As far as TikTok goes, there seems to be a new trending aesthetic every month. Soft girl, cottagecore, clean girl… the list goes on, but I’m not complaining. Although no doubt fuelled by Gen-Z, these trends tend to transcend age and location and there’s a way to tap into any trend and mould it into your own take. Plus, there are so many that really, you’re bound to come across one that suits your soul. One trend that I never thought I would be interested in though was the messy French-girl aesthetic. I’m not a fan of anything too contrived and the idea of emulating this felt a bit cringe to me. But then I got stuck on the messy French girl aesthetic algorithm and quickly realised that like with most Francophile trends, it’s more about the vibe then emulating a specific look itself.
If you think of the traditional French girl look what comes to mind? Fresh skin, flushed cheeks, a little liquid liner, natural groomed brows and perhaps a stunning red lip to cap it off? This is the basis of the messy French girl look but it’s essentially just a bit more undone. It’s a kissed-in lip and instead of a liquid liner you use a kohl to smudge it in a bit. It’s a multi-use balm that you can throw into your handbag and perk your skin up after an impromptu sleepover– you get the drift. These are the only beauty products you need to nail this trend.
Messy French-Girl Makeup Products
Fresh Skin
The base for the look is fresh and bare-looking, always. But that doesn’t mean not wearing any base at all. It just means that you look naturally perked up instead of like you are wearing any kind of foundation. Opt for tinted SPFs or tinted moisturisers which lightly help to even out skin tone without actual coverage.
Chanel LES BEIGES Eau De Teint Water-Fresh Tint
This clever and pretty unique formula is 75% water and the sheer coverage comes from micro droplets encapsulated within the fluid so the finish is beyond sheer and glowy.
Charlotte Tilbury Hollywood Flawless Filter
Honestly, I can’t think of a base product that has more of a reviving effect than this tint. It has little coverage but a lot of glow.
Saie Slip Tint Dewy Tinted Moisturizer
With sheer flexible coverage this tinted moisturiser contains aloe vera, antioxidants, enzymes, as well as vitamins A and C for skin care benefits on top of the dewy look it gives skin.
Lightly Conceal
Ok, let’s be real. It wouldn’t be realistic to assume you could live the messy French girl lifestyle and not have a smidge of dark circles. Again, though it’s not about masking any of your skin, picking a lightweight concealer will gently lift your under eyes for a more naturally awake look. Using a damp beauty sponge will blur and sheer out medium to full coverage concealers.
RMS Beauty "Un" Cover-Up Concealer
If you have fine lines under your eyes this concealer keeps skin moisturised as it lightly covers.
This creamy formula contains colour correcting benefits too so if you have uneven skin tone it’ll help with that without making skin look cakey.
Hourglass Veil Retouching Fluid
This formula almost feels like a serum to touch– it’s that lightweight. I’d call it a brightener rather than a concealer as it doesn’t cover dark circles but makes them less noticeable.
Velvety Blush
The flush of colour you get when you pinch your cheeks or feel overcome is the colour of blush your need for this aesthetic. It’s very natural-looking and in order for it to look lit-from-within textures like balms, liquids and creams are better to blend.
Kvd Beauty Modcon Liquid-Gel Blush
The gel texture blends into bare skin or foundation so easily, sets and stays put all day. Two dots are more than enough for a sheer colour.
Rare Beauty Soft Pinch Liquid Blush
A mere whisper of this liquid blush is enough for a fully flushed look. Dot on and. Blend out with fingers or a damp beauty sponge to diffuse the pigment.
Suqqu Shimmer Liquid Blush
Highlighter isn’t really a thing for this aesthetic but getting a subtle glow from your liquid blush like this slightly shimmery one from Suqqu is an easy of breathing life into the skin.
Kissed-In Lips
The perfect red lip might be a French aesthetic but for the messy vibe lips almost looks kissed in. Whether you choose a stain or a tinted balm the lip is thrown on and far from perfect which is what makes it even more irresistible.
Ysl Rouge Pur Couture Vernis À Lèvres Water Glossy Lip Stain
This gloss-stain hybrid is non-sticky but when the gloss is worn of leaves a lovely delicate colour to the lips.
Charlotte Tilbury Tinted Love
The hyaluronic acid in this formula means lips don’t feel uncomfortable as the tint sets. You just get a sheer wash of colour.
Pixi Tintfix
If, like me, your lips are naturally quite devoid of colour, this is excellent for just reviving the pinkness and can be layered for a punchier finish.
Beautiful Brows
Neat but not perfect, bushy but groomed– this is the brow look for the messy French girl aesthetic. Nothing drawn in but you can build your brows with fibre-rich brow gels.
Uoma Beauty Brow Fro Blow Out Vol Gel
I love how tiny this wand. It gives you complete control over the shape of your brow and the gel is pigmented to fill in sparse areas by mimicking hairs.
MAC Eye Brows Big Boost Fibre Gel
the fibre in this gel actually builds up the look of your brows as it sets them so they look a lot thicker after a few strokes through.
Multi-Use Balms
A balm that can be used as a lip balm, cheek colour, eye colour is the ultimate handbag pick for this trend. Whether it’s after an impromptu sleepover or ahead of an impromptu night out is an easy skin perk-me-up.
Lanolips Tinted SPF 30 Balm
Lanolin naturally deeply nourishes skin so wherever you apply this will benefit from relief from dryness. The shades in the range are soft so think of it as a hydrating balm with a touch of colour.
Hourglass Vanish Blush Stick
The colour pay-off for this is unbelievably strong so this stick is great for doing a ‘look’ in little time.
Bobbi Brown Pot Rouge
An absolute classic, pot rouge gives eyes lips and cheeks a little pick me up with colour that sets but still looks really natural and fresh.
Smudgy Kohl
The perfect wing doesn’t existence in the messy French Girl aesthetic. Using a creamy kohl liner is key for softly lining the lashes for depth but it’s effortlessly blended in and not at all sharp.
Charlotte Tilbury Rock 'N' Kohl Eyeliner
Long-lasting but easy-to-blend are qualities you don’t tend to find in one liner but this one from Charlotte Tilbury is top tier.
Surratt Smokey Eye Baton
This liner is designed to be smudgy. The pigment is so good so you really just need a light touch for a daytime vibe smokey eye.
A Fragrant Spritz
Lastly, scent is everything. Although messy, this aesthetic calls for a particularly chosen fragrance because everyone knows that scent is so highly linked to French beauty. Whatever you pick as your signature scent, carry it with you to spritz during the day.
Byredo La Sélection Boisée Discovery Set
The Byredo minis are my go-to to throw into my bag and layering for a signature scent means you can chop and change which one you can with you day-to-day.
Next, the French haircuts London girls are asking for right now.
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