BEAUTY TRENDS

Bronzy Y2K glam is making a comeback and it's perfect for summer goddess vibes

Sunkissed and summer ready.

4 April 2025

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Cool-toned makeup and silver accents have been ruling the beauty trends recently, but throw it back to the 2000s and bronzy Y2K glam was the headlining aesthetic that almost every major celebrity tapped into thanks to its universally skin-perking effect.

Essentially a golden hour glow applied directly to skin, warm bronzy tones helped to lift and sculpt noughties complexions and deliver goddess vibes with glowy and glossy finishes.

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Jennifer Lopez, in particular, made “glow” her signature, and Beyoncé regularly leant into golden and bronzy tones with caramel curls and bronzed makeup. Although, more recently, the singer has been partially responsible for the 180 we've seen in beauty trends. Ever since Queen Bey introduced silver cowgirl hats and platinum blonde strands during her Renaissance tour, cooler tones have been making their way into the top beauty aesthetics.

As summer approaches though, we'll be mining the noughties archive for a warmer spin on our makeup. “As a millennial, I can tell you, bronzy Y2K glam was THE moment, confirms top celebrity makeup artist, Melissa Hernandez, who counts the likes of Sydney Sweeney, Olivia Rodrigo and Mikey Madison as clients. “[It] was on every It Girl I grew up obsessed with in the early 2000s,” she continues.

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As for how to achieve the look, Melissa has some advice. Start with a natural finish foundation, then add warmth with a bronzer “dusting a bit on the eyes for cohesion,” she says. For eyes, she'd layer a warm brown shadow on the lids and lower lash line with a luminising copper shade on top for a pretty sheen, before finishing off with a coat of mascara.

“This look wouldn't be complete without some serious glow, so I'm using Forever Glow Luminizer in Nude Halo on the high points and finishing off with none other than a Y2K staple: nude glossy lips,” she says. “And there you have it – bronzed, glowy and straight out of the early 2000s.”

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Elsewhere, we've seen bronzed goddess vibes perfected by the likes of Aussie makeup artist, Shannon JJ Williams. He swears by Tom Ford's Shade & Illuminate for bronzed, glowy vibes and Makeup By Mario's Master Mattes Palette for an edit of warm tones to blend across lids. To keep it cute, faux freckles add a little extra individuality and warmth.