The “Grunge” Makeup Revival Everyone Is Getting Wrong

Lifestyle Correspondent
info@impressivetimes.com

The beauty industry has declared that grunge is trending again. According to Pinterest’s Fall 2025 trend report, searches for looks like “’90s grunge makeup,” “soft grunge makeup,” and “messy grunge makeup” have skyrocketed in recent months. One term, however, is leading the pack with an eye-catching surge—“clean grunge makeup”—which has jumped over 600 percent. For anyone who remembers the original movement of the late ‘80s and ‘90s, the phrase sounds like an oxymoron. After all, grunge was never meant to be clean.

A quick scroll through TikTok and Instagram shows just how muddled the definition has become. On one side, creators are leaning into dark brown shadows, matte lips, and smudged liner. On the other, you’ll find sculpted contour, glossy cut creases, and even glitter accents. Pinterest expands the chaos further, showcasing everything from graphic eyeliner to nude-gray lipsticks. The only common thread across platforms seems to be cool undertones and heavy emphasis on the eyes. Beyond that, it’s a free-for-all.

To understand why today’s interpretation feels off, it’s worth revisiting the roots of grunge. Born from the Pacific Northwest’s alternative rock scene, bands like Nirvana and Pearl Jam brought not just a new sound—raw, distorted, and heavy with angst—but also a rebellion against polished culture. Their appearance reflected their worldview: messy hair, chipped nail polish, ripped clothes, and an attitude of defiance. Kurt Cobain famously wore dresses on stage; women often ditched makeup or wore it ironically as a critique of societal beauty standards.

Grunge was never about perfect eyeliner or curated aesthetics—it was a rejection of them. It stood for nonconformity, rebellion, and authenticity in the face of a culture obsessed with polish and perfection.

The irony of 2025’s “clean grunge” is that it strips away the very core of the movement: the refusal to fit into an algorithm-driven definition of beauty.

The resurgence of grunge in makeup trends may reflect our collective desire to push back against societal pressures once again—but to truly embrace it, the spirit of resistance has to return, not just the smudged eyeliner.