I tried Y2K beauty looks IRL — here's how I fared

Pop Punk Princess

Credit: Michelle Varinata

1/9

A Y2K staple, the smoky eye was the go-to accessory for your face from the early to late ‘00s. I used Huda Beauty’s Jaguar Obsessions palette to copy the matte texture as seen on Avril Lavigne. Heavily lined around the eyes, I applied Urban Decay’s 24/7 Eyeliner in Dragon Smoke, a glittery black from their GoT collab. Though it’s discontinued, you can get Perversion, a classic matte black. Since blush and bronzer are not needed, the pop punk princess is all about her glossy lips. Put on sheer lip gloss (I highly recommend Tower 28’s Shine On Lip Jelly in Pistachio).

Credit: Michelle Varinata

2/9

For volume-pumping hair, I used Percy & Reed’s Turn Up The Volume Volumising Mousse all over my roots, then backcombed it. To set the pouf in place, I swear by Kevin Murphy’s Free Hold Pomade. To secure the bouffant, I used bobby pins to set it.

Boho Bright

Credit: Michelle Varinata

3/9

Bronzed makeup was all the rage, but sometimes, a sunkissed beauty look needs a bit of colour. Inspired by Rihanna during her Music of the Sun era, she had mini braids teamed up with beaded jewelry, glossy lips and a pop of blush. Most importantly, she did not skip the green eyeshadow, which was applied like a liner on top of her nude eyeshadow base.

To achieve the Bad Gal Boho look, I used Glossier’s Monochromes in Jute with the matte nude shade as my base. Glossier does not ship to Singapore, but I use vPost to ship here. Then, I used a diagonal liner brush to apply Pat McGrath’s VR Emerald, a metallic duochrome coppery green on my upper lids. Lastly, I applied Medusa, a bright emerald green from Byredo’s Prismic palette, on my bottom lids. Though VR Emerald is discontinued, you can cop the look with Natasha Denona’s Chromium Eyeshadow in Scarab.

Credit: Michelle Varinata

4/9

A must-have for every Y2K bronzy makeup look, blush and bronzer come hand in hand. More natural than the hard lines of contouring, I use Glossier’s Solar Paint in Ray on the sides of my nose, upper and lower cheek bones. This technique makes my face look more slimming (as I have a round face) in a more natural way that doesn’t exaggerate my face shape. Since blushes are peach based, you can use a bronzer on top of an existing pink blush to make your face more sunkissed. But, it has to be applied in small doses.

Club Cutie

Credit: Michelle Varinata

5/9

The queen of the club scene, Paris Hilton used the dance floor as her runway. Never seen without a strong eye color, the reality star/DJ/perfume entrepreneur would amp it up with butterfly clips. Though butterfly clips are normally associated with your childhood, Paris is proof that you are never too old to channel your inner child!

Credit: Michelle Varinata

6/9

A must-have on your eyeshadow rotation, shades of purple were mandatory for the nights you went out with your friends. If you want something to make it last all night, I used Milk Makeup’s Hyrdro Grip Eye Primer as it helps to make bright colours set in this humidity. On my upper lids, I wore MAC’s So Wisterious (lilac) as my base with The Jinx is Up (purplish pink shimmer) as a light shimmer from the middle to ends of my corners. Lastly, I lined my bottom lids with the aptly-named You’re Getting Sleeepyyy (eggplant purple) for “just got out of the club” vibe.

Video Vixen

Credit: Michelle Varinata

7/9

Step up your hair game with this game-changing trick: use a crimper. Though it’s best to use it for instant volume, a crimper is also a fun tool to create funky hair whenever you want to jazz up your look. You can do partial crimps like Lizzie McGuire or go all out like me for full volume. I swear by INH Hair’s Insert Crimp Here for the full Y2K effect.

Credit: Michelle Varinata

8/9

An OG in the rap game, Lil Kim has been the blueprint for the bold fashions and beauty looks we love today. Since I was a kid, I loved her playful makeup style. Inspired by her affinity for saturated hues, I did a gradient of silver and blue eyeshadows like the rapper in 2000. Though my Pat McGrath eyeshadows are discontinued, you can copy the blue one from her line from the EYEDOLS range in Lapis Luxury. Never without a bold lip, Lil Kim’s frosted metallic lippie is replicated with Chanel’s Rouge Allure Ink in Metallic Purple.

As someone who loved Y2K and grew up in it, replicating these looks made me be in touch with the teen I wished I was. Since the decade was about being experimental and playful with makeup, it brought me to realise that there is no such thing as being too old to try unconventional makeup and hair. While most of us associate Y2K with the awkward years of growing up, I am at peace with it. With a strong element of individualism, chaos and adventure, Y2K was truly a decade that felt so unique to me.

As for the makeup, I will definitely push myself to be more open to the smoky eye look. Though a heavy black eyeliner is not something I normally go for out of the fear of making my small eyes look like beads, it’s honestly wearable for everyday. Ditto with coloured eyeliner as wearing it around my eyes is not an everyday look for me except for a brightly coloured cat eye. On the contrary, the bolder makeup looks are close to what I’d wear IRL as I like to wear a pop of colour on my lids everyday.

Hair-wise, I have been so accustomed to wearing my mullet down as the high humidity would usually flatten hair with extreme volume. If I had to do voluminous hair, I have to do it on weekends or weeknight dinners as my hair has been dyed numerous times and I want to keep it healthy as using hot tools pushes it to be damaged more. If I had a boho braid, it doesn’t work well on my mullet as I have tons of layers. But, I can have a ton of experimentation with crimping my hair as it’s layer-friendly. Ditto with butterfly clips as I can use it to hold the mini pouf of my hair at the back. Will I replicate every single look? I will definitely do!