Time Capsule Thursday : 90’s Grunge!

The same time in history that brought us Neo Pets,holographic pants,butterfly hair clips in neon colors and blow up furniture…also gave us…

…Grunge! A fashion trend that came alive ,wide-spread, around the Seattle-based music scene in the early 90’s also known by this name.

Grunge fuses elements of punk rock,sometimes indie,and heavy metal. Lots of rad distorted electric guitar…sounds of my youth 🙂 Add bass guitar, a drummer and a singer and you have a band! Lyrics were typically angst-filled and introspective, often addressing themes such as social alienation, apathy, concerns about confinement, and a desire for freedom. I remember tons of kids had the symbol for Anarchy on their notebooks.

“And I don’t even care to shake these zipper blues
And we don’t know just where our bones will rest
To dust I guess…”

Smashing Pumpkins,1995

Grunge style was divided into two sort of categories…soft and hard. You’d have dark lips with a sort of naked eye look paired with flowers in your hair and some flannel with boots…esp Doc Martens! Or you’d have DARK everything with…more dark or flannel and boots. Anything went really. Like the clothes…makeup looked like it had been slept in…think Courtney Love or Shirley Manson 🙂

“When I wake up in my makeup
It’s too early for that dress
Wilted and faded somewhere in
Hollywood…”

Hole,1998

Grunge style and makeup is super easy to achieve so I thought I’d throw together a look and go scare everyone at the gym later 🙂

First off I used Hard Candy Glamoflauge Concealor to porcelain out my skin. I use this as a foundation by spraying some e.l.f. setting spray onto one end of my beauty blender. I used e.l.f. powder over this so that I had a blank canvas.

For blush I used Too Faced Perfect Flush Blush in “Something About Berry” (90’s perfection right there haha.) Then used by It Cosmetics Brow Power for my brows. This is 50% off at Ulta tomorrow! I will be there bright and early!

To really grunge out my eye area I grabbed my Urban Decay Smoked pallete. It is PERFECT for a grunge look! I used Blackout on my lid and crease…a few layers. Also applied it under my bottom lashes.

The Urban Decay 24/7 Glide On Eye Pencil in Perversion doesn’t mess around. I’ve never seen an eyeliner so black in my life. It applies SO smoothly. It just kicked my beloved gel liner by Marc Jacobs right in the ass.

I took that same e.l.f setting spray and used it to dampen my brush so I could really grunge out my lower lash line. For added effect,I smudged with my fingers as well.

For lipstick I dove into my Urban Decay Vice Lipstick Palette for the darkest shades Blackmail and Sheer Shame. I am obsessed with this lipstick palette!!! I used Maybelline Colossal Big Shot Mascara really chunky on the top and bottom…and the look is set!

I threw on a choker, a flowered headband and some flannel and there ya have it!

“With the lights out, it’s less dangerous
Here we are now, entertain us
I feel stupid and contagious…:

Nirvana 1991

So much of what I recall from middle school and my first few years of high school…involve flannel and boots…chokers…black lipstick and nail polish from Wet N Wild. I lived in small town U.S.A so we hadn’t gotten a Hot Topics by that time. I had heard of it though,it sounded magical haha.

And honestly…the grunge style and music are timeless. I was just shopping at Target yesterday and all the clothes are back again. Be prepared for flannel,flowered dresses,overalls and crop tops! The dark lips and eyes look has been on its way back in for a while now. I think this is the year it all collides again!

“All I can say is that my life is pretty plain
I like watchin’ the puddles gather rain
And all I can do is just pour some tea for two
And speak my point of view but it’s not sane
It’s not sane…”

Blind Melon,1992

Until next time…

I’ll just be over here staring at Kurt Cobain,

XOXO♥