Move Over Glass Skin—It's Vampire Skin's Time to Shine

I was 12 years old when Twilight was released, and I was a fan through and through—I had the magazine-cutout collages, book collection, and posters of Taylor Lautner and Robert Pattinson proudly displayed in my bedroom to prove it. Twilight’s heroine, Isabella Swan, is my namesake, and I felt a special connection to the movie—embarrassingly enough, I often envisioned myself as a character in the saga, playing baseball at super-sonic speed, running through the streets of Volterra to save my lover, and, of course, sparkling in a field of grass while I held hands with Edward Cullen.

These days, my love for glistening skin lives on differently, as I’m always on the hunt for products, tools, and treatments that give my skin a reflective glow instead of a undead shimmer. Thanks to TikTok, however, my skin goals have shifted back to what they were in my tween years with the emergence of the vampire skin trend.

The Inspiration

Considering that not everyone is as much of a Twilight super-fan as I am, here’s a refresher on what happens when a Twilight vampire steps into the sunlight. As opposed to other fictional vampires, like Dracula or Nosferatu, vampires in Twilight don’t burn in the sunlight—they sparkle. Their sparkle has been compared to diamonds, casting a glitter-like glimmer onto their entire body. It’s why the Cullen family chose to live in Forks, a small, rainy city in Washington that gets minimal sunlight throughout the year, making it easier for them to blend in with the rest of their mortal companions.

The Trend

Although the Cullens's glistening vampire skin is purely fictional, people all over TikTok have been recreating their glittery visages. Now, it can be difficult to diffuse glitter evenly onto the skin, which is why creators are mimicking vampire skin by mixing glitter into their foundation for an all-over sparkly complexion.

How to Get Vampire Skin

First, you’ll want to prep your skin for a sparkling complexion by using an extra hydrating skin care routine and a hydrating primer as a base. After that, grab a palette suitable for mixing makeup (the back of your hand can work just as well.) Then, mix your foundation, CC cream, or tinted moisturizer with a cream glitter formula before pressing the concoction into your skin. For this step, feel free to use your usual technique for applying foundation.

The result is actually surprisingly subtle, so stop here if that's enough glow for you. However, if you want to take it up a notch, use a fan brush to sweep pressed or loose glitter onto any areas you would typically highlight (like the tops of your cheekbones, your brow bone, your inner corner, the bridge of your nose, and your cupid’s bow). If you don't have glitter dust, you can press any glitter eyeshadow you have on hand with a dense, domed brush for this step. To take the shine up a notch, use body glitter to add sparkle to your decolletage, arms, and even legs. Et, voilà, you now have vampire skin.

I’ll admit—I’m a creature of habit, and almost 15 years afterTwilight’s premiere, I still listen to “Bella's Lullaby” to soothe me whenever I feel like I need a hug. Thanks to TikTok, I can now sparkle like a Cullen as I listen to the movie’s calming soundtrack.