Over the last decade, somewhat of a war has grown between Millennials and Gen Z-ers when it comes to fashion and beauty trends.
Skinny jeans vs wide leg jeans. Side parts vs middle parts. Ankle boots vs cowboy boots.
And, for the most part, Millennials have succumbed to the preferences of their younger and ‘trendier’ counterparts, pushed by the societal pressure to appear younger.
But, a trend taking over TikTok has proven that this shouldn’t be the case.
‘How old do I look?’
As of recently, women – and always women – have been coming up on my For You page asking one seemingly simple question: ‘How old do you think I look?’
Now, if this isn’t a dangerous question, I don’t know what is – particularly in an age of social media where we’re so over-exposed to filler and filters to the point where those aging naturally are often perceived to look older than they really are.
But, it’s not the asking that’s the dangerous part — it’s the aftermath.
“This is not helpful anymore”
TikTok user @sonia.houseofgoddess took to the app this week to participate in the ‘how old do I look’ trend.
Sonia posted a series of photos — with make-up and without — with the caption ‘How old do I look? Don’t worry about hurting my feelings, just want the truth’.
The video has so far accumulated close to 500,000 views, along with thousands of comments telling her she looked as old as 55.
The problem is, she’s 35.
Sonia has since posted multiple videos changing different aspects of her look.
First, it was changing her make-up — getting rid of her eyeliner and switching to a glowier base.
“U have similar features and tones to me. I think this is a GREAT improvement tbh. I’d skip the bottom mascara, and let your nice looking eyes shine!” said one commenter.
So, she did that, too.
“On the right path but I think it’s the hair,” said another.
And Sonia posted a variety of hair color options for her followers to choose from.
While Sonia did state how insightful the experience has been for her, sharing in a video that she suffers from facial paralysis and is on a ‘journey to be the best version of herself’, she also changed the caption and turned off the comments on her original video hitting back at offensive commenters.
“This is not helpful anymore,” she wrote.
“That was exhausting…I just wanna work on myself after what I have been through. Too many faceless profiles and overly filtered ppl commenting. I just wanted to get some feedback on how to grow and improve.
“Some of you have really been awesome, I thank you. And it’s been so far really helpful to get ur tips. I’m working on it and taking the journey now to make myself up to date.”
No one is safe
Sonia isn’t the only person who’s been bitten by the ‘how old do I look’ trend.
Creator @carrieshade, age 29, posted last month asking how old she looked, garnering a host of brutal comments.
“28, from your face, but, with your hair style, glasses and outfit… 32-34,” said one person.
“I could tell when your hair was off your face and glasses were gone and you posed that you were in your 20s, but the hair, glasses and shirt made me I initially think you were 35ish,” said another.
“Glasses give 40s, shirt gives 60+, everything else mid 20s,” said a third.
@justpeachy779 created a whole series out of drastically changing her look after a scathing ‘how old do I look’ video, prompted by someone asking if she had grandchildren despite only being 40. Now, with the approval of her commenters, she dons the label ‘glow up expert’.
It’s okay to look your age!
The ‘how old do I look’ trend isn’t all bad. If you want to know how to update your look, it’s a surefire way to get some honest (probably too honest) feedback.
And, there’s nothing inherently wrong with wanting to look young, or keep up with trends — unless you don’t really want to.
If you’re in need of a reminder, you don’t need to look 20 at 40. But, if you do want to, maybe take TikTok’s advice with a grain of salt — Gen Z’s beauty advice sometimes takes ‘keyboard warrior’ to the next level, and chances are, your eyebrows aren’t making you look 75.
