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Call it a love for the nostalgic or the unwavering fact that everything old is new again, but we didn’t necessarily have it on our prediction list that this iconic 20-something-year-old Ashley Olsen makeup look would be taking over TikTok in a time called now.
“This specific makeup changed my life forever,” shares makeup artist Mallory Osses in reference to Olsen’s smoky eye look that dates back to September 2004 during New York Fashion Week when Olsen was making the round to shows like Marc Jacobs with twin, Mary-Kate. “And I know I’m not the only one!”
In singularity she is not: Osses’ TikTok break down of Olsen’s “grunge” look as since spawned 1.3 million views on TikTok.
“This picture alters your brain chemistry forever,” Osses continues, posting that you only need three products to replicate it. “After I [originally] saw this picture, I became so obsessed with a grungy eye and illuminated cheeks.”
As far as the steps to get it go, Osses recommends going for a “lived in” look. “I know Ashley didn’t try that hard for this look…I know she didn’t sit in the makeup chair long for this one…no ‘cool girl’ would…you can’t make it complicated.”
Her uncomplicated secret: “I always start with a bronzer on my eye…it’s a great base for any shadow. You don’t have to be specific with this look…the eyes are the star of the show.”
Osses then goes on to recommend MAC’s eye shadow in Swiss Chocolate ($23) and AlleyOop’s 11th Hour Cream Eyeshadow Stick in Bronze Medal ($24), which she coins the “perfect Ashley Olsen color.” She then advises taking the two shadows and “buffing” them out with a brush, topping it off with a tight-line. “Don’t go all the way around. You don’t want to make it look perfect.”
“I think the look is nostalgic for us millennials,” Osses exclusively shared with us about the decidedly Y2K vibe. “We were—and still are—obsessed with the Olsen twins and wearing this look reminds us of the time when we were discovering makeup and having fun with eyeshadow looks. The look gives the ‘easy and effortless’ vibe we’re all striving for in 2024, so I think it’s fitting for it to come back in style.”