Carrie Underwood's Biggest Makeup Mistakes We Just Can't Forget

Carrie Underwood's stunning transformation involves a long history with makeup. The singer told Yahoo! Life in 2014 she'd often experiment with her mom and sisters' cosmetics as a kid, sharing, "I have always loved it. I had teenage sisters when I was very little, so I have great memories of watching them and my mom put on a ton of makeup in the morning." But all that practice doesn't mean she's avoided makeup mistakes. "I started loving makeup when I was way too young. I learned through trial and error. A lot of error," she joked to Yahoo! Life in a 2017 interview. "I do remember having blue mascara and green mascara. And blue eyeshadow of course. Things that didn't exactly look too good!" she recalled.

But colored mascara (which actually trended again in 2023) is hardly the only beauty booboo she's made. In 2022, Underwood showed off a unique lipstick choice on Instagram that her fans didn't exactly approve of. The "Good Girl" singer shared a kissy face selfie wearing glittery purple lipstick that didn't quite work. The bold, unnatural shade was overkill with her dark brown shadow and, although it fit with the sparkly aesthetic of her "Denim and Rhinestones" era, it felt off when we're so used to seeing her with such healthy-looking, glossy lips. "Ugh. That lipstick?!!!??!!" one person commented. "Not real...tone it down Carrie. You are beautiful just the way you are sister," another wrote. But that's not the only time she's had a misstep after spending time the makeup chair.

When Carrie Underwood shot to fame on "American Idol" in 2005, she didn't have access to the top makeup artists and cosmetics she does now. And it showed. When she hit the red carpet to celebrate making it into the Top 12, her makeup wasn't the most flattering and didn't match the A-List star she was becoming.

Underwood wore shimmery pink shadow on her lids and under her eyes, but didn't add a darker product for definition on the outer corner or in the socket. She also appeared to skip liner and threw on several coats of mascara, which made her lashes look clumpy. She paired the eye look with a dark, rosy pink, metallic lipstick. Though Underwood was young (she was only 21 when she auditioned) this makeup felt too juvenile and uncoordinated. Thankfully, the Grammy winner has developed a more flattering signature look since, often sporting a smoky eye and nude lip.

Carrie Underwood attended the 2009 People's Choice Awards with seriously thin, light brows that weren't the most flattering. Though eyebrows can be the hardest part of your routine to get right, we'd have recommended filling them in a little more with a gel and pomade to add more structure to her face. "Growing up in the '90s I feel like the thin eyebrow was definitely a thing and I, like so many others, overdid it," she told People in 2017. "They never really grew back the way they were supposed to so now I am very happy that they do have eyebrow pencils, so I can fix what I did to myself when I was young," she added. But she needed to go a little heavier with her pencil in this case. 

Underwood also wore heavy, matte, full-coverage foundation that made her face look flat amid the flashbulbs. The "American Idol" contestant turned judge needed more bronzer on either side of her forehead and blush on her cheeks to bring more dimension to her complexion.

But that wasn't the only fail we spotted from Underwood, who's also had a few outfits that didn't work, as camera flashes picked up a heavy dose of body glitter on her back. Though a little sparkle can make the skin look healthy and glowy, the country singer applied too much and the lighting made it look like dry skin or dust.

Though we appreciate that Carrie Underwood tried something different from her signature glossy nude lip and dark eye for the 2016 CMT Awards, the bubblegum pink lipstick just missed the mark. The shade was too flat, looked dry, and revealed the texture on her lips, which aged her. As the beauty proved, mastering matte lipsticks can be tough, which is why it's a good idea to exfoliate your mouth first (try Burt's Bees Conditioning Honey Lip Scrub or e.l.f. Lip Exfoliator) to remove any dead skin cells, then apply a lip balm for moisture. A smooth surface will help the product apply more evenly, avoiding a dry, patchy finish.

Underwood also could have benefit from using a slightly darker, blended lip liner. That would have brought a little more definition to the "Blown Away" singer's face, helping the product blend better with the rest of her makeup.