The spring/summer 2025 beauty looks at London Fashion Week were hot topics, generating buzz amongst fashion insiders. While natural, genderless lines reigned on the JW Anderson, Erdem, and Richard Quinn catwalks, Harris Reed, Simone Rocha, and Tolu Coker embraced glamour, color, and fantasy. Vogue breaks down the five biggest beauty trends that emerged, set to inspire both on and off the runway.
Tomboy Chic:
Genderless beauty reigned supreme at spring/summer 2025, with clean, natural-looking, androgynous hair and makeup taking center stage. This trend, a cool and sophisticated cousin of the “clean girl” aesthetic, is distinctly devoid of harsh, barbie pink blush or oil-slicked glow. JW Anderson’s show exemplified this look, where lead makeup artist Lynsey Alexander focused on “elegant and handsome beauty.” The eyebrows were brushed up for a bold, masculine finish, achieved using the Merit Brow 1990 Gel Pencil and layered with the Merit Brow 1980 Volumising Pomade. To balance the look, a girlish pale pink lip completes the style.
Erdem showcased a natural beauty look, prepped to perfection using 111Skin’s cryotherapy treatment. The 111Skin team explains, “We worked on the models for five to seven minutes, blowing cold air at minus 40 degrees onto their faces. We also used lymphatic drainage movements on the neck to re-energise, de-puff and re-contour the face. This technique also helps to shrink pores, and gives the skin a natural fresh glow. After that, we used our under-eye and face masks to achieve an instant-result naturally radiant sheen.”
Veil Trail:
Veils emerged as the ultimate hair accessory for a mysterious beauty look, seen on both the Richard Quinn and Roksanda catwalks. At Roksanda, Anna Cofone enveloped models’ faces in diaphanous fabrics, drawing inspiration from the artist Agnes Denes’s work. Cofone explains, “Roskanda referenced the artist Agnes Denes, who made a what field in Manhattan over forty years ago. She wanted to bring this idea of rebellion and nature and find ways to emulate that into her silhouettes and patterns. We wanted to mirror that in the hair look with contrasting textures, from high-shine and dry tails of hair to create an illusion of wheat. Then we added a separate veil.”
Glitzy Eyes:
Chopova Lowena’s catwalk is known for its unorthodox wardrobe gems, and spring/summer 2025 was no exception. The collection featured an array of neon paints, two-toned lips, and starry eyes, but the real showstopper was Lauren Reynolds’ bejewelled eyeliner. Instead of sticking to the lids, the makeup artist brought bling below the lash line, embellishing the entire eye contour for a mesmerizing effect. This beauty look is a must-bookmark for show-stopping glam come party season.
Glamorous Graphics:
Tolu Coker’s spring/summer 2025 runway beauty, orchestrated by Bea Sweet, paid homage to the domestic settings embraced by immigrant communities in the United Kingdom during the ’60s and ’70s, and the elegant glamour of her mother Olapeju Coker. “There was so much inspiration to draw from, including Tolu’s old photo archive and icons of the time like Etta James. We used eyeliner to create a sexy black and white graphic look, but one that’s still simple and accessible,” explains Bea Sweet. ‘60s beehives and voluminous blowouts made a triumphant return, styled by Efi Davies at Toni and Guy. Wigs were given a bouffant treatment using backcombing, hairspray, and salon pins. With similar styling appearing on the Bora Aksu runway, the SS25 shows made a strong case for “more is more” hair.
Pinched Lashes:
Harris Reed kicked off London Fashion Week with a whimsical, doll-like beauty look. Lashes were pinched with tweezers (a technique also used on the Tolu Coker runway), and adjusted with a wooden spork to ensure separation without becoming crunchy or lumpy. Individual extensions were added for an elongated appearance. The eyeshadow palette featured an ethereal blue shade from Charlotte Tilbury, set to be released next year, while the glimmering golden bronze was chosen from the brand’s bestselling Queen of Glow Luxury Eyeshadow Palette.
At Mains, the fashion crowd was transported back to childhood days of after-school cartoon binges. Eyes were amped up with spiky, avant-garde lashes. “I wanted the models to resemble anime characters,” says makeup artist Chiao Li Hsu, describing the cartoonish beauty. These looks were preppy with a twist, showcasing insubordinate style. Li Hsu also sketched vampy lips with Bobbi Brown pencils and plumping gloss. Nostalgic crimped hair, courtesy of Ali Pirzadeh, gave pixie cuts and ponytails a Noughties finish that mimicked the fur motif throughout the collection. This bold glam is easy to replicate using Doll Beauty’s Chloe Elizabeth Faux Lashes, Bobbi Brown’s lip liner, and your trusty crimping iron.
Shimmery Nails:
For Roksanda, a little shine went a long way. Georgia Rae created a simple and sophisticated micro French tip using coats of Bio Sculpture polish. She explains, “When it comes to Roksanda, there’s always a subtle, dark element to her collections. Influenced by the lip, we went for for a dark tip, micro-french in navy. It’s got a slight shimmer to it which is really nice because it brings a little bit of light to the look. The second look was a really deep burgundy and on the models with deeper skin tones it looked absolutely divine.”
Taking the concept of shimmer to new heights, Simone Rocha featured tasseled talons. Session manicurist Ama Quashie lined the ends of each model’s fingertips with beaded tassels, the ultimate nail jewels.
