Coquette Beauty Is Having a Moment

Characterized by hair bows, Bambi eyes, and blush pink everything, coquette beauty is the whimsical aesthetic leading the 2023 beauty trends. Whether your main source of glam inspo comes from #BeautyTok or high fashion runways, you’ll be seeing the trend everywhere this year.

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By definition, the coquette (“a woman who flirts”) aesthetic channels an angelic sort of old-school beauty that draws upon notions of hyper-femininity and flirtation. According to Beauty Daily by Clarins, coquette beauty is the number one rising beauty trend on TikTok so far this year, with 1.7 billion views (and counting) on the app. Once TikTok’s algorithm has decided you’re a candidate for consuming coquette glamour content, prepare for an influx of inspiration that feels like it was plucked from a Sofia Coppola film or a live adaptation of a Jane Austen novel.

As told by TikTok and its in-the-know makeup artists and creators, true coquette beauty is not complete without a high concentration of pink products distributed between eyeshadow, blush, and lipstick. Skin is kept soft, simple, and set with powder. Because what feels more coquette than dabbing away at our cheeks with a powder puff? Next, the eyes come alive with doll-like lashes, a swipe of liquid liner, or a brightening burst of white eyeliner on the waterline for a doe-eyed effect. And finally, pearl finishes are added via iridescent highlighters to the high points of the face, like the brow bone and cheeks, for an ethereal glow.

If you’re fully committed to adopting this aesthetic, consider stocking your makeup station with brands packaged in pastel pink like Too Faced and Rare Beauty, or complete with bow details like Dior to take this trend all the way.

Hairstyles and accessories are essential to building a coquette beauty look. A head full of bows, a free-flowing cascade of bouncy curls, or a wispy set of curtain bangs will do — so long as that soft whimsical feeling and wink of playfulness is still present. Conveniently, this season’s fashion month shows have been all about the bow. Sandy Liang sent models down the runway with miniature bows adorning their crowns in New York, while Yuhan Wang tied bows of lace and ribbon into models’ braids in London. Lest we forget the Simone Rocha Fall 2023 show, where models’ cheeks were decorated with dainty bow appliqués.

From the runway to the red carpet, celebrities like Emily Ratajkowski have, perhaps unknowingly, contributed to the trend with recent coquettish hair moments. Earlier this month, the model posed before photographers at a Viktor & Rolf event with a curly disco hairdo that could easily translate on TikTok as a coquette hairstyle. Curls do make a lovely canvas for bows, after all. And while Em Rata’s spirals may be the work of a perm, natural curls are coquette material, too. Whether they’re being manipulated into a braided style or picked to afro perfection, curls can take on any coquette hair transformation.

We’ll be keeping our eye on the coquette beauty trend as the year goes on to see who embraces it and what sub-genres come out of it (we’re watching you, dark coquette!). To the craft store for mini-bows, we go!