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Shine On: Metallic Holiday Makeup to Wear Now

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Fall might make you think matte neutrals — but before you pull out the Urban Decay Naked palette, hear us out! There’s no better time for drama and glamour than the holiday season. And, who wouldn’t want to extend the decadence as long as they can?

You get about six weeks from Thanksgiving and New Years, so embrace it! Why limit the luster to the night of your office or family festivities and over-hyped NYE? It’s called the holiday season for a reason, people, and it’s never too early to get sparkling.

Ease into the final days of November with rustic and berry metallics. Then, hit the real holiday spirit hard with holly jolly red and golds. Keep it going well into the New Year with icy silvers and (oh yes, we’re going there!) blues. If stores can crank the holiday music right after Halloween, we can surely and guiltlessly indulge in some glittering seasonal beauty…

4 Metallic Holiday Makeup Looks

1. Copper Smokey Eye

Metallic copper eye pencil
Copper eye pencil
Maybelline Eye Studio Lasting Drama Waterproof Gel Eyeliner Pencil, $6.89, Target

Maybe you’re not quite feeling the holiday spirit yet. It isn’t December, after all. Or maybe you’re just looking for some subtle sparkle, apt for the office. Copper gives you the harvest hue you’re craving with an added shine that’s elevated from your everyday neutrals.

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Use a shadow stick to rim around the whole eye and give it a good celebratory smudge along the top and bottom lash line.

See also: Everyday Makeup Looks to Complement Brown Eyes

2. Silver and Gold Cheek Frost

Highlighter makeup
Laura Gellar Baked Gelato Swirl Illuminator in Diamond Dust, $26, ULTA
Elf highlighting stick
Beautifully Bare Highlighting Stick, $4, E.L.F.

Most women have worked a highlighter into their beauty routine by now to deliver a natural sheen and dewy glow. Amp up the illumination for the season of glamour with straight up metallics. Go gold or silver. Either can be sheered out or built up to your ideal level of sparkle.

3. Ruby Lip

There’s no better time to go “full Kylie” than holiday festivities. So bring on the bright red. The base color on its own would be cheery, but added glitter like a gold sparkle takes it totally over the top (in the best way). If glitter feels too youthful, go for a chromatic sheen instead.

4. Emerald Cat Eye

Green sparkly eyeliner
Unicorn Eyeliner Charming Pudding, $18, GlitterGirl

A bright cat-eye wing is wild for some and everyday fare for others, yes. But when you add a little glimmer to the mix, it’s holiday beauty for everybody. Swipe on a glistening emerald shade with a precise or dramatic feline flick for instant seasonal sex appeal.