I Tried Selena Gomez's TikTok-Famous Mascara Hack for Defined Lower Lashes

Mascara is my desert island beauty item. As such, any lash-related makeup hack instantly has my attention—especially when it's a tip from someone like Selena Gomez. The Rare Beauty founder proved that all celebrity-made makeup brands are not created equal with her line of easy-to-use beauty staples (and one wildly popular blush). Although this mascara application technique may not be the most traditional, I figured the TikTok-approved celebrity beauty trend was worth a try. Worst-case scenario, I had my makeup remover on hand.

This particular trend gained serious traction when Gomez used the mascara-tweezer technique in a TikTok showcasing her "simple, quick look" tutorial. To be fair, it does look simple and quick. Gomez's process involves putting some mascara on a pair of (clean) tweezers and then using the mascara-covered tweezer edges to define your lower lashes. The tweezers then shape your lashes into points, like a subtler take on Twiggy's iconic eye makeup look. The added definition also makes your eyes pop—or, at least, that's the idea.

Scroll on for all the details on this lower lash mascara trend, including my honest take on how it works offline.

Selena Gomez's Mascara Hack

When Gomez shared her beauty routine on TikTok on April 23, she focused on Rare Beauty's newly-launched tinted moisturizer in the caption, thanking her customers for their "support." But the comments section zeroed in on her mascara technique debut instead. "The [tweezer] trick had me running to my desk," one commenter replied. Another added, "Yooo that tweezer hack had me 🤯💕."

It didn't take long for other creators to start replicating Gomez's look. On April 16, beauty content creator Priscilla Bhangu followed in Gomez's mascara-lined footsteps "Baby doll effect bottom lashes using tweezers," she captioned her post, adding, "This hack [is] awesome."

Then, on May 11, TikTok creator Victoria Lyn shared her take on the trend, aiming for a similar "doll-eye moment." In the video, she shared an essential tip for perfecting this look. "The key is just pinch it on," she explained, all while using her tweezers to do just that. She added, "This is a good hack... The tweezers really separate [the lashes]."

Though Gomez might have popularized the trend (she does have millions of followers, after all), people on TikTok have been trying this hack for more than a year. TikToker Beyoutiful Honey Hussna posted the hack in January 2021, urging her followers to "bring this trend back" and explaining that it was "popular a few months ago."

Suffice to say, this technique has been around for a while. In fact, maybe Twiggy and her makeup artist deserve all the credit.

I Tried The Tweezer-Mascara Hack (Twice)

I'd love to say that Gomez's mascara tip was as easy and effective as it looked on TikTok, but I'd be lying. I tried this technique twice with two different mascara formulas, and both attempts left me feeling underwhelmed. Although my bottom lashes did look nice, I'm not sure that the overall effect was worth the struggle or if a few healthy swipes of mascara along my lower lash line would have been just (or nearly) as effective.

First Try: Milani Highly Rated Anti-Gravity Mascara

I tried my current go-to, Milani's Highly Rated Anti-Gravity Mascara ($11), first. Although the final look wasn't bad, the process definitely wasn't as painless as it looked on TikTok. When I applied the mascara to my tweezers, it didn't coat the edges evenly but left them black, sticky, and clumpy. Still, I wasn't deterred until I tried to pinch my lower lashes with the tweezers.

Rather than bringing them together in cute little points, the technique left behind black mascara splotches under my eyes. A cotton swap helped me clean things up, and the final result did give my bottom lashes some definition, but it was not as seamless as I thought it would be. (And I would not recommend trying this out unless you have some extra time for trial-and-error.)

Second Try: Maybelline Snapscara

The next day, I decided to try this mascara hack again with a different, slightly less quick-drying formula. Though the process was a little less messy (aka, I didn't need any cotton swaps to clean up residual inky blotches), I still wasn't sure the final effect was worth dirtying and cleaning my tweezers. Yes, I had some extra definition along my bottom lashes, but it wasn't exactly Twiggy-inspired perfection, either.

As far as makeup hacks go, this technique was pretty low-stakes. After all, I didn't have to run out to buy anything to give it a try. Even though I don't really think it worked for me, I have a feeling this hack might be the kind of thing that takes some time to perfect.