Freckle Trend Is Back as Woman Goes Viral for Hiding Pimple: 'Can You Tell?'

A video on TikTok that revitalizes the fake freckle trend online has gone viral and had almost 100,000 views.

In the video, entitled "Funny beauty hack to cover up a pimple," TikTok user Kenz Lawrén says: "I have this one pimple on my face that will not be covered up no matter how much concealer I put on it, no matter how many times I set it, it just won't do it.

"It's still very visible. So what I did was I put a little brown eyeliner on it and disguised it as a freckle. Can you tell which one it is?"

According to Vogue, until the 1920s the ideal was a "secluded hothouse heroine" whose skin was tarnished with neither freckles nor a tan. Caked on powder make up, and even "freckle removers" were the norm, until the swinging sixties burst through the conservative veil and freckles were back in, with natural beauties such as Patti Hansen and Mia Farrow sporting the look.

In 1995, Chanel launched the Le Crayon Rousseur, or The Freckle Pencil, designed to copy the "little girl" image of the 90s catwalks. The instructions on the packet told customers to apply it to their cheekbones and nose to create the freckled look, and to use the smudging tool to make the freckles look more convincing.

"This is part of Chanel's effort to gain a high-fashion profile," said Chanel market development manager at the time Timothy Walcot. "The 'little girl' look is quite in. This is intended to be a bit of fun."

In more recent years, other freckle pencil-type products have emerged on the market, although as Kenz Lawrén demonstrates, many people just use brown eyeliner or sometimes henna, for a longer lasting look.

Some people have tried other methods, some of them dangerous. In 2021, reality star Tilly Whitfield was hospitalized and left with severe scarring across her face after following the TikTok freckle hack that involved using a sewing needle and ink to essentially tattoo freckles onto your face.

The popularity of the freckles shows no sign of abating in the comments, with users being almost unanimously in favor of the trend.

One user wrote: "That is the smartest trick ever. i literally couldn't tell until you laughed. gorg btw," while another agreed: "That is so freaking clever!!"

Many users had trouble guessing which was the freckle and which was the pimple, with user arabebe15 writing: "I can't see it tho. I'm stupid lol" and ingelmaxine commenting, "Ngl [not going to lie] im surprised I cant even find it."

User madihaali107 exclaimed, "Damn they will embrace the freckle..."