ON TREND: Modern take on 90's GRUNGE Makeup, Tutorial

They're back! Trends may come and trends may go...and then come back again. Over the last year, the 90's grunge look has been making a comeback in a big way. Plaid shirts, ripped washed out jeans, Doc Martins and of course, dark matte lipstick paired with dark smokey eyes. 

I hopped on the grunge bandwagon for you all and took a stab at the modern day version of grunge. 

I used the biggest female grunge icons of the 90's as inspiration - Kate Moss, Courtney Love and Drew Barrymore.

From left: Drew Barrymore, Courtney Love, Kate Moss

The key to the grunge makeup look is using makeup that has a matte formula. Your foundation, lipstick and eyeshadow should all have a matte finish. Save your beloved highlighter for another day, this look does not require any sparkle or shimmer. It's actually a really basic and simple to do. 

I used the super full coverage and completely matte foundation from Kat Von D - Lock-It Tattoo Foundation in Light 45. I chose this foundation because I want to be sure that all the redness in my cheeks and around my jaw would be completely covered. Rosey cheeks are not what this looks is about, so I contoured my cheeks and jaw line pretty heavely with NYX Powder Blush in Taupe. This is a completely matte blush that works prefect for people with pale skin who find that bronzers make them look orange or dirty. I then went in with a neutral blush on the apples of my cheeks. I used the blush from Tarte's beMATTEnificent palette called Elevated. It gives just the right amount of colour without being the star of the show. Unfortunately, this pallet was limited edition. You can achieve the same look with any neutral toned blush.  

I wanted to make sure I got the smokey eye right as this has an understated effect that can make or break the look. I primed my lids with Maybelline's Color Tattoo in Tough as Taupe. I made sure to bring the colour into my crease and under my eye. 

I then swept the eyeshadow Matt Abdul from theBalm's Meet Matt(e) Nude Eyeshadow Palette all over my lid and under my eye - basically anywhere I had placed Tough as Taupe. I then blended out my crease with the colour Matt Rosen from the same eyeshadow palette. This colour is key to pulling this look off today. Well blended smokey eyes are the key to keeping this look modern. I also blended out the lower lashline with this same colour. To give it a more modern, I deepened the outer corner with the colour Matt Johnson. I made sure to bring the colour into my inner corner. This seems to key to making this look truly grunge. I tried highlighting the inner corner to see how it would look...it totally ruined the effect.  

I intentionally skipped eyeliner on the upper lash line as most of the looks I came across from the 90's, didn't use it. Instead, I used Urban Decay's 24/7 Velvet Glide-On Eye Pencil in Black Velvet, in my upper and lower waterlines. Make sure to bring the eyeliner into your inner corner as well.

I then applied one coat of Maybelline's Volum' Express® Pumped Up! Colossal Washable Mascara In Classic Black. I didn't want my lashes to take over the look, as big lashes were not on trend during the 90's. 

For my lips I used Jordana Easy Liner for Lips in Plush Plum to define my lips and to ensure no feathering. I also applied it to the outer corners of my upper and lower lips to give the effect of a deeper red. While smudge lipstick was staple in the 90's grunge look, I figured most people would prefer their lipstick to stay on their lips today. I then applied Be a Bombshell Lip Crayon in Hot Damn to my lips. I then topped it off with a Bare Minerals Marvellous Moxie in Smokin' Hot. I can't seem to the find the link to this lip gloss, so it must have been limited edition. Any deep plum/red lip gloss would give the same effect.

I chose to not go with a matte lip as I wanted to give this look a more update effect. You can totally rock a matte red lip if you want. I'm just not a huge fan of matte lips as they have tendency to feel overly dry on my lips.

For my eyebrows, I kept it super simple and not overly defined. I wanted to make sure they were not the focal of the look. I used e.l.f. Studio Eyebrow Kit in Ash to fill in my brows. In the 90's, a super thin eyebrow was on trend...thank god that trend is over. To really give this look an updated effect, keep your eyebrows fuller. This will instantly update the look.

Well, there you have it. My take on an updated modern grunge makeup look. I had a lot of fun putting this together as I don't normally wear makeup like this. I'm a light eyeshadow, big lashes and neutral lip kind of gal on the daily. This look would be awesome to rock on the night out or at a concert. If you don't work in an office like I do, you could totally rock this look everyday. 

I'd love to see your take on this awesome makeup trend. Send me your recreations on Facebook, Instagram, Tumblr, Twitter or leave a link to your blog in the comment section below.