Some beauty trends earn their staying power. Others simply refuse to leave. Black beauty spaces are having an overdue reckoning about what actually works versus what just performs well on camera. Here are five hair, makeup, and style trends that have officially worn out their welcome over the years.
Exaggerated over-gelled baby hairs
Baby hairs is the art of laying and shaping the fine hairs along a hairline. Entertainer Josephine Baker was styling hers in Paris in the 1920s, and Black women turned the look into a form of self-expression decades before it ever hit a feed. What has to go is the exaggerated version: thick, cartoonish swoops drawn on with gel and a toothbrush until the hairline looks less like a finishing touch and more like a logo. Stylists warn that heavy daily gel application and constant brushing strain some of the most fragile hair on the head. Let the six-inch curlicues go.
Caterpillar lashes
Somewhere between “mega volume” and a costume prop, caterpillar lashes have become one of the internet’s most polarizing beauty punchlines this year. The clustered, segmented lash sets are built for maximum drama, but the spiky, bristled effect has drawn nearly as many parody videos as tutorials, with commenters comparing the look to actual insects rather than glamour. Lash technicians also note that the heavier clusters can weigh down natural lashes and shorten how long a set lasts. A dramatic lash moment still has its place for a night out. The segmented, clumped finish doesn’t need to be it.
Men in skinny jeans
The skinny jean debate has played out online for years, and the culture has largely spoken. Baggy and straight-leg fits have taken over, especially among Gen Z men who call the skin-tight style dated and restrictive compared with looser, more gender-neutral silhouettes. Denim brands have followed suit, rolling out wider cuts as the skinny jean’s decade-long grip on men’s fashion loosens. There is still a lane for a slim, tailored pair of trousers done with intention. The tight-at-the-ankle, tapered-everywhere denim that defined the 2010s, though, has already lost its hold on most closets and retailers alike.
Frontal wigs worn past their limit
Lace frontals remain one of the most versatile protective styles around, offering a natural-looking hairline without committing to a cut or color change. The issue isn’t the wig itself; it’s the habit of keeping one glued down for weeks without giving the scalp and hairline any rest. Dermatologists point to traction alopecia, hair loss caused by repeated tension and adhesive stress, as one of the more common and preventable causes of hairline damage in Black women. Stylists recommend rotating units, using gentler adhesives, and letting the hairline breathe between installs. The trend that needs to end isn’t frontals. It’s treating a hairline as if it can withstand that kind of pressure for long periods of time.
BBL shapewear
Padded, waist-cinching shapewear designed to mimic a surgically enhanced hourglass has flooded closets and TikTok shops in search of an instant curve. But medical experts caution that daily wear, especially of waist trainers, produces no lasting change to body shape and can carry real risks, including restricted breathing, digestive discomfort, and skin irritation. Shapewear still has a place for a night out or under a fitted dress. What’s overstayed its welcome is the expectation that a garment can permanently reshape a body, or that it belongs in daily rotation instead of as an occasional tool.
Trends come, and trends go. Which of these are you retiring, and which one deserves a comeback?