The Viral Beauty Trend That Turns Your Eye Bags Into A Work Of Art

Thirty years ago, celebrities like Drew Barrymore and Courtney Love were the epitome of '90s grunge glamor. They underlined with thick coal pencils, plucked their brows to oblivion, and wore blackberry-tinted lipsticks. Not to mention all the flannel, ripped jeans, and slip-dresses. Today, whether you're perusing the racks at Urban Outfitters or keeping up with Bella Hadid's street style, it's clear '90s grunge is in the midst of a resurgence.

On platforms like TikTok and Instagram, MUAs are taking sleepy looks from the '90s to the extreme, accentuating their dark circles with reddish-brown lipsticks and cool-toned eyeshadows. "The entire goal is to normalize dark circles," TikTok creator Sara Carstens explained to The New York Times, adding, "We're Gen Z. We're all tired and have bad sleeping schedules." Meanwhile, other creators have criticized the all-too-common practice of turning insecurities into washable trends — just look at the growing popularity of faux freckles.

Whatever your thoughts are on the rise of dark circles, it's already made quite the mark on runways and celebrity Instagrams. Most recently, internet personality NikkieTutorials combined "Euphoria" glam with grunge, deepening her eye bags with eyeshadow and adding gemstones on top. Here's how she made it work.

Inspired by the TikTok creator @evyxobby, Nikkie de Jager-Drossaers (more commonly known as NikkieTutorials) uses rhinestones to turn her eye bags into an artistic masterpiece on Instagram. "To me, this just further proves that rhinestones are the answer to everything in life. If you wake up looking like a zombie? Rhinestones!" Starting with a bronzing eyeshadow from her own Beauty Bay Pressed Pigment Palette, the creator diffuses her upper crease, adding a silvery shade to the center of her lid. Next, she focuses on her under eyes, underlining them with a thick matte black shadow before blending down with a cool-toned gray. Although the shadow may look a bit scary at this stage, don't worry. Rhinestones, lashes, and a black wing will tie it all together later. 

After blending your eyeshadow base, glue gems in an upside-down triangle below your eyes. "It's grunge but glam... I am not mad at this!" says NikkieTutorials, who also shouted out Uncle Fester from "The Adams Family" in her Instagram caption. Like Nikkie, finish off the look with a lip liner and gloss, adding a generous amount of rosy blush to your cheekbones.

Creating a symmetrical rhinestone look requires more than a little precision. If you're hoping for a faster option, start with liquid glitter. Chinese Douyin makeup, part of which involves accentuating the under eyes with blush and shimmery eyeshadow, is currently taking TikTok by storm.

As Lewis Chia, a Toronto and Vancouver-based creator, points out in a conversation with Teen Vogue, "The most important thing when it comes to Douyin makeup is: glitter!" adding, "If you look at any Douyin makeup look, you'll notice without fail that the model has either a glittery eyeshadow, eyeliner, or highlighter on."

As demonstrated by @cczuleighka on TikTok, start by contouring your aegyo-sal, that raised area of skin right below your eye. This can be done with brown or red eyeshadow and an angled liner brush. Next, using a liquid shimmer of sparkling eyeliner pencil, add a generous amount of highlight to your waterline. For further inspiration, it never hurts to look to K-Pop stars like Soyeon or Chungha. Feeling extra bold? Simply replace the concealer in your under-eye routine with glitter.