It is shocking and grotesque and sometimes hilarious. Take a look, and you will see a slew of variations in which cosmetic products made people look bad.
She Covered Her Natural Brows for This Look
Look, in terms of foundation and highlighter, this look is not half bad. What is truly disconcerting in this picture, though, are the arches. When you look at her, you think of McDonald’s. Is it subliminal advertising?
She could be a social media influencer for the Big Mac. On second thought, it seems like she is going for a cartoon-like, perpetually surprised expression.
It’s Not a Good Look
Monochrome eyeshadow is always a problem, but here it's paired with all-around poor choices. The cheeks are painted rosy pink, all over, instead of where they should be.
But that eye work... It makes you forget about anything else.
Mismatched Complexion
What we're looking at here looks more like rubber than human skin. You know, like one of those Halloween masks that you pull over your head. It’s uncannily shiny and, compared with her neck, completely dissimilar.
The eye paint is interesting but it’s impossible to get past what is supposed to be skin.
Dot 2 Dot
What first strikes us are her eyebrows. They’re bad, unreasonably bad. There is such a thing as too much glitter and in the wrong color. The depressing black stick-on dots in the inner corner of her eye look as if they have fallen off the even more depressing eyebrows.
And what's with the black dots around her lips? Is this a dot-to-dot puzzle? Someone posted it on Reddit and wrote “Y??? Just…Y????” I think that sums it up.
Nothing High About These Brows
This person’s makeup is exaggerated to the point that it is scary. She’s got two sets of eyebrows, which is outrageous enough as it is. There are two explanations for this phenomenon.
Either the makeup artist forgot her spectacles that day, or the model was in the mood for bringing to life a new trend. There is nothing pretty about it, it flouts any notions of beauty sold conventionally at cosmetic counters.
Too Much Highlighter
There is more than one reason this look is glaringly bad — the highlighter is blinding, her cheek, the tip of her nose, and the space between the brows shine bright like plastic. And what about those eyebrows?
Yikes, savage. The lipstick color is also hard to look at for longer than a second or two.
But That Demon Eye
The alien appearance in this ensemble of splattered hot pink and black accents is intentional. The artist said it is “inspired by the strangeness and beauty of the transformation from winter to spring.” This work is called, “Alien Bloom.”
One would think sprouting lashes and brows would be ugly in a bad way, instead, it is ugly in an interesting direction.
Frighteningly Ridiculous
She is wearing heavy false eyelashes on top but absolutely no lashes on the bottom. But clearly, that is not the most unsettling part of this makeup disaster.
The unnatural-looking neon mint hue strains the eyes. She looks like an alien raccoon in the disguise of a cow who was kidnapped by a tribal inquisition.
A New Kind of Smokey
This is what happens when you take the smokey style one step too far. We love the smokey look, we even paint our own faces occasionally using that style but what happened here had gone totally wrong.
Instead of having a mysterious and classic feeling to it, it looks more like a bonfire left some thick black smoke in the air. And on her face.
At First Glance, It’s Not Too Bad
A longer gaze finds that her facial complexion is a few shades darker orange compared to the skin color of her chest area.
It really ruins an otherwise passable face, save for the spidery lashes and fake-looking eyebrows. It’s a makeup fail, take note.
Is He an Avatar
No, he appears to be a young man who has put on enough makeup to disguise his humanity. His hair is an unreal color and to make things worse, you can see his foundation smeared into his hairline.
That’s not the end of the makeup issues. The highlighting down the length of his nose is a shiny streak. Having said that, it adds to the preternatural mien he is plainly going for.
The Tribal Effect
This lesson in a contour has gone off the deep end. Her face resembles a patterned animal, like a leopard or a giraffe. Her use of contour looks like it is taking face painting to a whole new level.
Just to calm you guys down, we'll disclose that this makeup artist is fully aware of her actions and created this look for a social media challenge.
It’s Like a Carnival Masquerade Mask
The orange tones across the bridge of her nose and in the eyeliner wings give her face the appearance of wearing a face mask. Not that kind! The faux lashes are reminiscent of feathers.
The brows look synthetic and there is a little too much orange across her cheeks and forehead, but other than that, it’s interesting costuming.
Frozen
It’s cotton candy blue, but at the same time, it looks like she is freezing—so cold her lips turned blue. Her heavy eyelashes and frozen look make sense when you find out how she captioned it, “My best ‘deer in the headlights.”
Don’t those lashes look just like those of an alert little doe?
A Fluffy Eye
Her eye is all fluff, unreasonably overtaking her line of vision completely and impairing any way to tell where her eye is. What is worse is the origin of the fluff.
PETA and vegans won’t like this cosmetic option. It is made from real animal fur. Slightly over the border in our opinion.
White Stripes and Hearts
It’s like this girl got bored in class and started experimenting with a bottle of Wite-Out. It looks toxic and semi-permanent. We hope it can be removed easily with the regular stuff.
As it turns out, white makeup is a legit product. Refinery29 called white eyeliner the “biggest celebrity makeup trend of 2019.” Is it out of fashion yet? One can only hope.
Angelina Jolie’s Makeup Malfunction
It’s hard to believe this actually happened. In 2014 at a New York premiere of Brad Pitt’s HBO production, “The Normal Heart,” Jolie showed up lacking some pretty serious blending work.
How did Pitt fail to notice that and give her a head’s up? The flash of photographers makes it appear even worse.
Miley Cyrus Falls Victim to the Same Makeup Malfunction
Across her chin and lower cheek area, a white powder residue is impossible to miss. Like other celebs who have gone wrong with their makeup, Cyrus’s routine is incomplete.
The product in question is a translucent powder which, ideally, gives the face a luminous effect in the bright lights of cameras.
Eyeshadow 101
The first rule of eyeshadow is to never use only one shade. This girl does not look like she’s one for following the rules, so maybe she is trying to shock people with these red eyes and lips.
But all that bright color around her eyes looks like she has been sucker-punched. Don’t get us started on those eyebrows!
Metallic, Uh
The metallic sheen covering her mouth and lids looks unnatural, at best. It’s robotic, alien, and shiny. But at the same time, it’s colorful, playful, and fun.
This young lady might be a heavy metal fan. Or perhaps, she’s into David Bowie’s Ziggy Stardust glam phase.
Oh It’s Bad
But why is it so bad? Her makeup is standard — red lips, sculpted brows, and long lashes. But it’s the exaggeration of normal makeup that drives people away. It’s amplified so boldly that it makes one cringe.
The lips look overinflated like they might pop, and the lashes are so long they overtake her brows. It’s unsettling, but some think it’s a smart beauty trend.
Tim Burton Inspired
There can be no other explanation. She drew hearts on barbwire where her eyebrows should have been. It’s... harsh. It looks like the wire was painful, that it made her cry and smudged the rest of her makeup.
This is probably as low as one can get. Do not try this at home.
Making a Point About Bad Makeup
Will Ferrell and Steve Carell highlight the most common makeup fails. The two comedians attended the 78th Academy Awards to present the Best Makeup Oscar.
Ferrell went for the overly bronzed look and Carell’s lashes and brows are over-emphasized. Plus, his foundation does not make it to the hairline.
This Guy Is Famous, but His Bad Makeup Is Legendary
Twisted Sister’s Dee Snider rocked out his anti-glam heavy metal anthem, “We’re Not Going to Take It” in the heart of the ‘80s. With over-the-top heavy makeup, Snider said they were ugly on purpose.
The word he used was “hideous.” And guess what, the band was still rocking up until 2016.
Do You Remember Bratz Dolls?
She’s a real-life doll. Plastic painted several shades darker orange than skin comes in. She pays attention to style trends with white eyeliner on the inside bottom lid. Using her assets in all the wrong ways, this woman put together a look to be remembered. Though not fondly.
One Redditor thought she looks like a video game villain, and another compared her to one of those dolls that pop out in horror movies.
This Doll Face Is Even More Disturbing
What first sticks out here is that the lipstick does not make it to where the crease of the smile would extend, the rest of the lips are simply painted over in foundation. The orange around the forehead is way too dark.
The lashes, the brows, it’s a lot. A Redditor said that this person works nearby them and that the makeup looks even worse in person.
Dolly Parton’s Makeup Is Sometimes Garish
We love Dolly because she is so sweet and charitable. She’s like a ray of sunshine. Sometimes her fake look, however, goes off the rails.
Her brows, here, are like Mickey D’s arches. And the choice of blue eyelids is perhaps not her best. Her eyes look closed up with eyeliner. But somehow, she still looks great.
This Is Something Else
Is that an armed face mask she’s sporting or something more sinister? This is a look that only a mother could love. Her eyes are heavy with purple and metallic-looking eyebrows glistening above.
And those spikey studs scream threateningly, ‘Stay away from me, do not come close!’
Even She Knows It’s a Tragic Makeup Fail
We hope she didn’t have to pay someone for that makeup disaster. But she has a picture of the look she was going for in her hand and she is in the car, presumably heading home, so this was clearly an outside job.
Now, if she was on a way to a Halloween party of the year, it can be excused, but could you imagine if she were on her way to a makeup photoshoot?
No Words
What in the holy heck? How did this happen? Silver eyebrows, why, why, why? Clearly, this makeup mistake begs more questions than answers.
However, it fits the list: It is ridiculously bad. Comedic even. Look at the thin line beneath her eye. And the thick, dark line above.
This Is an Interesting Look
It’s not as bad as some of the images we have seen, but it does veer off into the makeup fail territory. It has what looks like a Star Trek-inspired eyeliner design.
The sharp switchback of the brown liner reminds one of the tail-ends of The Enterprise. And it’s reminiscent of Star Trek character makeup that is used to delineate an alien species from humans.
What Look Is She Going for?
What we have here is darkened purple shadow with a gold coin glued to the middle of her eyelid. At least, that is what it looks like.
Other than that, she has the same problem that plagues so many. A bare neck contrasts dramatically with where the foundation line ends.
Sources Say He Does His Own Makeup
One thing is certain, his orangey look became a meme overnight. Alec Baldwin had a field day with it on “Saturday Night Live.” Donald Trump claimed it was “fake news.” He also complained that the photo, taken by photojournalist William Moon, was an attack by his opponents.
But does he do his own makeup? A former campaign assistant said that Trump’s grooming habits are “his own secret to keep.”
Blazing Eyelids
Is this for real? Perhaps it has been photoshopped because the skin on her forehead looks fake, as do her eyebrows. But the fire in her eyes is spectacular, yet not in a good way.
It’s too much. There is one stand-out feature, and that is her lips. Unique but attractive.
So Bad It’s Good
Some of the makeup out there is quite artistic. It’s like the trend of bad makeup came around full circle. This look is black and black with more black to balance things out.
She didn't really do much, just painted whatever came her way in black, made sure her hair matched, and off she was on her way.
Bluesy But Bad
The best thing one can say about this is that her makeup and hair match so well it looks like they're made of the same thing. However, looking closely at the eye makeup, it is not very flattering.
The downward and diagonal paint is uninspired, and the painted lids are clumsily sketched.
Her Eyebrows Are in the Middle of Her Forehead
After that, a sea of teal and turquoise fills in the void. This is a really unfortunate look. Those brows. Those fake brows, shoot up with the effect of making her permanently surprised.
It's like she’s always astonished. Maybe she's amazed at how bad makeup can turn out.
She Makes a Statement
She makes several. Unless someone has a skilled makeup artist at hand, one should never, ever, ever use yellow as an eyeshadow. Striped across the feathers of many varieties of birds, the color is beautiful, but on humans, it’s a makeup fail.
We get it, she is tying in the yellow in the earrings with her eye makeup design. But no. Just no.
A Devilish Demeanor
Her irises are red too! This is one way to hide the foundation line from jaw to neck — paint it all red. The fiendish look is drawn out in what looks like a fine-point black sharpie.
It’s beyond a makeup fail, it’s an intentional demonic catastrophe.
Eyeball Illusionist
This one really tripped us out and that’s exactly the angle this makeup artist was going for. It’s called “eye illusion” in the Instagram caption. It is mesmerizing.
The effect was achieved by painting half an iris on her eyelids. Her eyelashes are muted, free of mascara and blonde, also contributing to the visual effect.
Monster Makeup
Blues and blacks dredged from the sea decorate this face. The inspiration for this frightening design is Charybdis, a sea monster from Greek mythology. That probably explains the fish-like lips and the swirl on the tip of her nose.
The mythological sea creature is depicted creating whirlpools to suck its victims into its mouth.
Frankenstein’s Monster's Sister
This is pretty jarring. Green is a color that we don’t like on the face. That’s why aliens are green. It’s inhuman.
The title of this creation is “Day Five,” so one can only imagine it represents the fifth day of decomposition of a corpse, like the cadaver-esque color of the Frankenstein monster.
Paint Party
This makeup job is so bad it lacks a single redeeming quality. The neon seems splashed on carelessly, and the eyebrows are colored in two different unflattering shades, matching the eye makeup.
It is makeup gone really, really wrong. It looks like the art supply aisle exploded on her.
Green-Eyed Monster
We have a problem with the green shades gracing the face. This Instagram user, @makeup_mixtape, says it was inspired by a green-colored Russian beverage.
The caption reads, “When the Green Fairy traded absinthe for [a] tasty Russian soda.” It looks like someone drank too much!
This Strangest Makeup
This girl’s face is done in scar makeup. She did not cut those designs into her face, thank goodness, it’s just an illusion.
Scar makeup is an actual product and very helpful in Hollywood costuming and makeup. It’s become part of the bad makeup trend.
Is It a Mess or a Work of Art?
The makeup on this person is done in broad, coarse brush strokes. At first glance, you might think a kindergartener slapped the paint on.
It’s um...not our favorite look, but then it does remind one of Picasso’s works. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
An Explosion of Color
At first, this look makes you think of t geisha makeup, yet the vibrancy of color makes it unique. Her shoulders are dark pink, and the green shadow paired with yellow blush adds to the alien vibes springing out of her face.
She has no eyebrows but her eyelashes sprawl to where they should have been.
There Is Something Worse Than Yellow Eye Shadow
Her eyeshadow is stunning, her eyebrows are shaped nicely too. Her cheeks look good. But when it comes to her lips, canary yellow is unsettling. It’s an unnatural lip color on humans and so we're taken aback.
It also makes her lips appear to protrude out of her face, sticking out like the bill of a duck. It’s purposely bad. The makeup look managed to attract over 2,000 likes on Instagram, which proves some people think it’s cool.
A Fiery Collision
This makeup mashup appears to be a cross between Disney’s “Cars” movie and a fiery NASCAR wreck. In other words — a bloody mess.
Don’t overlook the demon eyeballs. This example comes from Munich and we hope it stays there.
Messy Eye
The first thing that strikes us here is the eyeliner. It’s clumsily drawn, stretching too far into the inner corner of her eye, with smears and flakes falling under her lower lashes. That’s not the only issue, though.
Her brow looks much darker than it should and is unbrushed and unshaped. The reddish eyeshadow is applied in monochrome, and it is messy too, with a drop of shadow meeting the eyeliner in the inside corner.
Whoop, There It Is
The oversized hoop earrings are one thing. But the biggest problem with this makeup job is an overdose of highlighter. Or maybe it is concealer.
Either way, there is too much and instead of brightening up dark spots, it looks like sunscreen that did not get rubbed in. Those eyelashes are another misstep. Bigger is not necessarily better.
Flashback
In the ‘90s, the lipstick style trend was all about using a lipliner that is several shades darker than the lip color. Sadly, it appears the trend is resurfacing. It was bad then and it is bad now.
This girl’s makeup is also problematic over the eyes. The unicolor eyeshadow and darkened brows combination is just not working for us.
A Wide Block
She went to a makeup artist for this. A kindergartener with some crayons could have saved her from any fees of an MUA. The block of blush is the most offensive to the senses.
But the purple eyeshadow, all one color covering the lid, is bad too. And the brows loom over the lashes, so dark and heavy like storm clouds, but not as poetic.
El Toro
A unibrow is a fearful feature, and here it is demonstrated perfectly. Why someone would do that to their face on purpose is the first question that comes to mind. At least it’s not tattooed! It’ll wash off.
Yet, because of this image, it is scarred into our minds, we can’t unsee it. Have you ever seen bull horns mounted to the hood of a truck? This.
Deep Dive
This deep and dark dive into the unknown is smokey and sparkly, but overall, it is dark. Black on the lids, black on the lips, and blackened brows. Going for the grunge effect, she surely achieved it. It’s reminiscent of a future Hot Topic employee.
Likewise, the application is smeary. Especially on the side of her eyelid where it smudges away like charcoal. Ditto, on her lips. Next time, consider some lipliner and stay within the lines of said lipliner.
Where to Start?
Her eyeshadow has wings. They’re vibrant like a parrot. Added to that, her blush is not blended at all. It’s a pink stripe with a visible line demarcating the lower part of her face. It’s bad. But luckily it washes off.
We left the worst for last. Look at how far apart her eyebrows are. Part of her brows is missing. Gone. Don’t do this at home.
Eyebrow Tutorial
This girl’s makeup is looking fantastic, with soft lips, and professional-grade eyeliner work, but next is the elephant in the room. Big, boldacious brows. They’re so outrageous, it’s hilarious.
It makes you fear she’s going to start howling at the moon at any second. Surely this is the werewolf brow tutorial. Either that or it's a case of a very unfortunate Insta-filter.
Not Quite a Unibrow
It gets dangerously close, but there is a small gap between both brows here. Therefore, what we have here is not quite a unibrow situation. But what she’s got is a mangled mess nonetheless.
Judging by the swelling and redness, it appears that this woman had a most unfortunate experience with microblading. Perhaps a toddler was handling the needle? We hope she got her money back.
An MUA for Homecoming
It was not quite a professional makeup artist that did this. It was one of those assistants at the cosmetics counter who do your makeup for free. Needless to say, her work was a disaster.
The worst part is the highlighter. It’s not actually a highlighter, it’s an extra oily foundation without any setting powder. The girl was able to redo her makeup before the dance. Whew.
Bad Makeup Can Happen to Anyone
Here’s Drew Barrymore, a woman with access to A-list makeup artists. Or so we thought. She was caught on camera with an unfortunate makeup disaster. The powder is used to lighten the face and buff out those bags under the eyes.
In this case, all we can see is the powder. It looks like a white eye mask. Makes you wonder how long it took for her to find out!
Hippie Chick
In this example of bad makeup, there are plenty of problems, but let’s focus on the eye makeup for now. Black eyeliner is heavy-handedly applied against a fair complexion by a rookie hand.
The real mess, however, is the gold color that is splotched on with perhaps a makeup sponge, randomly, here and there, around her eyes. Personally, we would have gone with something pink to match her hair.
Teletubby Trigger
This glittery rainbow is, um, colorful. Right? it is blended magnificently, considering all of those dissimilar shades, until the ear, then it misses. Overall, it’s a very cheery canvas with hot pink blending into golden sunshine yellow, finished in turquoise blues.
Yet, like a rainbow implosion, you can’t stop staring at it. It’s like a natural disaster. You can’t look away.
A Bad Decision
This person did not really need to get a makeover. She’s a talented makeup artist herself. But for a special occasion, she decided to go to an MUA as a treat. It cost about sixty bucks and look what she got!
She was so upset she could barely type. Those eyelids are like two stainless lids, like the Tinman in “The Wizard of Oz.” To top it off, the brows are uneven.
Worried?
Great work with the razor-sharp eyeliner. Horrible work with the AKG-like eyebrows. Eyebrows are on our faces for a reason. Primarily, they are useful for catching dust before it gets into our eyes. But they are also a big part of facial expressions, showing anger, fear, happiness, or anxiety.
Raised eyebrows show surprise. So many emotions are expressed through eyebrows. Here, these crazy-wavy brows give the impression of perpetual worry.
Clowning Around
Looking at this Instagram image, it’s easy to point out makeup fails. The blush is painted on thickly with obvious lines and no effort at blending. Her eyeshadow is all-one-color and brushed on as chunky as the blush.
It is so obviously bad, it’s like a joke. And it is. The kids find it funny. We suppose everyone would find it funny.
A Frigid Façade
Bold colors are caked on thickly in this example. The bright pastels are reminiscent of Easter morning, The smears of blue and pink are like decorated Easter eggs. But those lips.
Painted heavily in ice blue, it suddenly feels like winter has set in. She looks like she’s freezing cold during springtime. The cold never bothered her anyway? Well, maybe it should.
‘90s Bad Makeup
Even back in the ‘90s, bad makeup was funny. Here, Rachel is wearing the No. 1 eyeshadow no-no. Blue on the lids, blue on top. And it’s paired with the most common blush application fail.
This bad makeup case goes so far as to show her roots growing in. Someone as pretty as Jennifer Aniston can look ugly. This is one reason why bad makeup is hilarious.
Bronze Alert
This is a bronze alert, and it is on high. The white stripe down the nose only accentuates the fake-tanning effect. Her face is so sculpted in bronzer, that it almost looks like an Oscar statuette.
Those eyes though. This makeup is so messed up one runs out of words. Bad eyeliner, bad mascara, and bad shadow. And no lips. It’s all bad.
Mafioso Mama
Drag queens are the elite of makeup artists. Well, the good ones are, at least. It takes incredible skill to makeup your way into a different gender.
Here we see Mo Heart, one of the most memorable participants of RuPaul's Drag Race, at a red carpet event, demonstrating something she probably regretted the second she saw this picture. Let's just say that a lesson was learned and that the lesson is called highlighter etiquette.
The Color of Witches
Wicked witches are usually menacing-looking. Bad makeup must be a requirement of the villainous. The little mermaid gave her voice to someone who looked like this. Being under the sea must really blur your vision.
This image is so disturbing because of the black Sharpie brows, the lavender shadow that looks like a black eye, and those lips. A darker blue liner was not spared, drawn on with an uneven hand.
#Badmakeup
Let’s be honest. People share unflattering photos of themselves for one reason. This guy slapped on some rudimentary clown makeup because, as he says it, it is funny and cool. He does a bad makeup post once a week to amuse his subscribers, and he gets lots of views and likes.
This jester even does his makeup live on Twitch every Monday! This is what his followers want, he says.
It Happened to Nicole Kidman Too
Here is Nicole Kidman all dusted up attending a red carpet event in NYC. This makeup malfunction happened at the grand premiere of the 2009 film “Nine.”
Kidman was 42 when the movie hit theaters. Dressed in a jet-black formal strapless dress, the white powder marred her beauty momentarily that evening. A makeup artist failed to properly blend it in.
Goth Girl
Goth makeup is like a style of bad makeup. It’s ugly and dark on purpose. Typically, blackened eyes and a very light foundation define the look.
It gives the deathly pall they’re looking for. This girl is making bad makeup worse by sloppily doing her face in goth. That headset really sets off the playful style she is going for.
Makeup Mistake
Many times, people have a good idea, but it fails in execution. That’s what happened here. Who knows what she was going for? It looks like she was attempting the wing style that is usually done in eyeliner but using eyeshadow instead.
The result is a block-like shape. It’s not blended, in other words. She said she is going to wash it off before leaving the house. Smart.
Pretty Kitty?
When we found this example of bad makeup, we could not pass it up. It is not that common to find a kitty all dolled up like that. Just look at those brows!
Overall, it looks like this cat would like to give you a kiss with her painted-on lips. She has a non-furry white complexion, but she’s pretty in pink.
No Mascara?
Frankly, if she did forget to do her mascara, it is the least of her makeup fails. I mean, just look at those brows. Yikes. It is not a normal brow shape, at all.
Plus, there are gap areas that look over-plucked. Perhaps the pencil rubbed off. And, lastly, the eyeshadow is solid dark purple, making it look like two black eyes.
Foundation Fail
This is awful. Makeup is supposed to make us look better. She was obviously not going for the goth look, but that is the end result of piling on too much foundation that is several shades lighter than her complexion. Doing that makes people look ashen and corpselike.
Additionally, her eyeshadow is the same shade as the foundation, and it only worsens her situation.
What Was Tyra Banks Thinking?
We automatically associate glamorous skin, beautiful makeup, and silky hair with attractive and stunning models. Think again.
Look at Tyra Banks. She manages to ruin everything she is known for with unflattering purple lipstick, extremely dark eye shadow, and a smile that we can't figure out if she is happy with the final outcome or if she's feeling awkward as we assume.
Back From the Moon
This one was taken at the "From the Land of the Moon" premiere. Aishwarya Rai showed up in a beautiful floral gown, however, completely destroyed it with a "what were you thinking" facial makeup.
Maybe purple lipstick was acceptable back then, however, the black eyeshadow has got nothing to do with her overall appearance and the one-pointed-one-not eyebrows make her look just as amazed as we are.