How to Achieve the Perfect Pearl Skin

December 4, 2024

As we are close to bidding goodbye to 2024, let’s look back at the most viral makeup trend of the year – wet & pearl skin.

The beautiful dewy skin makeup trend has been hot for quite a few years now. But each year it gets a pretty little glam up and we can’t stop obsessing over it. After glazed-donut skin and glass skin from last year, this year was the time for pearl skin. Popularised by social media beauty gurus and adorned by everyone from celebs on the red carpet to you, me and everyone in their pretty photos.

Pearl skin is fresh, making your skin look healthy and beautiful without trying too hard. As the year is nearing its end, we can’t help but be thankful to 2024 for giving us pearl skin makeup. If you are still unaware of this beloved makeup trend, read this blog by Wedding Affair to hop on the trend train.

What is Pearl Skin?

Pearl skin makeup, as the name suggests, takes inspiration from the luminous yet soft sheen of pearls. This viral beauty trend features a radiant and dewy complexion that gives a subtle pearl-like glow while looking absolutely natural and ethereal. There is no space for heavy or cakey makeup in the pearl skin makeup trend. Instead, it’s all about the natural-looking glow that lights up your face like a shiny pearl.

Pearl makeup trends lean into the natural colour palette of pearls too. Champagne and oyster shades are the key colours in this trend. Like any other dewy makeup, it also features a slight wet texture, making your skin look more hydrated and leaving a silky, shiny finish. But don’t confuse pearl skin with glass skin. While both trends feature a dewy and wet look, pearl skin is slightly less wet-looking than glass skin.

While glass skin is all about shine and sheen, pearl skin is more about being soft and silky. Glass skin is more transparent but pearl skin is milkier and has a more strategic application. As in, when it comes to applying this makeup, it is more similar to highlighting, with some small twists. Traditionally you put highlighter along the top of your cheekbones, but to get pearl skin, you need to blend the highlighter onto the apple of your cheeks as well as along your cheekbones, and then some on your forehead. It looks less shimmery but more luminating and fresh.

You can also say it is more wearable than glass skin, which is why we have seen such a surge of this trend on red carpets and magazine shoots too. Take Emma Stone to the Oscar this year, where the actress received the Best Actress award for Poor Things. The actress looked stunning in her mint green peplum gown, but her soft and shiny pearl skin look stole the show.

Celebrity and entrepreneur Hailey Bieber’s Instagram is filled with pictures of her flawless shiny pearl skin. Most recently, actress Aditi Rao Hydari has shown fine examples of how to ace pearl skin for a bridal look. At her wedding with beau Siddharth, Aditi went for her signature natural makeup look for every outfit. The fresh dewy pearl skin made her look ethereal and it worked perfectly with her regal wedding attires.

Step-by-Step Guide for Pearl Skin

Step 1: Cleanse your skin and moisturise your face creating a smooth texture.

Step 2: Use a hydrating or luminous primer, based on your skin type, to create a radiant base.

Step 3: Use a lightweight, dewy or radiant foundation and apply it evenly. Use a brush for a shinier finish.

Step 4: Brush your eyebrows to add a sleek touch.

Step 5: Use a lightweight concealer for a more natural look covering blemishes and dark circles.

Step 6: Apply a pearl-hued highlighter on your cheekbones, apples of your cheeks, brow bones, eyelids and the bridge of your nose.

Step 7: Apply a soft and rosy blush to your cheeks for a natural glow.

Step 8: Finish it off with a nude lip colour and a shiny lip gloss.

You can wear this makeup everywhere, from formal work meetings to cute coffee dates, from girls’ night out to even your wedding. Just remember to get the right products which will give you a shiny look while not bothering your skin texture.