Butter skin, watercolour makeup and cherry-coded are all beauty trends that came and went in 2025, but for cosy season, the makeup world is leaning into a more timeless look, with fresh Alpine skin at the top of our wish lists for winter.
"Alpine skin looks like snow and sun mixed together," says makeup artist Nic Chapman of the flushed look, which she likens to the light of sunrise reflecting on fresh powder. "It's lightly glistening, as if you've just finished an outdoor workout in crisp air."
This mountain-inspired make-up creates a "just stepped off the slopes" appearance, with a shimmering, but never sparkling, rosy glow.
© Getty ImagesA new take
Alpine skin is a new take on last year's viral cold-girl makeup, in which blush was applied liberally all over the cheeks, focusing on the apples, temples and even under eyes – but the beauty of this fresh air-inspired look is its simplicity.
You don't need a makeup bag full of foundation, bronzer and more. Just apply a light dusting of multi-dimensional powders and a brush of pink blush and the chalet-girl look is all yours.
© StocksyBarely there
For the fresh-faced “I've just unclipped my snowboard” complexion, try sheer, barely-there bases, such as Jones Road's 'Miracle Balm' in Au Naturel, £34.20 / $48.60, It adds the tiniest hint of sheen without shimmer, unifying and brightening the face – because nobody wears a full face of make-up on a ski lift.
"The easiest way to emulate Alpine skin is with a subtle dusting of pink blush on the tip of your nose and the tops of your brows; apply it anywhere you'd naturally blush," Nic says of creating the ski-bunny look.
© InstagramTo keep it natural, Nic recommends identifying the colour you naturally blush and finding a blusher in the same shade for a "you, but better" hint of pink. Our top choice is No7's Pro Artist Luxe 'Powder Blush' in Pink, £14.95. The silky formula is perfect for the natural, diffused flush you get after a day slaloming down the slopes – or sitting piste-side with a hot chocolate.
"Once your makeup is done, dust a powder shimmer over the top," Nic adds, emphasising that this should be a multi-dimensional shimmer, rather than a sparkle. Guerlain's 'Météorites Light-Revealing Pearls of Powder' in Pearly White, £56 / $85, is our go-to for an illuminated, pearlescent complexion, while the Amber shade looks luminescent on darker skin tones.
© StocksyFor a 2025 twist on the classic style, transforming it from shoop-shooping down the mountain to apres-ski in the lodge, add a frosty edge with cool-toned liners (we like REM Beauty's 'At the Borderline Gel Eyeliner' in Pixie and Babe, £18 / $19, icy glosses on the eye Gucci's 'Beauty Éclat de Beauté Effet Lumière Gel Face Gloss', £21 / $37, is the best non-stick option), and glass-like shimmers such as ELF Cosmetics' 'Fine as Fleck Glitter Eyeshadow' in White Hot, £7, in the inner corners of your eyes, lending a soft, sugar-plum vibe to the outdoorsy look. With that sorted, where's our mulled wine?
