Douyin Makeup Tutorial: A Guide to the Viral Beauty Trend
TikTok has been a constant source of makeup inspiration for the younger generation. And thanks to the social media platform, the world has learned about the viral Chinese makeup trend, Douyin, and a step-by-step tutorial for anyone who does not want to be left out.
In a beauty world filled with bleached eyebrows and Y2K-inspired looks, Douyin makeup went mainstream and stopped flamboyant makeup trends right in their tracks. With its subtle way of embellishing natural features, the makeup look has become the new craze.
And thanks to beauty experts, who have created the perfect Douyin makeup tutorial, anyone can experience the wonders of this trend, which draws inspiration from beauty trends worldwide, but with an added twist.
What Is the Viral TikTok Makeup Trend Known as Douyin?
Douyin is a Chinese style of makeup that aims to emulate the light, feminine, and almost fairly-like beauty of a porcelain doll. Unlike other popular beauty trends, such as overlining lips to exaggerate their size or heavy layering techniques, Douyin makeup is all about enhancing one's natural beauty. Makeup artist Taylour Chane shared:
"We've got this kind of cool, edgy '90s girl moment going with bleached brows, cool tones and muted brown colors, structured lip look. And then we've got Douyin makeup, which is the literal opposite end of that spectrum."
While Douyin makeup shares a few similarities with K-beauty — also known as South Korean makeup — techniques, this makeup is slightly more colorful and emphasizes using blush.
Douyin makeup also uses full-coverage and matte foundation, which creates a doll-like result on the skin. Another signature aspect of this makeup trend is the long, exaggerated eyelashes, which aim for a kitten-ish effect.
How Douyin Makeup Took over TikTok
Douyin makeup is named after the exclusively Chinese social media app, Douyin, which ByteDance — the company that created TikTok— created in 2016. However, once the makeup trend hit the international arena, it became a social media sensation.
According to makeup artist Jianqiao Lu, Douyin makeup is a mix of beauty trends across East Asia, which go hand-in-hand with the pre-existing, skin-first, minimalist beauty style. Lu said:
"The combination of these inspirations creates a unique makeup style that is so recognizable, so specific to Douyin."
A Step-by-Step Douyin Makeup Tutorial
To achieve the Douyin makeup look, start with a face of full-coverage foundation that won't leave you looking too cakey or dry. Because skin that appears glowing and healthy is essential for this style of makeup, an effective technique to apply your foundation is to pat it into the skin using a damp makeup sponge.
Then, use a highlight three times lighter than your natural complexion to carve out your features, and go in with a cool-toned powder, not bronze. You can add glitter to your eyelids and the inner corners with a finger or a flat shadow brush for a touch of sparkle.
Use a liquid eyeliner to elongate your eyes, and then go in with a brown eyebrow pencil to emphasize the skin underneath the eyes, giving them a wider and rounder appearance for a Japanese anime finish.
And then, once you've added false eyelashes, complete your Douyin makeup look with stained lipstick to make your lips appear fuller and blurred out towards the edges without using a lip pencil.