A new Japanese make-up trend, involving the use of hot melted glue to create tear-like droplet shapes that are then placed on the face, is going viral among teenage schoolgirls, according to a report in South China Morning Post (SCMP). The trendy style, known as “3D teardrop make-up” gives the girls a delicate appearance that is intended to evoke sympathy — making them look as if they are crying. The trend has spread rapidly across Japanese schools with a shortage of hot melt glue guns also reported in some areas.

As per experts, such bizarre trends routinely come up on social media in the country and last a few weeks. The make-up process involves squeezing super hot glue onto a smooth surface, such as a plastic sheet. Once the glue cools and solidifies, it can be removed and attached to the face using fake eyelash glue.

However, the trend has drawn criticism from netizens with many worried that some impressionable teenagers might harm themselves while using the hot glue. Many have labelled the entire trend as “ridiculous” and “bizarre” and called out those participating in it.

“Seriously? Are secondary school girls really into this kind of inappropriate trend now?” a user was quoted as saying by the outlet, while another commented: “Wait, doesn’t this hot glue tear make-up look suspiciously like sperm?”

This is not the first time that the hot melted glue trend has taken off. Last year, TikTok beauty creator, Vanessa Funes, better known as @cutcreaser, posted a video where she used hot glue gun to create a space-age eyeliner look.

“The first design I made was inspired by the Mandalorian’s Beskar armour but melted. So, I thought of melted metal and how that would look as an eyeliner design,” said Ms Funes, whose video with the hashtag #hotgluemakeup, managed to garner 14.9 million views.

Experts suggest that the hot glue should not be directly placed on the face in any condition. It is recommended to use a stainless-steel surface or parchment paper as a base to draw the desired designs if one intends to go through with the trend.

Also Read | TikTok Users Are Eating Dirt In Viral Beauty Trend, Claim It Has Health Benefits

Unconventional beauty trends

In September this year, a viral beauty trend in the US urged the netizens to eat dirt as a remedy for health issues. The peculiar practice, touted to improve gut health, skin problems, and even obesity, gained significant traction on TikTok.

Edible clay and soil products were being sold on e-commerce platforms like Amazon and Etsy, ranging from powders to clay chunks, priced between Rs 900 to Rs 2,200.

California authorities have arrested Michelle Mack, a 53-year-old mother of three, for allegedly masterminding a large-scale organised retail theft operation. The ring is accused of stealing nearly $8 million worth of makeup from American department store chains like Ulta, TJ Maxx, and Walgreens across the country, according to US media reports.

Investigators believe Mack ran the operation from her luxurious San Diego mansion. They allege she recruited and paid up to 12 women to steal makeup from stores in California, as well as 10 other states, including Texas, Florida, and Ohio. The stolen products were then reportedly sold at a discount on Mack’s Amazon storefront.

The alleged crime ring, dubbed the “California Girls,” travelled up and down the California coast as well as to 10 other states, including Texas, Florida, Massachusetts, and Ohio, to carry out hundreds of thefts on Mack’s orders, investigators said, according to CNBC.

With their airfare, car rentals, and other travel expenses paid by Mack, the suspects committed hundreds of thefts up and down the California coast and into Washington, Utah, Oregon, Colorado, Arizona, Illinois, Texas, Florida, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, and Ohio, investigators said.

Mack selected which stores to target and what merchandise to take, and the women were sent to clear out entire shelves of merchandise before making off with the stolen goods stuffed into Louis Vuitton bags, investigators said.

According to the complaint filed by the California Attorney General on Friday, more than $300,000 worth of makeup and other products were found in Michelle and Kenneth Mack’s shared Bonsall home when a search warrant was served on December 6, 2023.

“I see the justice system working slowly, but it seems to be working,” one of the Macks’ neighbours, who didn’t want to be identified, told NBC San Diego.

“It’s great they’re arresting them. It’s unfortunate these people got involved so young and ruined their lives. It’s not worth it,” Ulta Beauty employee Marybel Carmona said.