Why viral #RevengeMakeup is the proper ‘screw you’ to your ex

When Sophie Anne Smith, a 24-year-old digital marketing consultant, got dumped by her ex earlier this 12 months, she didn’t get mad — she got even. 

But somewhat than trashing his automobile à la Carrie Underwood’s “Before He Cheats” anthem or finding a strategy to sabotage her past love’s next relationship, Smith’s vengeance got here in the shape of glam.   

She’s certainly one of the two.9 million spurned lovers in addition to experimental cosmetics fans on TikTok to send her ex wincing in regret with the viral #RevengeMakeup primp. Unlike the recently buzzy “crying” or “cold girl” makeup trends, which each called for soft curves, puffy doe-eyes and a dehydrated pout, revenge makeup demands harsh lines, brash colours and a glossy kisser.

“It’s an awesome strategy to make yourself feel empowered and confident after a heartbreak,” Smith, from Montreal, told The Post of the look. She shared her step-by-step tutorial on the trending preen together with her 32,000 TikTok followers this month.

“It’s the proper strategy to say [to an ex], ‘You f – – ked up, and now I’m going to take my power back,” she added. 

The look sees beauty fanatics transform their once-weepy eyes into sharp, winged slants, their tear-stained cheeks into chiseled peaks and their formerly pouting lips right into a devilishly red smirks. 

For Smith’s vengeful embellishment she created her smoky eye with Makeup by Mario’s Ethereal eye palette ($50) and her own @LashesBySAS.mtl magnetic liner. She used the NYX Wonder Stick ($14) and the Anastasia Beverly Hills contour kit ($40) to carve her cheeks, and paired Essence’s Extreme Shine Volume lip gloss ($4) with NYX’s Line Loud lip liner in Goal Getter ($8) for a horny pout.  

“As soon I put this dark, femme fatale look on, I feel strong and sexy,” said Smith. “It’s form of an intimidating look, it almost says, ‘You don’t have access to me anymore.’ “

The revenge makeup trend is loosely inspired by the ever-trending “revenge dress” —  chic, yet clinging, couture that was first made popular by Princess Diana after infidelities in her marriage were revealed in 1994. The late royal’s iconic finery was a fitted, black, off-the-shoulder midi with an asymmetrical hem, deep sweetheart neckline and a flowing chiffon train.

More recently, newly single A-list luminaries akin to “Don’t Worry Darling” star Olivia Wilde, 38, and supermodel Gisele Bündchen, 42, have rocked revenge frocks and makeup looks, unabashedly donning attention-grabbing eye shadows and daring lip colours on red carpets following their respective breakups with singer Harry Styles and NFL quarterback Tom Brady.

And face-paint zealots on TikTok are also finding their strength and reclaiming their sexiness through the daring makeover. 

“Revenge is the perfect medicine,” captioned Brooklyn-based makeup enthusiast Kayla Delyne, 23, in a clip featuring her metamorphosis right into a fierce vixen with thick and elongated eyeliner, sculpted cheeks and crimson-red lips outlined in black. 

Kamille Gregory, 21, a beauty content creator from California, also restructured her naturally soft features into artful angles for a TikTok post she titled “Showing as much as their door fully beat,” alluding to plans to surprise her ex with a new-and-improved glow. Gregory cheekily punctuated the caption of her vindictive video with the knife emoji. 

Sarah Recent beckoned a staggering 899,000 eyes to her revenge makeup how-to this month, making her video certainly one of the most-viewed clips under the TikTok hashtag. In it, she employed beauty goodies just like the Milk Makeup contour stick ($22), Kash Beauty’s Midnight Metals eye shadow palette ($24), the KVD Tattoo liner ($23) and Rihanna’s Fenty Beauty Gloss Bomb ($20). 

Paradoxically, nevertheless, Recent, 22, a beauty influencer from London, told The Post that she’s currently in a healthy relationship and isn’t looking for revenge on any of her exes.  

As an alternative, she re-created the look in an effort to encourage her over 3.1 million followers to fearlessly express themselves through face paint in the brand new 12 months. 

“The perfect revenge isn’t about getting back at one other person,” said Recent. “It’s about feeling and looking good about yourself, and doing that through makeup will be very empowering.”

And Smith agreed, saying, “After I’m in revenge makeup, I feel like a nasty bitch, like my edginess demands a distinct level of respect.”