The Beauty Trends That The Project Vanity Community Regrets

It feels like the wheel of trends spins faster with each passing year, doesn't it? The traditional arc of the trend cycle weaves through five distinct phases: introduction, rise, peak, decline, and finally, obsolescence. Along this journey, we've embraced everything from the audacity of blunt bangs and the allure of blue eyeshadow to the fresh charm of strawberry makeup looks and the daring edge of the wolf cut. Yet, amidst the whirlwind of changing styles, one constant remains: our ability to look back at our old photos and wince at what we once deemed the pinnacle of fashion. Indeed, the trend cycle seems to unfurl across five stages, but I propose we acknowledge a universal, unspoken sixth stage: regret.

But here's the thing - in this shared experience of retrospective fashion faux pas, we find a unique form of camaraderie. Misery might love company, but there's a peculiar joy in bonding over our collective beauty blunders. We've all been there, haven't we? We reached out to the vibrant Project Vanity Community to talk about their beauty regrets. Perhaps you will relate!  

Skincare Trends We Regret

xx-step Korean skincare routine. I think all those products actually did more harm to my skin than good. When a skin issue would come up, I would just add another product to try and deal with it, probably exacerbating the problem. Wasted a LOT of money (this was BeautyMNL heyday so the convenience made it addictive), damaged my skin, wasted a lot of time too. Now I just have a super basic skincare routine. Cleanse, 1 “active” product, moisturise. SPF in the morning. Less is better. My skin has tremendously improved

-Dana M.

I couldn’t regret this one because I was too poor in college to afford it when the 10-step Korean skincare routine first went viral. Looking back, it was a good thing I couldn’t save up for even just one of the many serums, toners, or concentrates needed because it would have been likely that whatever combination I finagled together would have ruined my skin more than fixed it. Because when you’re just starting out you don’t really need the most complex routine possible. In a previous article we discussed how focusing on the necessities builds a foundation for your routine while preventing beauty overspending.

Makeup Trends We Regret

Very very heavy Instagram makeup when I was like 15—looking back, I looked so old in my photos then 😭

-Shao Quintos

I regret being swept away by rampant beauty consumerism way back 2015 to 2019 too. I regularly checked beauty blogs and YouTube channels and felt like I always had to have the new lipstick, palette, or toner they were promoting because of FOMO. I made excuses such as having done my research thoroughly so it was worth what I spent, and so on. But in the end, I really didn't need that much product. I also wasn't skilled enough to experiment much with eye colors, and it took me a long time to accept that my eyes are too sensitive and putting eye makeup irritates the hell out of them.

I went makeup free since the pandemic and now only doll up once or twice a year now. It has been freeing. I also realized my face has so much more character without makeup (my skin has sunspots but glistens, and my eyes look so much clearer and beautiful). I also put it off for the longest time, but a week ago I gathered all my makeup and threw away more than half since they were past expiration. And there were a few stuff still good to use but I don't see myself ever wearing again. It made me sad how much money I threw away, which I could have spent instead on travel and other experiences that would have enriched my life. But I guess that's youth for you. Hindsight really is 20/20.

-Kat Aquino E.

We all remember the heyday of beauty YouTube, we lived for the hauls and try-ons and loved it whenever our favorite beauty influencer came out with a new collab. I remember when Bretman Rock came out with a ColourPop palette and how much I would have loved to buy and own one. Now that I’m older I don’t know what I would have done with electric red and blue eyeshadow!

Brow Trends We Regret

The 90s to 2000s ultra thin brows. I used to have thick brows. They never grew back right. Bakit kasi di ako nakinig sa nanay ko 😝

-Annie M.

Microbladed eyebrows HUHU

-Catch O.

The moms in our lives were just trying to look out for us when it came to our brows. I remember getting my makeup done for the very first time and my mom telling the makeup artist that under no circumstances would we be touching my brows. She knew the consequences of an overactive tweezer! And for some of us, no amount of castor oil would bring them back. It seems the consensus of the Project Vanity Community is that it may be safer to go with less permanent brow trends.

Hair Trends We Regret

Even Project Vanity’s own Liz Lanuzo has her beauty regrets.

Mine would be bleaching my hair and getting purple hair. My hair never grew back the same way after! Super duper duper regret it.

-Liz Lanuzo

Perming my hair! I damaged it completely and still suffer from dryness and split ends until now

-Erika U.

Raise your hand if you had curly hair that you chemically straightened and rebonded for years! I regret this time in my life so much because I could have lived with much healthier hair if I had embraced my curls and put in the effort to learning how to care for my hair type. But no matter if it was a perm from hell or a run-in with a bad haircut, the great thing about hair is that it does grow back. With a little TLC and maybe a change in style it can come back better than how it first turned out.  

We all have a beauty regret we wish we could take back. However, we can also look back on it and laugh! Ultimately we won’t see regret; just that we were young and beautiful. The great thing about life is that we live long enough to regret some things because we lived enough to try everything. 

Find your tribe by joining the The Project Vanity Community Facebook group. We’re a thriving community of beauty and lifestyle enthusiasts and are always ready to talk about the different ways that makeup and skincare can promote self-care and confidence building. See you there!