In a world saturated with beauty trends that rise and fall with the speed of a viral TikTok, few have made an impact as lasting—or as culturally significant—as Euphoria-inspired makeup. When HBO’s drama series Euphoria debuted in 2019, it was expected to spark conversations about teenage angst, addiction, and identity. What wasn’t predicted, however, was its massive influence on beauty culture. The show didn’t just tell a story—it changed the way we wear our faces.
What set Euphoria apart was its unapologetically expressive use of makeup. Gone were the days of flawless, “natural” glam or cookie-cutter contouring. In their place emerged bold, emotive, and surreal designs: rhinestones lining eyelids like tears, neon shadows that painted rebellion across cheeks, glitter under eyes like a badge of vulnerability. With each episode, makeup became a form of silent dialogue—storytelling in shimmer, eyeliner as emotion.
This essay explores the cultural significance of Euphoria-inspired makeup—why it resonated, how it defied conventional beauty norms, and why it continues to be more than just a trend. It’s a movement, not a moment. A revolution of self-expression built on sparkle, smudges, and radical authenticity.
The Look That Launched a Thousand Palettes
At the heart of the Euphoria makeup phenomenon is Doniella Davy, the show’s lead makeup artist. Davy’s vision was not to make the actors look “camera-ready” in the traditional sense, but to translate their characters’ internal lives into visual narratives on their skin. Rue’s glitter under-eye conveyed her emotional volatility and drug-induced haze. Jules’ pastels and asymmetrical lines mirrored her evolving identity. Maddy’s hyper-glam rhinestones and sharp wings were declarations of power and armor in the face of emotional chaos.
The makeup wasn’t about perfection—it was about feeling. And in doing so, Euphoria cracked open the rigid boundaries of beauty, inviting a new generation to redefine what it means to be “done up.”
In the age of social media, these looks didn’t stay confined to the screen. They exploded across platforms like Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok, where makeup artists and enthusiasts recreated them with their own spins. Cosmetic brands followed suit, releasing collections with names like “Euphoria Daze” or “Neon Tears,” clearly drawing inspiration from the show’s visual aesthetic.
But this wasn’t just marketing—it was a response to a hunger for new modes of self-expression. Euphoria-inspired makeup wasn’t about enhancing features or hiding flaws. It was about wearing your truth, out loud and proud, for the world to see.
Makeup as Emotion, Not Just Decoration
What makes Euphoria-inspired makeup so different from other trends is its deeply emotional core. Most beauty looks aim to perfect, to refine, to mask. But these looks reveal, reflect, and even provoke. They are emotional landscapes painted across the face—intimate, chaotic, and vulnerable.
Take the now-iconic glitter tears. On paper, it’s a risky style choice. But in Euphoria, it made sense. It communicated what words couldn’t: heartbreak, confusion, softness. The glinting glitter mirrored both pain and beauty, a contradiction that felt painfully human.
This emotional transparency resonated deeply with viewers, especially younger audiences navigating their own identities and feelings. It told them that it was okay to be messy. That beauty didn’t have to be polished. That makeup could be therapeutic, cathartic, even revolutionary.
The impact of this shift has been widespread. Across the internet, we see people using makeup to explore mental health, gender identity, trauma, and joy. Tutorials now include disclaimers like “this is just for fun” or “this look helped me through a hard time.” Makeup has become not just an art form, but a form of emotional processing.
Defying the Rules of Traditional Beauty
Before Euphoria, mainstream makeup culture was largely defined by uniformity. Think: sharp contours, overlined lips, and neutral palettes made famous by Instagram influencers and celebrity makeup artists. The aesthetic was clean, symmetrical, and—ironically—homogenizing. There was little room for experimentation without judgment.
Euphoria-inspired makeup flipped that script. It embraced asymmetry, color clashes, and theatricality. It celebrated the kind of looks that might once have been considered “too much” or “too weird.” And, importantly, it gave people permission to break the rules.
This rebellion against conventional beauty standards made the trend feel accessible, even liberating. You didn’t need a perfectly sculpted face to wear floating eyeliner or holographic shadow. You just needed a mood, a brush, and the courage to put your emotions on display.
This spirit of defiance also opened doors for more inclusive conversations around beauty. Queer and nonbinary makeup artists, in particular, found resonance in the trend’s lack of gendered boundaries. In Euphoria, makeup was never assigned to femininity or masculinity—it simply existed as a tool of personal storytelling. This fluidity invited more people into the beauty space and gave them the freedom to express themselves on their own terms.
Influence Beyond the Screen
The ripple effect of Euphoria-inspired makeup extended beyond beauty. It touched fashion, pop culture, and even mental health discourse. Runways began to reflect the aesthetic, with designers incorporating glitter, pastel hues, and unconventional eye makeup into their shows. Celebrities like Doja Cat, Billie Eilish, and Megan Thee Stallion started embracing Euphoria-style beauty in red carpet appearances, further blurring the line between performance and reality.
Beauty brands, too, shifted their messaging. Instead of selling perfection, they began promoting individuality. Campaigns celebrated diversity in gender expression, skin tone, and artistic freedom. Doniella Davy even launched her own makeup line, Half Magic Beauty, designed specifically to encourage bold experimentation and emotional creativity.
Educational institutions also took note. Beauty schools began incorporating more avant-garde curriculum, recognizing the growing demand for creative artistry over classic techniques. The new makeup artist isn’t just someone who can perfect a smoky eye—they’re storytellers, collaborators, and cultural interpreters.
A Post-Pandemic Palette of Expression
The timing of the Euphoria-makeup boom was also pivotal. Much of its rise coincided with the COVID-19 pandemic, a period marked by isolation, anxiety, and a global re-evaluation of norms. In lockdown, people had time to experiment, play, and most importantly—feel. Makeup became one of the few remaining forms of creative control and connection.
During a time when human contact was limited and expressions hidden behind masks, eyes became the new focal point. Suddenly, graphic liners, color-blocked lids, and expressive brows weren’t just fashion statements—they were how we communicated. And Euphoria offered the visual language.
This collective experience deepened the emotional significance of beauty. People began to see makeup not as vanity, but as a form of resilience and even rebellion. It was a reminder of joy in the bleakest of times, a way to assert identity when the world felt disjointed.
The Future of Self-Expression
As the cultural landscape continues to evolve, Euphoria-inspired makeup has proven itself more than just a fleeting aesthetic. It’s a testament to the power of beauty as a medium of storytelling and resistance. It’s also a reflection of a larger generational shift—away from perfection and toward authenticity, away from imitation and toward invention.
The trend invites us to ask larger questions: What if our imperfections are part of our appeal? What if our tears could shimmer? What if we stopped hiding and started showing up, as we are?
Ultimately, Euphoria-inspired makeup is about more than rhinestones or neon—it’s about reclaiming beauty as something deeply personal, unfiltered, and alive. In every smudge of eyeliner, every accidental glitter drop, there’s a bit of truth. And in that truth, we find something far more enduring than a trend: a movement of self-expression that refuses to be quiet.
And that, perhaps, is the most beautiful look of all.
