July 5, 2021
NewsIf you’re on TikTok, you’ll have seen Mikayla Nogueira. She’s become one of the unofficial ‘big sisters’ of TikTok and is teaching a generation of women how to love themselves and embrace treat makeup like the work of art that it is. This 23-year-old makeup artist is everywhere you look on TikTok and has become an overnight sensation thanks to her creative makeup looks. Her candid reviews, on-point makeup, and bubbly personality have gained her over 5.7 million followers on the app.
Almost every video that she puts out goes viral and Mikayla is responsible for several products selling out worldwide after being featured on her videos. What is impressive about Mikayla is how quickly she’s found fame on TikTok as a beauty influencer. Her 5.7 million followers’ rivals that of long-term and more established influencers who have been on the scene since the early days of YouTube or Instagram.
It all started in March 2020, just as the pandemic entered our lives. Like millions of us, Mikayla turned to TikTok to fill her time at the start of quarantine. She had just been laid off from her job at Ulta and decided to download TikTok as a way to fulfil her passion for makeup.
Mikayla’s first video was of the ‘Catfish Challenge’. Her success on the app is in large part due to her ability to spot trends early and capitalise on them. The video was the first time Mikayla had showed anyone what she looked like without makeup.
Since then, Mikayla has used TikTok as a platform to show off her creativity and experiment with every aspect of the beauty industry. Whether it’s product reviews on showing her daily makeup, Mikayla’s relatability makes her content easy to watch.
She recently told Vogue Online that she found creating TikToks to be “very easy for me…my mind is constantly overflowing with ideas.”. It’s not just makeup that Mikayla shares on the app. Her videos have shown a unique behind the scenes take of the life of a ‘average’ girl turned social media megastar. Mikayla has shared everything from disappointing dates to meeting her current boyfriend and buying her first Chanel bag.
Mikayla feels more like a BFF or big sister than a beauty influencer trying to sell you a product. Her authenticity and creativity are her greatest assets. She’s the sort of content creator that you can sit down, and binge watch her videos with an iced coffee. Mikayla isn’t afraid to show herself makeup free and with her hair in a bun – just like your friend sending you a WhatsApp video.
Her first collaboration with Glamlite recently launched online, hitting the market on her 23rd birthday. The Mikayla x Glamlite collection has already sold out, showing the power and community that this TikToker has behind her.
Speaking during her Vogue interview, Mikayla said that she wakes up around 7am to start filming her TikTok videos. Her daily goal is to make at least three videos, but no more than six. On average, it takes between one to two hours to film each video. Eyeshadow tutorials can take up to three hours to film. Afternoons are spent posting videos and engaging with her community of followers, before heading to meetings and hosting calls with her managers.
By 7pm, Mikyala’s working day is over and she’s ready to fall asleep by 9pm. Her daily schedule shows that becoming a successful TikTok star takes more than filming 30-second videos.
Part of Mikayla’s appeal is her raw honesty. We’re used to seeing makeup artists and beauty influencers who look like they’ve been blessed with flawless skin and a perfect life. Mikayla isn’t afraid to talk about the hard topics. She’s spoken openly about being pulled growing up because of her voice, weight, and appearance. Her childhood bullies used to say she looked like a man, making her question her femininity.
She turned to makeup at 10 years old as a way to make herself feel more feminine and positive about herself. Mikayla has described makeup as being her “safe zone”. Like most of us, Mikayla found herself watching makeup tutorials and beauty videos every day, giving her an appreciation for makeup as an art form.
You can tell by watching Mikayla’s videos that her passion for makeup is genuine. She’s described being able to share her passion with the world as an “incredible honor and blessing”.
It’s one of the first things we ask when we see someone being successful. How have they done it? Why are they so successful? While most people will shrug their shoulders, Mikayla has two strong answers to this question. She describes her positive attitude towards life and her authenticity as being key to her success.
It is her life experiences and what she has gone through that has allowed this TikToker to truly be herself. Unlike other content creators, her videos are unscripted and off-the-cuff. Her goal is to always lift others up and she isn’t afraid of what people thinks of her. She aims to bring humour to all of her videos and to remind people that makeup is meant to be fun.
If you’re a follower of the beauty community, you’ll know of the drama that usually follows some of its most successful creators. Mikayla’s TikTok is a drama-free zone, with this content creator aiming to bring a “refreshing perspective”. Mikayla shard that her “main goal is to make someone smile or teach someone something new”. We know that Mikayla’s videos always put an instant smile back on our faces.
We all know of influencers who only review products that they’re paid for. Mikayla is famous for finding wonder products – both drugstore and high-end. With her millions of followers, Mikayla has the potential to make or break the success of a product. While most beauty influencers won’t speak negatively about a product for fear of a PR backlash, Mikayla posted a ‘full face of makeup I hate’ video.
Mikayla is more transparent than other influencers, describing how she has “absolutely wrecked products I have received in PR”.
Speaking of product reviews, you’re probably wondering what this social media superstar counts as her holy grails. Mikayla’s must-have products include the Soft Matte Complete Concealer by Nars, Nyx’s Brow Glue, the Maybelline SuperStay Foundation, Anastasia Beverly Hills’ Liquid Eyeliner, and the entire range of Glow Recipe’s skincare.
Mikayla’s number one makeup hack is to take the time to understand your skin type and texture. This factor is what will make or break your skincare routine. You should always be keeping your skin texture and type in mind when buying and applying makeup products. Your skin type will determine which products you should use to prep and primer your skin, as well as which product formulas to avoid.
If you know your skin texture and type, you can avoid buying the wrong products or causing a breakout.
Part of this process is also understanding your skin tones, which can be a gamechanger when choosing your foundation shade. You want to understand what your master and undertone is to be able to buy a foundation. You might be able to finally find your perfect match.
At the time of writing this article, Mikayla’s most viral video on TikTok is her contouring hack, which has over 28 million views. The content creator has pointed to ‘hack’ videos as being a key part of her success. Viewers are more likely to watch under the end to see the dramatic results. The longer someone watches a video, the more successful it will be and the more the creator’s content will end up on their ‘for you’ page. She’s singled out the contouring video as being successful because it’s easy for her audience to recreate and do themselves.
For the future of TikTok, Mikayla has reflected on how the app is changing day by day. She’s said she’s committed to staying on the app for the foreseeable future as it’s fun and she’s enjoying creating content. Mikayla told Vogue that she likes the TikTok format as it doesn’t require her to have a ‘big idea’. She can be herself and make unique videos without feeling like she’s putting on a performance, as most creators feel when making YouTube videos or long-form content.
Mikayla’s future looks bright as one of the most successful beauty influencers to originate from TikTok. Outside of TikTok, Mikayla has her recently released Glamlite collaboration and over 1.1 million followers on Instagram.
She got in the app right as it was about to experience accelerated growth thanks to the pandemic. Her success is a blueprint for other creators who want to break out and make a name for themselves on social media. Tell a story, be your authentic self, and build a relationship with your audience.
Summer is right around the corner. It’s time to give your makeup bag a refresh. Summer makeup is in a league of its own. Everything changes. Everyone is chasing the ideal of a ‘hot girl summer’, meaning that we all have to step up our makeup game. It’s time to dig around for your favourite bold lipstick, book in for a lash lift, and splurge on a new eyeshadow palette. With the end of lockdown coming just in time for summer, you can expect this summer to be unlike any other. While this list focuses on makeup trends, you don’t want to forget about your skincare. During the summer, it’s more important than ever to be on top of your skincare routine. You need to protect your skin from sun damage, which means touching up your sunscreen throughout the day.
For better or worse, Zoom has become a fixture in our day-to-day lives at least for the foreseeable future. This puts us in a weird position because on one hand, we are at home lounging around all day and the last thing we feel like doing is putting on makeup.
Lipstick is a girl’s best friend. With just one coat, you can change your makeup in the blink of an eye. Whether you’re a fan of liquid lipstick or like to keep it natural with a pale pink shade, it’s usually the last part of your daily makeup routine. Your lipstick will only look as good as your application. If you’re wearing a darker or bolder shade, you want to be careful to make sure you don’t end up making your lips look lopsided. If you overline your lips too much, you could end up making them appear too superficial.
Your foundation is the focal point of your look. It has the potential to make or break your beauty routine. If you get it wrong, your entire makeup look can appear sloppy. Foundation acts as more than a base – it camouflages your skin and hides imperfections. Whether you’re a beginner to makeup or a seasoned pro, wearing a face mask has brought a new level of difficulty to your foundation application. Your foundation needs to withstand having fabric pressed against it for hours a day.
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