I won't lie — I've been totally obsessing over the look of freckles for the last year. I'm not sure where my obsession started, but I recently noticed an inexplicable draw towards the freckly makeup looks on the Explore page on Instagram. And since I know you can't just start having freckles, I thought it would be cool to explore my options.
First, I watched some YouTube videos where makeup artists used brow pencils to draw on freckles. I tried it myself and while it looked good, it didn't necessarily look realistic — and I'm all about a natural makeup look, so I knew I had to keep exploring my options. Next, I found Freck OG The Original Freckle, $24, (again, obviously on the 'gram) which is a makeup specifically made to create faux freckles (which confirmed there were other freckle-obsessed people out there other than me, so that was reassuring!).
I used Freck for a long time — and still do! — but I got sick of dotting them on day after day and wanted to find an alternative that would last longer, so I could just wake up looking adorably freckled. Now, a friend of mine got them tattooed on — and don't get me wrong, she looks adorable — but that was a little too much commitment for me.
At the end of the day, I was looking for something long-lasting (but not too long-lasting) that looked still looked natural. And I finally found it while — you guessed it — scrolling through Instagram: Henna freckles.
Now, before you laugh, please watch this video, and tell me it doesn't look a) weirdly satisfying, b) incredibly natural, c) super easy to do at-home.
Okay, now that we're all on the same page and are ready to find the closest place we can buy henna... no, but seriously: I was completely sold after watching this lovely demonstration.
Though on the flip side, I also found that there were plenty of henna freckle fail videos, so I knew I had to follow the instructions very carefully, so I didn't end up looking like this:
(Over eight million views later, Naomi Jon has scarred the lives of faux freckle lovers everywhere.)
I rewatched the first video probably about 50 times, then I took to the web to find the same products that she used. I ended up finding the henna on Etsy for about $15 for a two-pack. And I used a facial oil super similar to hers that I had at home. I won't lie, I was completely terrified and totally wanted to back out, but I made sure I was experimenting on a day when I had nothing to do (for that day or for the next few days, for that matter) just in case.
I got started with my experiment and, of course, recorded it. Check out the video below to see how the process went!
