Finding your signature makeup look can be a continuous process.
While Korean makeup has been trending for the last 10 years or so, we’ve heard of beauty enthusiasts who simply don’t think the look is suitable for them, especially if they have tanner skin and more outstanding features.
In this case, the trendy and jaw-dropping Thai makeup look could be what you’ve been searching for all this time! And the great thing is that this style is beginning to trend in Asia.
Read on to see which Thai makeup look tips you can incorporate into your glam routine.
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What is the Thai makeup look?
Ethereal yet sensual, there’s a certain je ne sais quoi to the Thai makeup look.
Also identified as soft glam, this makeup style largely illustrates angled features, a lot of peach tones, thick, luscious brows, immensely diffused warm eyeshadows, and captivating, doll-like eyes.
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It’s all about elevating and enhancing your features, which is something that beauty gurus and makeup artists have been advocating for (we’re just more aware of it now, especially after seeing K-pop idols like TWICE and Blackpink wearing natural makeup looks).
That’s also why we’ve been seeing many trying to recreate the prized Thai makeup look on TikTok and all other social platforms.
The evolution of the Thai makeup look
Back then, we utilised makeup as a means to completely revamp our looks. This can be seen in much transformative China-style makeup looks and even in some douyin makeup tips.
Remember watching videos of ladies altering the size of their eyes to twice or even thrice their original size? Or when iconic women in the West like Marilyn Monroe, Audrey Hepburn, and Kylie Jenner overlined their lips to make them more voluptuous?
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It’s neither the dramatic essence of Western makeup looks nor the old, exaggerated Chinese makeup styles. All that is old news now. In fact, you have a glorified mixture of styles from different cultures and makeup looks, such as a couple of resemblances with Korean makeup looks which are just as widely popular!
Along with the rise of the viral “clean girl aesthetic” and the uber-natural “no makeup” glow, the Thai makeup look focuses on minimal coverage of skin imperfections and achieving the best version of your beauty.
The goal is to look casual and effortless, yet dolled up at the same time — a makeup look that could let you seamlessly go from the office to the beach to the nightclub.
Recreating the Thai makeup look
Light makeup base
Credit: @alrissa/Instagram
Of course, before you do anything, prep your skin! Be generous with your moisturiser or pick a sunscreen that’s lightweight yet super hydrating. This will help enhance the “glass skin” look that is trendy and favoured amongst Thais.
To achieve a dewy base, use a light cushion foundation or BB cream. Here, you can also use tinted moisturisers or skin tints instead — most are very lightweight, have lasting skincare benefits, and can cover up any redness or dark spots too!
Remember, the aim is to look as natural as possible, so you’ll have to skip any heavier, full-coverage foundations.
High contours and a sculpted nose
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Thai women are known to have pronounced facial features, especially noses with high, straight bridges. That means contouring your face is essential to achieve that prominent Thai makeup look.
Go with a bronzing powder or cream that’s two shades darker than your skin tone. To create the illusion of higher cheekbones and a slimmer visage, apply your contour a tad higher than where you would normally place it.
For the nose, use a small contour brush and start from the head of your brows down the nose bridge to the nose wings. To add more definition, use a concealer that’s one shade lighter than your skin tone to your nose bridge for a highlighter effect.
Softly flushed cheeks
Credit: @jessicafentisa/TikTok, @ariwidyasari6/TikTok
Unlike most makeup looks, especially extremely sun-kissed ones that were TikTok-viral, the Thai makeup look leans towards more subtly flushed cheeks.
Yes, pack on the blush but not with dark colours! You’ll want to pick a more natural-looking peachy orange blush and apply it at the highest point of your cheeks.
For longer and more lasting wear, Singapore-based and Thai professional makeup artist Tifanny Fang recommends using a cream blush. She would use a sponge to gently tap the blush pigment into the cheek area and avoid extending it to the nose.
Feathered eyebrows
Credit: @davikah/Instagram
Feathered brows made a comeback in the last year or so and have never left the chat. The eyebrows in a Thai makeup look are usually full, luscious, and eye-catching.
Echoing Korean makeup looks, the Thai style mostly includes softly filled straight brows without much arch. This helps with an overall look that’s more youthful.
Use an eyebrow pencil or eyeliner to lightly fill in any sparse or empty areas. Then, swipe your brow hairs upwards with a brow gel or mascara with a thinner formula.
If you’re one with naturally thicker and darker brows, you can go straight to using a clear brow gel! Some top brow gels with amazing reviews are the Benefit Cosmetics 24-Hr Brow Setter Invisible Brow Gel and Anastasia Beverly Hills Clear Brow Gel.
Keep in mind that while you’re adding dimension to your eyebrow region, Thai-style brows are not as fluffy and exaggerated as Western feathered brows.
For a more permanent look, you can opt to get even, soft, and feathered brows done by a professional through brow embroidery!
Soft eyeshadow with warm tones
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Contrary to the popular Western smokey eye, Thais tend to go for softer and more diffused pigments. It’s basically a modern take on the smokey eye. Instead of dark shades, sometimes black and smudged, use warm and earth-toned colours.
Thippawan, a Thai professional makeup and hair stylist based in Singapore, suggests using an orange nude over your eyelids before blending them outwards.
Credit: @baifernbah/Instagram
Thai women also like to incorporate a little bling to emphasise their eyes, whether it’s a light shimmer on the eyelids or in the inner corner of the eyes.
And just like in Korea, aegyo sal is celebrated in the Thai makeup look too. To mimic how Thai stars do it, use a white, shimmery shadow under your eyes. This will define the puffy undereye bags and result in a more youthful, doll-like appearance.
Straight eyeliner
Credit: @thippawan.makeup/Instagram, @lalalalisa_m/Instagram
When it comes to eyeliner, you want it as thin and straight as possible, just like how Blackpink’s Lisa does it. Follow the shape of your eyes and extend outwards from the edge of your eyes.
Eyeliner, although mostly considered a crucial part of many Western makeup looks, is not necessary for the Thai makeup look.
That’s because the sharp eyeliner would be softened with warm eyeshadow and is there to create the illusion of elongated eyes. So this step is entirely up to you to include or not!
Full, doll-like lashes
Credit: @davikah/Instagram
Another defining characteristic of any Thai makeup look is dreamy lashes.
Instead of volumising lashes that are more American or Russian, Thai lashes feature full yet separated lash strands to make your eyes look bigger.
With mascara, you’ll need to do some layering to get long and voluminous eyelashes. First, apply an eyelash primer as a base coat to strengthen the lashes and amplify the effect of the mascara. Next, use a lengthening mascara before you coat your lashes generously with a volumising mascara.
For a thicker, fuller look, use a liquid eyeliner to draw and darken your lower lashes. Or do what Selena Gomez does with her tweezer hack.
If you’re using falsies, you can customise your own Thai lashes by grouping strands and lightly sectioning them on your upper lash line. If you’re ready to commit to airy, wispy lashes, you can get Thai-style lash extensions done!
Coloured contact lenses
Credit: @villwannarot/Instagram
Considerably a staple in most Asian beauty looks, coloured contact lenses can do all the difference in your overall appearance.
Experiment with coloured lenses for a slightly more seductive look and to really make your eyes pop!
However, be warned, pick colours that will complement your skin tone and hair colour to avoid looking too unnatural. A great colour to start off with is hazel.
Nude “milk tea” lips
Credit: @supassra_sp/Instagram
Bold and iconic red lips are sported from time to time, but the beauty in Thai makeup looks is to keep all the focus on your eyes.
The best way to do that is to plump your lips with nude, “milk tea” colours which have been all the rage in makeup trends for the longest time.
For an added dimension, opt for a gradient lip. Tiffany recommends using a darker tone on the inner lips before blending it out with a lighter colour and topping it off with a nude orange shade.
Feature image credit: @supassra_sp/Instagram, @kaysharddrive/TikTok
