TikTok beauty trends to avoid

I’ve been spending too much time on TikTok these days, and I’m not gonna lie, it’s currently my only source of entertainment. Pretty much everything is on that app—funny skits, dance videos (but IDK if those weird hand movements can even be considered dance), 60-second grammar lessons, prank wars (most of them look scripted, by the way), easy recipes to do at home, and a whole lot more.

But what intrigued me the most are these self-proclaimed beauty influencers invading my #FYP. (For those unfamiliar, #FYP is the For You page. It’s the landing page of all the videos you might like based on the algorithm.) While some of their tips are helpful, especially when it comes to makeup tricks, most of them are uneducated hacks that may do you more harm than good. So I’ve listed some of the most ridiculous ones I found. Do yourself a favor and never follow these trends.

As of writing, the #CoffeeScrub tag has already reached 21.6 million views—which means millions of people have already tried this buffoonery on their skin. So what they do is mix ground coffee (the person I watched used Starbucks), brown sugar, and coconut oil in one bowl, scrub the mixture all over the skin, and wash it off. Then by the end of the video, their skin wouldlook bright. (Spoiler: Their skin is bright even without the scrub.)

Coffee grounds that aren’t meant for cosmetic use aren’t as fine and smooth as you think. In fact, they usually have rough edges. They also don’t melt so the effect’s fairly harsh on delicate skin. Sure, it won’t destroy your skin beyond repair, but continuous use may cause micro tears and sometimes may even stain your skin.

There are already a number of DIY lash lift kits available in the market (not to mention an overwhelming amount of successful lash lift videos on TikTok) that it made me think twice if I should still include this in the list. But then I realized that a lot can go wrong when perming lashes on your own.

Accidentally getting the perming solution in your eyes may cost you a trip to the hospital—the last place you’d ever want to be right now. “The strong chemicals used in eyelash perming can cause irritation, redness, and discomfort if they come into contact with the surface of the eye, and in some cases, can even cause burns and painful corneal ulcers,” said an optometrist.

I really thought I’ve seen it all, but TikTok has other plans for me. I came across this video of a young adult using permanent hair dye as eyebrow tint, and encouraging everyone to try it because apparently, it’s “super effective.” First of all, a no-name boxed hair dye’s already bad for your scalp hair, so imagine how bad it would be for your eyebrows. The oxidative component found in boxed hair dye is usually too strong and may cause allergic reactions or skin infections.

TikTok can be a fun place though if you look past those weird videos. It has personally become my virtual hangout place and I’ve spent so much time on the app that it gave me headaches and eye strain. So make sure you wear anti-blue light glasses when you plan to hang out on TikTok… like me.