She’s an “Los Angeles 10” but a “Chicago 7.” A “New York 9” but a "Miami 5."
That might be meaningless at first glance, but these taglines are part of a growing “unrecognizable makeup” trend on TikTok, in which makeup looks are so transformative that they make the wearer appear to be an entirely different person.
TikTok creator @lottiestarrs has been spearheading the "LA 10" trend. In a video with nearly 60 million views, she goes from pink-haired and barefaced to a blonde bombshell, transforming downturned eyes into a smoky, upturned look with a heart-shaped lip. She “got bored one night,” and in another video with 22 million views, turned herself into an “LA 10” — not only looking unrecognizable from the previous clip, but completely different from her other "unrecognizable makeup” looks.
Praise flooded her comments section: “Girl this is talent… art even,” one user wrote. “I stood and applauded,” quipped another.
Other creators hopped on the trend, including Marylyn Chukwuekezie, a beauty content creator based in Nigeria. She recreated celebrity makeup looks — from SZA to Sabrina Carpenter (her favorite look so far) — and used wigs, contour, blush and eye makeup to turn herself into an "LA 10."
