Beauty Meets Comedy: 40+ Makeup Blunders That Will Make You Laugh

By Valentine W January 22, 2024

This article was originally published on travelerdoor

We all love to look beautiful. Whether it’s donning a flattering dress that accentuates your curves, walking in a fierce pair of heels, or getting your hair done, nothing compares to that feeling when you know you look amazing. It’s a kind of high. However, getting it right can be a little tricky when it comes to makeup. To get the right products, you have to consider the brand, shade, your skin undertone, the desired final effect (matte, dewy, natural), and more. It’s been said that makeup is an art. Playing around with the layers, colors, and contours can create beautiful outcomes. On the flip side, a bad makeup routine can be a complete turn-off. We feature hilarious makeup fails captured in this piece that demonstrate some makeup artists need to be fired.

The Overachiever

We always admire the can-do spirit of a student. When it comes to makeup, however, moderation is key. In this instance, for example, the foundation is just too much. You can see it on her collar, and you can spot some of it on her hair as well.

Image Credits: badmakeupartists/Reddit

The false eyelashes are also too obvious, and the eye shadow could use a little blending. She has beautiful features, but the makeup didn’t serve her in this case. We, however, have to commend her for remembering to extend the foundation to her neck. Most people forget.

Too Much Gold

So far, we can tell that foundation is a big problem. This next photo is no different. The more significant issue here is the concealer used. Concealer is an essential step in the makeup routine. It helps to correct dark circles, which we all know, can’t be avoided.

Image Credits: mmonzeob /Reddit

However, just like foundation, you have to find concealer in the correct shade for it to work for you. The lady here used concealer that was too bright for her skin. The highlighter was also a bit much. Instead of achieving the coveted sun-kissed look, it just made her cheeks too shiny.

The Queen

The queen of terrible makeup is non other than the Oompa Loompa himself, Mr. Donald Trump. Apparently it was a very windy day and the terrible hair on his head was being blown away from his face. This revealed his orange cheeto face.

Image credits: photowhitehouse/Twitter

The drastic change from very orange to very white is whats the most startling part of this image. We don’t really know if it was too much fake tanner, bronzer or foundation. Whichever it was, it was bad. Make America great, sure…

Biggest Foundation Blunder

This is the epitome of a makeup blunder. We don’t know the look this lady hoped to achieve when she started doing her makeup. One of the primary uses of foundation is not to change skin tone. It’s supposed to make the skin on your face have an even tone.

Image Credits: ugrearti /Reddit

Nevertheless, the foundation should only change your natural skin tone by a few shades and not entirely, as seen here. The foundation did not cover the lady’s neck and outer part of her face, so the demarcation lines can be seen very clearly. The eye makeup is also horribly done.

One Step Away From a Unibrow

Ancient Greece, here we come! Doing your eyebrows is a skill. For people who have sparse hair on their eyebrows, filling them in is as easy as lightly dusting brow powder over the eyebrows or drawing faint lines to fill them in. The lady here took it a step further.

Image Credits: BadMUAs/ Reddit

Though we commend her use of concealer to achieve brow definition, she drew two very thick and bold eyebrows that look like they could merge at the slightest movement. Interestingly, sporting a unibrow was considered a mark of beauty among people in Greece in the old days.

The Mannequin Look-alike

Everything about this look screams’ wrong’. First off, the eyebrows look like an inverted Nike logo. The correct arch on your eyebrows can be very flattering to your face. However, when it is this exaggerated, the results are just comical. Her foundation color is also wrong.

Image Credits: klyker.com/Pinterest

We can tell that by observing the color of the inside of her wrist, as shown in the photo. There’s a big difference. This only goes to show the importance of using a foundation that is as close to your skin color as possible.

Wrong Caption

Just a single glance at this face, and you can tell that the layers of makeup are too much. She used too much concealer and failed to blend it properly. Aside from giving your face a bad glow, it also belittles all your efforts at contouring, which we all know is not easy.

Image Credits: BadMUAs/Reddit

Her lipstick is also bleeding to the outside of the lips. The most hilarious part about this case is that the lady posted this photo on Instagram and captioned it in a statement with the word natural. This is clearly anything but natural.

The Mask

This next image brings to mind Jim Carrey’s character, Stanley Ipkiss, in the movie, The Mask. The only difference is that the character’s face is green in the movie, while the lady’s face is almost bronze here. “Ooh, somebody stop HER!”

Image Credits:badmakeupartists/Reddit

Aside from the fact that the foundation is the wrong shade, it is also several layers too thick. The makeup artist didn’t even bother to try and apply foundation on the neck or the ears to at least give her an even tone.

Rainbow Eye Shadow

The eye shadow on this face must have taken a lot of effort to apply, judging by the result. We don’t know whether this was just for fun or makeup for a costume party. One of the biggest mistakes people make when it comes to makeup is trying to make too many statements simultaneously.

Image Credits: Tania Nemtzidou/homehacks.com

Pick one for today, and you can try different looks on other days; it’s that simple. The lipstick would also have been salvaged by the simple use of an invisible lip liner, ensuring it stays in place. But good on you for having so much patience.

The Queen of Botched Eyebrows

These eyebrows just make you think of wings, right? Also, there seems to be a theme with botched eyebrows so far. They are almost always accompanied by too much drama around the eyes. The whole look makes the lady appear surreal.

Image Credit: the dating divas/ Pinterest

Her eyelashes look like they want to follow the eyebrows wherever they are headed. There’s also the issue with the ‘glow’ right in the middle of her face. This could result from wrong layering, or the lighting was a problem when she took the photo. We hope it’s the latter.

Easy On the Lip Liner

Honestly, we think this girl’s makeup was not as big of a flop compared to most of the ones featured in this article. She is already quite beautiful sans makeup with her pretty blue eyes, thick eyebrows, and those full lips.

Image Credits: Meeow/lipstickalley.com

She does a great job with her foundation and concealer to even out her skin tone and cover up the dark circles. However, she should have blended the concealer better to avoid the bright glow under her eyes and the sides of her nose. She should also have skipped the dark lip liner. It just ruined everything.

Permanent Shock

No matter how hard you try, doing your eyebrows like this will always leave your face with a ridiculous permanent look of shock. We all love a good arch on the brows, but this pushes it too far. What makes the eyebrow situation worse is the concealer used to shape them.

Image Credits: Alex/ thechive.com

The shade is too bright, and she used too much of it. This girl’s makeup would have been a success had she paid attention to the concealer and the exaggerated eyebrows. They didn’t serve her at all, and it is a shame.

Worst Geisha Makeup

Geisha makeup is considered an art form by many makeup enthusiasts. It was popular in ancient Asian culture. The model on the left was part of a campaign by Buzzfeed to show makeup styles in different periods worldwide. This geisha makeup was a complete fail since they got so many steps and products wrong.

Image Credits: BadMUAs/Reddit

The white foundation, for instance, looks a bit like wet paint as opposed to the matte finish geishas had. Compared to the photo on the right, her eyeliner, lipstick, and even the border between the hairline and the foundation were also incompetently done.

Smokey Eye Gone Wrong

We all love a good smokey eye once in a while. When done right, it can draw attention to your eyes for all the right reasons. With that said, the eye shadow technique here is non-existent. It looks like she just deposited the eye shadow on the eyelids with no plan whatsoever.

Image Credits: toomuchmakeupandfaketan/Facebook

The aim of this look must have been to get as much black makeup as possible around the eyes. The light concealer around the eyes drew more attention to the dreadful eye makeup. To top this, the dark lip liner just looks misplaced.

The Transformational Power of Makeup

Face blemishes are one of the reasons many people use makeup every day. To these people, wearing makeup gives them the confidence they need to face the world without the fear of being looked at differently. A very valid reason.

Image Credits: BadMUAs/Reddit

The lady here has a very freckled face in the first photo, which she covers with layers of dark foundation. Though she was diligent enough to extend the foundation to her neck, the foundation was too heavy. The eye shadow would also look better if it was more subtle and blended better. Btw, freckles are GORGEOUS!

Clown Makeup

The beauty of makeup lies in its power to transform. The transformation can be highly appealing or downright hilarious, as seen in the image below. The eyebrows are the first thing you notice because of how unnaturally thick they have been made.

Image Credits: crappycontouring/ Reddit

She should have filled her thin brows lightly to accentuate their natural shape. The lipstick also goes outside the borders of the lips, making it look similar to that of a clown. We wish she had kept things more natural since she has a gorgeous face without makeup.

Unforgivable Oversight

This was an oversight. Another chance to show you why learning to pick the correct shade of foundation is imperative to your makeup routine. These two women happen to be among some of our time’s most popular reality TV stars.

Image Credits: Fleezus_Gilroy/Twitter Keeping Up With The Kardashians. Picture: E!

They hold a highly prestigious space in pop culture today, and thus we, the fans, expect nothing short of perfection when it comes to their makeup. That is what makes these photos a bit disappointing. Nevertheless, we can’t say that they paid for this mistake since both of them currently run very successful companies in the beauty industry.

Three Different Shades on One Look

We hope it’s safe to assume that this was just a silly makeup session for laughs because no one in their right mind would ever step out looking like this intentionally. At first glance, it’s very obvious that this face has two shades of foundation.

Image Credits: CI7nALX/Imgur.com

Many people mix foundations to achieve the perfect shade, but the mixing is usually done before the application and is a relatively simple process. Furthermore, the foundation didn’t reach the neck, which is very exposed, therefore adding another shade that differs from the rest.

Not Too Bad

Here is another instance where the outcome was not too extra. By the look of things, it seems like she might be at a wedding. It is an excellent opportunity to go all out when it comes to makeup and all things glamour. However, we think that the foundation looks a little too much.

Image Credits: [deleted] /Reddit

Also, the eye makeup makes her eyes look so small instead of enhancing them. There is too much going on around that single area. We also know that eyebrows look better when they are not too defined as they are in this photo.

Too Many Statements

We have to admit; we love a good before and after photo collage. It puts a lot of perspective on the results. With this lady, for example, we can appreciate the eyebrow transformation. There was also an attempt to blend the foundation on her forehead.

Image Credits: BeefLips/Reddit

However, things took a turn for the worse, slightly below the brows. First of all, this kind of eye makeup is only acceptable for costume parties. The concealer she used here was also too light and as expected, it cast a lousy glow around her eyes to her cheeks. The highlighter only made things worse.

What She Ordered Vs. What She Got

The look on her face mirrors what we feel when we look at her face. The makeup artist she consulted to get the look she wanted must have been an amateur since the result is nowhere close to the photo she has on her phone. At best, it is just a comical version of the look.

Image Credits: backrooms/Reddit

The artist did no blending to create harmony between the different eye shadow colors. It appears as if she used a brush to draw a purple line across the lid just once, and that was it. The over-defined, poorly drawn eyebrows and extended eyeliner was just icing on the cake.

Prominent Figures Aren’t Immune Either

This photo of Ana Guevara, a former track athlete and Mexican senator, has been making rounds on social media since it was taken a few years ago. The reason is the pronounced difference between her complexion and the shade of foundation she used here.

Image Credits: BadMUAs/Reddit

Most people have attributed this disparity to a common condition that makes a person’s skin turn red when nervous. A common problem many face during public speaking. This, in turn, can change the color of makeup, especially the foundation worn by the person.

One Mistake Can Ruin a Whole Look

We are confident that this look would have been flawless had it not been for the poorly done eyebrows. Simple, natural, and beautiful are all adjectives we would have used to describe her. However, she ruined everything when she decided to draw her eyebrows.

Image Credits: awfuleverything/Reddit

We can tell that her brows were not excessively thin from the picture. Light filling would have sufficed. When it comes to eyebrows, simple is always best. Hopefully, she learned from this episode and will never repeat this.

When Foundation Matches Your Hair Instead of Your Face

We can’t emphasize enough the importance of the proper foundation. In case you are one of those people who think it’s not a big deal, please observe the following image. The lady in the photo has a picture of herself looking like this, immortalized for posterity.

Image Credits: megsup /Reddit

The foundation here is too heavy and doesn’t even match the skin on her neck. Instead, the color seems closer to her blonde hair. To make things worse, she seems to be sweating through the whole ordeal in a leather outfit. Clearly not a good day for her.

Don’t Always Trust the Salesgirl

This goes without saying. After all, she’s just trying to make as many sales as possible. When this woman walked into a store to purchase foundation, a consultant recommended this particular shade to her. After application, the results were very disappointing.

Image Credits: Leigh Macmanus/dailymail.co.uk

She took a photo that quickly went viral once she posted it on Twitter. The majority of users compared this shade to jaundice. Always make sure you test the tint on your skin before making a purchase. Experts advise applying it to your jawline for the most accurate results.

The Multi-Colored Instagram model

We imagine that it took a lot of confidence to post this on social media. This is another look that is only okay for a costume or Halloween party. The eye shadow itself is very artistic. She must have been playing around with different colors to come up with a look.

Image Credits: Teresa Simmons/Pinterest

Another blunder here has to be the harsh use of blush. Blush is supposed to give you a fresh-faced look when applied correctly. It shouldn’t get too close to the nose. It should fade naturally towards the temples.

The ‘Muddy’ Foundation

When you decide to get your makeup done, it’s usually because you want to make an effort to look beautiful. To elevate your face. Sometimes you just want to turn heads to get that oh, so sweet sense of validation. For this lady, her makeup only made her look worse.

Image Credits: BadMUAs/Reddit

We are sure that beneath this sorry excuse for foundation, there lies a beautiful face. Her foundation is so thick that it leaves a muddy impression, which is the last thing you want your face to resemble. Keep it simple next time, girl!

Golden Shadow Done Wrong

We can all agree that sometimes, it’s okay to have a little dramatic eye shadow going on when we’re feeling up to it. A good way to achieve such a look would be to use glitter or a bright color from your eye shadow palette. Golden eye shadow can be very flattering when applied expertly.

Image Credits: Stephanie/pupperish.com

In this case, however, she applied the eye shadow in the middle, and no attempts were made to spread it over the whole lid. The result is this unforgivable makeup flop that ruined the otherwise perfect look. Perhaps no one would notice if she kept her eyes open.

The Pretty Face with Too Many Shades

This girl has such a beautiful face. You can tell by a single look that beneath the excessive layers, she is pretty. The problem is how she layered her products. There is no harmony when it comes to the foundation, concealer, and blush.

Image Credits: BadMUAs/Reddit

Her face appears to have three shades trying to co-exist in the same space. A makeup sponge and the right brushes would have corrected this silly oversight in no time. We can already picture that smokey eye with an even tone and just the right amount of blush on the cheeks. Flawless.

How Much Highlighter is Too Much Highlighter?

Highlighter, when appropriately used, will give your makeup a fresh, dewy finish. It makes people curious and envious of your skin. With that said, there is an art to getting the most out of your highlighter. As with most makeup products, subtle application in the right place works best.

Image Credits: Bad makeup artists/ Reddit

In the case of our model here, she decided to go all out with her highlighter even applying some to her shoulders and chest. If she was at a concert with that excessive glow, you could wave her around like a glow stick.

An Unfortunate Transformation

This is difficult to observe. The photo on the left is one of a striking young lady. Her face is simple, natural, and can easily be described as breathtaking. The picture on the left is an entirely different story. What in the world is going on here.

Image Credits: Stephanie/pupperish.com

After seeing this transformation, the only thing that comes to mind is the possibility that she could be a street performer. That is the only reason why she would turn such a beautiful face into this unsightly look. Otherwise, this is unacceptable.

Yellow Eye Liner

This girl failed in several areas with this look. First off, the foundation is not well applied, especially on the top area of her forehead. She did not even out the foundation in that area and thus, a little bit of her skin is peeking out from underneath. Second, she happens to have thick, lovely eyebrows that were neglected during this makeup routine.

Image Credits: Bad MUAs/Reddit

A little shaping and brushing would have been enough. We are also not feeling the mixture of eyeliner with yellow and black. Finally, whatever she used on her lips was just too thick and the dark liner only worsened the outcome.

The Look on Her Face Says it All

It’s not a good sign when your makeup makes you look like you have been out in the sun for too long. The foundation she used here makes us think of skin that has been burned due to excess exposure to the sun. Her eye shadow being so dark didn’t do her any favors either.

Image Credits: Stephanie/ pupperish.com

She would have been better off in a well-executed smokey eye if she really wanted dark tones for eye shadow. In addition to that, her falsies also look very obvious. In general, nothing was done right. Better luck next time.

Eyebrows on the Forehead

Where’s the circus at? Let’s start with the obvious, her eyes. The two colors used for her eye shadow are just disastrous, to say the least. On closer inspection, the eye shadow looks like she painted it on her eyelids. The fact that it goes all around the eyes only makes it more ridiculous.

Image Credits: Cheryl Knight/shareably.net

Her eyebrows were also drawn on her forehead. We can’t say that we’ve seen that before. The drawing was also very shoddy. Finally, she used the wrong foundation color for her skin, giving her face a weird pale look.

Acne and Makeup

Acne and other forms of breakouts can be very frustrating. In extreme cases, they can even mess with your self-esteem and make you feel ugly. Sometimes, makeup will work as expected and give you a complete transformation.

Image Credits: kaisermagazine/Pinterest

However, instead of using too much foundation, experts recommend using a good moisturizer after cleansing your face and applying concealer on the spots for optimum coverage. After that, light foundation works just fine. This will give you a simple natural look unlike the one seen here.

Cakey

This is the definition of cakey foundation. I’m sure most of you have heard this term before. It means the foundation is uneven or just too thick. It is easily noticeable, like in the photo below. Other than the cakey foundation, her makeup is better than most of the ones we’ve seen so far.

Image Credits: Stephanie/pupperish.com

Cakey foundation can result from using the wrong products, excessive amounts of a product in your routine, or simply failing to prep your skin before makeup application. To avoid this, make sure to cleanse and moisturize your face and use the right products.

Worst Contour Job Ever

Contouring revolutionized makeup routines when it was first introduced. The idea that you could play around with products to make your face appear slimmer was embraced by makeup users worldwide. However, it’s a beauty trend that takes a while to master. The image below is proof of this.

Image Credits: Tania Nemtzidou/homehacks.com

The lady here had no idea what she was doing, and instead of a beautifully contoured face, she looked like she had been sunburned. To make matters worse, she posted this picture online and captioned it as ‘soft, subtle and glamorous.’

Red Lip and Glitter Eye shadow

Now, this is a sure way of attracting attention. This look screams, ‘Look at me!’ While we cannot fault anyone for wanting to get noticed, we have to make a few observations from this ensemble. We applaud her choice of the foundation since it matches her skin.

Image Credits: BadMUAs/Reddit

Regardless, she could have done the blending better. Her eyebrows should have been shaped for a more flattering look. As for the rest of her eye makeup, we can only imagine how heavy her eyelids must be with the glitter and thick lashes.

Longest Falsies Ever!

Long, exaggerated fake eyelashes are never a good idea. Aside from being too obvious and unflattering, they can also easily come off, mainly if they weren’t applied professionally. This girl used lashes that were so long that they could touch her eyebrows with no effort at all.

Image Credits: BadMUAs/Reddit

In addition to that, she used a very light concealer that she extended to the sides of her nose and nose bridge which gave her face a harsh glare. Failing to blend the products you use on your face always messes up your look.

And Now a Few Famous Faces

Most of the images featured above were probably amateurs trying their hand at makeup from the comfort of their homes, with no fear of being embarrassed in front of millions of people worldwide. That is not. Not the case for these celebrities. Among these, the most common problem appears to be the foundation.

Image Credits: Stephanie/ pupperish.com

That, and a few questionable eye makeup choices. It seems like we share a lot in common with these celebrities. The pictures are very old and none of these women can be accused of these mistakes now. Not with the booming makeup industry we currently have. Thank God for growth!

Jake from Glow Up

Glow Up is a British reality show that showcases up-and-coming makeup artists. Since its debut in 2019, the show has acquired an extensive fan base that continues to grow. It has also established a lot of makeup artists from the contestants. The picture below is of one of the show’s contestants, Jake Oakley.

Image Credits: BBC Three/ Facebook

As you can clearly see in the photo, his makeup here was disappointing for a budding makeup artist. The foundation is so excessive that you can see the glaring difference between the face and the neck. Hopefully, his skills got better by the end of the season.

The Search for the Perfect Foundation

If you are a fan of makeup, you will probably recognize the person in this image even without seeing his face. James Charles is a very famous and successful YouTuber. With that said, you are probably wondering why he is wearing foundation that is the wrong shade for him.

Image Credits: BadMUAs/Reddit

In a bid to find the perfect foundation for him, James once bought 34 different foundations. Talk about commitment. This photo shows one of the shades he has used in his quest to try to find the perfect foundation. We only wish we had that level of commitment (and money).

Makeover with Disappointing Results

So far, we can all agree that makeup can change a person’s face to a point where they become unrecognizable. For this next image, we can see a before and after picture of a beautiful girl who underwent a makeover.

Image Credits: queerioqueerio /Reddit

In the first photo, she has beautiful freckles on her face, which she expertly covers with foundation. However, we wish she had left her eyebrows untouched since whatever she did to them during the makeover ruined their natural beauty.

Another Highlighter Disaster

She’s almost burning our eyes off! Here is another makeup artist that deserves to be out on the street. Nothing was okay about this look from the excess highlighter, the weird combination of three eyeliners, and the poorly done eyebrows.

Image Credits: beautytalkph /Reddit

This is especially sad since this girl has stunning features from the looks of it. You should only use makeup to enhance what you already have. When the result is anything less than your beautiful, natural self, it’s a sign that you should make a change.