Why Frosty Shimmer Is Replacing the Clean Girl Aesthetic on the Red Carpet
On red carpets and under stage lights this season, a cooler-toned shimmer has been quietly reclaiming the eye — and per celebrity makeup artist Anthony Merante in conversation with E!
News, the frosty lid marks a deliberate pivot away from the clean girl era toward something more playful, a little nostalgic, and visibly more fun.
The celebrity read
Merante, whose roster includes Ava Max, Taraji P. Henson, and Madison Bailey, frames the moment as more than a beauty blip. Frosted shadow, he told E!, feels "playful, experimental, and a little nostalgic" while catching light in ways matte formulas can't. For performers like Ava Max, the look doubles as stage armor — reflective texture performs under concert lighting that flat shadow simply can't match. There's emotional logic at work here: after seasons of restraint and quiet luxury, a shimmer-heavy eye is the celebrity equivalent of loosening a tie. Stars aren't abandoning the glowy skin and clean lashes that defined the past few years; they're letting the eyes do the talking while the rest stays polished.
The practical playbook
Merante's advice keeps the trend wearable off the carpet. Start small and build — apply shimmer or frost to the center of the lid and inner corner first, then blend outward so it reads dimensional rather than flat metallic. Press the product on with a fingertip or sponge-tip applicator rather than sweeping; that approach delivers major payoff with minimal fallout. If glitter migrates under the eye, a small piece of tape lifts it cleanly without disturbing the rest of the makeup. Keep the rest of the eye soft — the reflective texture should be the focus, not a supporting player. For Ava Max specifically, Merante notes the key is pressing the product onto the lid rather than sweeping, a small technique shift that dramatically changes the finish.
The kit and what comes next
Merante's product edit is intentionally tight. For bold pigment and a frosted finish with minimal effort, he points to the Anastasia Beverly Hills Glidr Eyeshadow Sticks in Sunny and Blue Ice, which he describes as giving "beautiful pigment and that reflective, frosted finish with very little effort." For a more vibrant wash, Violette_FR's Yeux Paints in Bleu de Minuit and Violette Sauvage blend easily with a fingertip or shadow brush for a wash of color. For daytime polish, the Victoria Beckham Beauty Satin Kajal Liners in Cocoa Pavé and Navy Noir Pavé offer a softer shimmer that still feels modern.
Worth tracking: a separate E! News piece with makeup artist Brandy Allen already forecasts muted "anti-blush" tones taking over fall red carpets, with cheek colors low in saturation that can double as contour. If that prediction holds, the frosty eye may end up being this summer's flirtation rather than a long-term relationship with shimmer.
