Celebrity makeup artists are paid a lot of money to make their clients look flawless. And while most of them do their job well (seriously, we wish we could crack some of their closely held secrets), some of them slip up. They make rookie mistakes that not only cause embarrassing moments for the celebs, but in some cases make them look practically unrecognizable to their fans. And unfortunately, thanks to the internet, these makeup fails live on forever.
Over the years, we've seen even the biggest stars step out looking far from picture-perfect, revealing makeup blunders ranging from heavy-handed powder applications and mismatched foundation to clownish color combinations. Cosmetics can work wonders, but in the wrong hands, things can sometimes go very, very wrong.
Here are some of the worst makeup fails celebrities have committed that we can all learn some lessons from. These photos offer a great reminder to do one last check in the mirror, blend a little more, and maybe even take a test photo with a flash to make sure we don't leave the house with one of these scary looks on ourselves.
Kelly Osbourne
Kelly Osbourne was once a victim of the wrong shade of foundation. Unfortunately, this yellowish color made her look jaundiced and sickly at a 2012 Audi event. The frosty pink lipstick didn't exactly help the look, either. And that's not her only makeup mishap. In November 2020, she wound up having to wear an eye patch for a while after her makeup artist accidentally scratched her eyeball with a mascara wand. Ouch!
Billie Joe Armstrong
Some guys can pull off eyeliner better than some women, but this look by Green Day frontman Billie Joe Armstrong is not one of those instances. His red eyeliner made his peepers look infected and irritated instead of highlighting them. Plus, the black tear streak didn't quite make sense.
Christina Aguilera
Christina Aguilera was young when she first became famous, so she probably didn't know the best makeup trends. As we can see from this look at the MAC AIDS Fund VIVA Glam V after party in 2004, using pink was on her mind. All of the blush and eye shadow, combined with her over-plucked eyebrows, is just a hard look to pull off.
Nicki Minaj
Nicki Minaj is known for her over-the-top looks on the red carpet and she's not afraid of color. But her makeup at the 2011 American Music Awards nominations event earned her the wrong type of attention. Her foundation wasn't blended well at all and it ruined the look of the highlighting and contouring on her face, creating harsh lines on her nose and cheeks.
Bradley Cooper
One of the first lessons of makeup is blending. Unfortunately, the makeup artist responsible for Bradley Cooper's face at the 2010 Valentine's Day movie premiere missed this step. The actor showed up on the red carpet with a face full of foundation and bronzer — but only down to his beard. And there was no blending to be seen, resulting in this disastrous fail.
January Jones
January Jones is a classic beauty, but this makeup look — from the 2013 Met Gala — does absolutely nothing for her. In honor of the event's punk theme, the Mad Men star rocked some edgy black eye liner. But combined with her fair hair, light eyebrows, and porcelain-pale skin, the makeup completely washes her out. We've seen her look so much better. (And honestly, at first glance we thought this was a picture of Tilda Swinton, not January.)
Snooki & JWoww
Jersey Shore stars Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi and Jenni "JWoww" Farley were two peas in a bronzed pod at the 2010 California Gurls post Movie Awards party. We are so glad they've both since moved past the extra bronzer and super tans because they were looking seriously Oompa Loompa-esque back then. With age comes wisdom and experience, and fortunately, these two have improved their makeup game a lot since they first found fame.
Nicole Kidman
That final dusting of powder is where makeup can go really wrong. Case in point: This look on Nicole Kidman when she stepped out to the Nine premiere in New York City. The powder used on her nose and eyes for shine and oil control was still visible — and in the flash of the cameras, it almost looked like she had been partaking in recreational drugs, when it was really just a heavy-handed makeup application.
Aubrey O'Day & Shannon Bex
Aubrey O'Day and Shannon Bex gave us pause when we saw their looks at the 2015 MTV Movie & TV Awards. Both women's faces featured heavy contouring and highlighter, making them almost unrecognizable. This was once a super trendy makeup look, but too much of a good thing can sometimes be bad.
Ke$ha
In 2012, Ke$ha collaborated on a Baby G watch line and showcased the designs at an event at Los Angeles' SLS Hotel, where she was photographed in some truly out-there eye makeup (that weirdly seemed to extend to her hair). She looked like she was wearing a superhero mask and had showed up to a costume party instead. Ke$ha has had some edgy looks over the years, but this one went too far.
Rebecca Ferguson
The X Factor singer Rebecca Ferguson was seen at an M&M event in 2015 with quite a few makeup no-nos on display. The foundation used here is clearly a shade or two lighter than her gorgeous complexion, and the extremely light under-eye concealer makes her look more ghostly than necessary. Plus, the heavy brow makeup, eye shadow, and eyeliner are just too much, hiding her natural features.
Angelina Jolie
Angelina Jolie is not one to use heavy makeup like some of her counterparts, but she still makes the list with this epic fail at the premiere of the Normal Heart in 2014. Her glam team's liberal application of translucent powder showed up big time when the cameras flashed. It ruined what was meant to be a beautifully minimal makeup look.
Tyra Banks
As a supermodel, one would expect Tyra Banks to always look flawless and photo-ready. Unfortunately, no one is perfect all of the time, and this look at the 2012 Moth Ball is proof. Tyra arrived to the event with a major smoky eye that took over her signature arched eyebrows. Add in the pink lips, and she ended up looking downright clownish.
Charlize Theron
It doesn't take much for tanner to go wrong. Charlize Theron looked very strange accepting her Oscar for her role in Monster with a very, well, monster-like skin color — orange. Trying to match her face to her body made her foundation look too yellow and take over her eyebrows. Overall, this look was a major miss for an actress who is normally breathtakingly beautiful.
Tamar Braxton
Tamar Braxton can bring the entertainment, but this look at a pre-Grammys party in 2012 made her look more like a clown than a professional singer. There was too much blush, powder, and heavy foundation for her delicate features. Again, this look is making us glad that makeup trends have evolved.
