even though 2023 was ripe with new trends everywhere you looked (or every time you opened TikTok), a few had a bit more staying power than others. So, for a look back on the beauty trends that made the year, keep scrolling. You can consider this our 2023 beauty trends wrapped.
Getty / Edward Berthelot
Retro Styles
Nostalgia stepped into center stage this year, with everything old – or ’90s – being made new again. Twenty-twenty-three saw the reclamation of a few unexpected retro trends, from lower-back tattoos to pigtails and bouffant hairstyles. These trends were not only brought back but improved with a fresh and exciting twist.
Getty / Raimonda Kulikauskiene
Polarizing Hairstyles
There were a handful of standout haircut trends over the last 12 months (with bobs deserving of an honorable mention), but few compared to the influx of “polarizing” hairstyles that we saw. Last year’s mullet haircut trend was nothing compared to the rat tails and sideburns we saw this year, which all seemed to funnel from the larger “anti-beauty” trend.
Getty / Edward Berthelot
Barbie Pink
We can’t talk about the biggest moments of 2023 without including Margot Robbie’s “Barbie,” which hit theaters in July. What started out as your run-of-the-mill film turned into a global event, and that had a lasting effect on the beauty space. From Barbie-pink nails to Barbie ponytails, people embraced life in plastic in any way they could.
Getty / Brian Dowling
Red Everything
Blame it on Taylor Swift’s The Eras Tour (and her blazing-hot romance with Kansas City Chiefs player Travis Kelce), but the color red completely took over this year. Hair, nails, lipstick – every area of our beauty routine got the red treatment. It doesn’t help that Jenna Lyons and her iconic bright-red lipstick also took over our TVs on “The Real Housewives of New York.” No matter how you slice it, the trendy color was everywhere.
