50 Weird But Genius Hacks That Make You Look Way Better

Statement earrings, like oversized gold hoops or drop link pearls, may look pretty, but they can be pretty painful to wear if they’re heavy enough to pull at your earlobes. These clear patches stick to the back of your ears, providing support for weighty earrings once you’ve pierced them through the adhesive. Not only do the hypoallergenic patches make wearing dangly earrings a more comfortable experience, they also prevent lobe stretching and tearing.

If fluffed up brows are what you’re after, try swapping out the gel for this brow soap. Free of foaming agents, the soap thickens brow hairs as you brush them into place, keeping the feathery effect in place without a ton of product. Each brow soap tin even comes with a tiny spoolie applicator that you can bend into an angle to comb through your brows more seamlessly.

Unwanted roots can be temporarily concealed with this tinted hairline powder. But once you’ve had your color touched up, you can keep using the powder to give the illusion of thicker hair by pressing it over sparse spots, like a wider part line or thinning at the temples. The non-sticky, water-resistant powder comes in more than a dozen shades to best match your hair, and the mini compact includes everything you need to apply it.

At-home dermaplaning (aka shaving your face) requires a bit of precision. This shaving kit sets you up for success by pairing smaller facial razors with a skin-prepping spray. While the spray’s mist-on formula helps to soothe skin and create a protective barrier ahead of shaving, it goes a step further with its noticeable white color that highlights even the finest of peach fuzz, so you’re less likely to miss even a single hair.

Lip balms loaded with fragrances, colorful tints, and plumping ingredients are always fun, but sometimes you need something simpler. When you’re dealing with dry, cracked lips, skip the fancy glosses and opt for this nipple balm instead. Though it was actually formulated to help with breastfeeding and pumping, the balm uses a handful of gentle, organic ingredients that are ideal for soothing and moisturizing irritated lips. You can use the balm to treat cuticles and other patches of dry skin, and because it’s hypoallergenic and USDA-certified organic, it’s also a solid choice for anyone who’s picky about the ingredients they use.

For more color-correcting benefits, this face primer reduces redness two ways. First, green pigments help to camouflage visible redness in the skin; then, there are soothing ingredients like cica and bisabolol to reduce redness-causing irritation. At the same time, the primer still works in the traditional way to blur pores and create a smoother base that grips onto makeup.

This bright blue shampoo has a surprising number of dermatologist-approved uses beyond treating dandruff. For fungal acne on your face or body (and your scalp, too), you can use the shampoo as a cleanser, leaving it on your skin for about a minute before you rinse it off. The reason it’s so effective is because it uses ketoconazole to kill the yeast that causes both dandruff and fungal acne. One more reason to keep this anti-dandruff shampoo in your shower? Dermatologists say that using a ketoconazole shampoo twice a week has also been shown to improve some types of hair loss (just be sure to let it sit on the scalp for a few minutes before washing it out).

When a purple shampoo doesn’t seem to be enough to battle brassy tones taking over your blonde color, it’s time for something stronger (and darker, in this case). This toning conditioner is a beauty award winner that uses a more concentrated combination of violet and black pigments to restore blonde hair to a cooler, icier tone. As it sits on the hair, it also helps to nourish fragile strands with ingredients like argan oil, grapeseed oil, and hydrolyzed milk protein. Just be sure you don’t wait too long before washing the conditioner out, as the more intense pigments can stain the hair if you’re not careful.

Those fancy wrinkle patches you’ve probably seen people talking about on TikTok are really just sheets of medical-grade silicone that have been cut to better suit areas like the forehead, the under eyes, and the outer corners of the mouth. Rather than pay a premium for pre-cut patches, buy this roll of silicone scar tape and size it to your face accordingly. You still get the same moisturizing and smoothing benefits as the patches, but at a fraction of the cost.

For oily skin types (or anyone looking to keep shine at bay), this face roller gives you a reusable way to keep your makeup looking matte from morning to night. A volcanic stone sits in the mini roller, which helps to absorb excess oil from your skin without disturbing your makeup. Unlike blotting papers that are a one-and-done deal, the volcanic stone can be removed from the roller and rinsed clean so that you can use it over and over again.

Ensuring that brows and lashes are moisturized is just one piece of the puzzle when it comes to healthy hair that’s capable of growing (say, if you overpluck your brows or you’re rehabbing your lashes after too many extensions). Applying castor oil to your brows and lashes can help support growth by moisturizing the hairs and boosting circulation with its fatty acid-rich profile. This bottle of cold-pressed, USDA-certified organic castor oil makes that nightly application process easier with its included double-sided wand, which features a spoolie on one end for brushing the castor oil through your brows and a smaller brush at the opposite end for coating your lashes.

For even, crisp cat eyes every time, let this makeup tape guide the way. Infused with aloe vera so as not to irritate your skin, the soothing ingredient also reduces some of the tackiness so that you can place the tape over concealer and foundation. Amazon reviewers confirm that while the tape is sticky enough to stay in place while you’re applying your eyeliner and eyeshadow, it isn’t so sticky that it removes any makeup you’ve already applied.

This hair extension was specifically crafted with braided ponytails in mind, giving you an easy way to add some length to your updo. The synthetic hair comes in a single piece that’s attached to an elastic, but pre-sectioned to help with braiding into your natural hair. The elastic tie also has a separate, smaller extension that you can use to wrap around both ponytail holders for a seamless blend.

To give slicked back ponytails and knotted hairstyles a sleek finish, you’ll need to make sure every last hair is in place. This pocket-size tube holds a styling cream and oversized spoolie that let you smooth flyaways and secure even the most stubborn of baby hairs. The citrus-scented cream also moisturizes hair and adds shine with ingredients like prickly pear seed oil, meadowfoam seed oil, and grapeseed oil.

From a wonky winged liner to slightly smudged lipstick, makeup mistakes happen to the best of us. To correct even the tiniest of errors, these cotton swabs are pre-filled with a makeup remover solution. The tiny tools are easy to travel with, and because the liquid remover doesn’t get released until you snap the side with the blue line, you don’t have to worry about the makeup removing Q-tips leaking in your bag.

Whether you’ve turned to color-correcting to help with minimizing the look of dark circles or you’ve just gone the regular concealer route, you can get more brightening benefits with this setting powder. The soft lavender color creates a more luminous finish, while also setting makeup in place. This double-decker powder has a silkier pressed powder on top for setting under-eye makeup without turning cakey, and a loose setting powder underneath for mattifying the rest of your face.

Fun fact: you can turn any eyeshadow into an eyeliner with the help of a little micellar water. While it may seem counterintuitive to use something meant for removing makeup to create makeup, the clever trick went viral on TikTok for its ability to create long-lasting eyeliner. Obviously, you can still use your micellar water to remove sunscreen and makeup at the end of the day, but when you want to test out a metallic cat eye or a jewel-toned wing, dip an angled brush into the solution before gliding it through your eyeshadow of choice for a quick, custom liner.

Here’s another tip we picked up from the derms: Slather a generous layer of diaper rash cream over your face at night to soothe irritated or extremely dry skin. The face basting technique, which was coined by board-certified dermatologist, Dr. Shereene Idriss, M.D., works so well because of diaper rash cream’s active ingredient, zinc oxide. Naturally anti-inflammatory and antibacterial, zinc oxide can help repair a range of conditions affecting the skin, from eczema and acne to regular old dryness.

Starting with a smooth base doesn’t just make your lipstick look better, it also makes it easier to glide on and gives the color more staying power. But lip balm alone won’t get you there — exfoliating is part of the process, too. This lip serum exfoliates without the gritty texture of a scrub, using a combination of AHAs and PHAs to dissolve dead skin cells while drawing in moisture to the lips. You don’t have to rinse the serum off after you use it, just let it fully dry before applying a thin layer of your favorite balm.

If you’ve ever been curious about the difference a shower filter can make, here’s your chance to put it to the test for less than $50. Backed by more than 50,000 five-star ratings on Amazon, this showerhead replacement filters out chlorine and hard water minerals (hard water is what’s causing scale buildup on your showerhead, BTW) that can leave skin and hair dry and dull. But it also takes things a step further by infusing your shower water with vitamin C and other potentially beneficial minerals. The showerhead filter was designed to be easy to install yourself, and each filter cartridge can last you anywhere from three to six months (depending on chlorine levels in your water).

Just as a purple face powder can brighten your skin or a purple shampoo can neutralize brassy tones in blonde hair, a purple toothpaste can make your smile look whiter by helping to cancel out yellow stains on teeth. The color-correcting effect works right away, but the toothpaste also helps to whiten and protect your teeth in the long run with stain-removing and enamel-strengthening ingredients like fluoride. Even though its color is less conventional, the toothpaste still has a classic mint flavor, and you can use it morning and night.

Whether you’ve got a full day of outdoor activities planned or you’re simply trying not to melt into a puddle while waiting for the subway, this neck fan can help you out. The hands-free design is like your own personal air conditioner, giving you four fan speeds to choose from that can run for up to 20 hours when fully charged.

A glitter-filled highlighter isn’t the only way to get skin glowing. You can give your skin a subtler shine with a moisturizer that’s rich in nourishing oils, like Weleda’s iconic Skin Food face and body cream. This drugstore find is a multipurpose favorite with more than 25,000 five-star ratings on Amazon for its ability to function as a moisturizer, face mask, makeup remover, highlighter, cuticle balm, and more. To get a dewy finish without the shimmer, simply tap some onto the high points of your face, or apply a thin layer all over before doing your makeup.

Prevent eyeshadow fallout from sticking to your just-primed-and-moisturized skin with these eyeshadow shields. The half-moon shields also work like a stencil to guide you when precision matters most (as with a winged liner or a bright red lipstick). Pro tip: Even though the shields catch eyeshadow fallout, the sticky adhesive will remove concealer and foundation, so you’ll want to apply that after you’ve finished up with your smoky eye.

Dry shampoos and styling products can create buildup that leaves your hair looking lackluster over time. That buildup can also potentially cause scalp irritation, which is why the occasional clarifying treatment is key. When you need a more thorough clean, this hair rinse can be used before you shampoo or as a shampoo replacement by removing buildup and excess oil with apple cider vinegar. The hair rinse was formulated to be gentle on the scalp and safe for color-treated hair; plus, the apple cider vinegar leaves hair noticeably shiny.

For faking fuller lips, using a taupe or brown pencil works as a subtle contour for that your-lips-but-better finish. And it turns out, your brow pencil might actually be the perfect match. This angled brow pencil comes in a range of brown options with warm, cool, and neutral undertones for adding dimension to your lips. You can still use it as a brow pencil, too; just be sure to give it a good spritz with some rubbing alcohol to sanitize it between uses.

You may want to skip this one if you have oily or acne-prone skin, but for dry skin types looking for a little extra moisture, consider the social media-propelled “slugging” trend. Named for the shiny finish it creates that’s reminiscent of the slimy trail a slug leaves behind, the technique is as simple as applying a generous layer of this healing ointment over just-cleansed (and moisturized) skin. In addition to creating an occlusive barrier that seals in moisture overnight, CeraVe’s ointment also supports the skin barrier with ceramides — something that’s especially helpful if you’re slugging to heal tightness and flakiness from dehydrated skin.

In the same way that an eye primer keeps your shadow and liner looking fresh throughout the day, it can be used along the under-eye area to prevent your concealer from creasing, too. This lightweight primer keeps concealer smooth, but it’s also formulated with a pearl powder that brightens and evens out the skin tone. The smallest amount is all you need, and because the eye primer contains oil-absorbing powders, it even helps to combat shine.

You don’t have to invest in a pricey hair mask for smoother strands. This single-ingredient tub of USDA-certified organic coconut oil also gets the job done — and for less than $10. Full of fatty acids that deeply hydrate dried out hair, coconut oil can be used as a pre-shampoo treatment to enhance hair’s softness and shine. Dozens of Amazon reviews confirm they’ve turned to this coconut oil to moisturize their hair (and skin, and nails), but be sure to apply it sparingly to avoid being left with a greasy residue.

Color-correcting really does work like magic to even out your skin tone before you even reach for your foundation. A go-to technique among makeup artists, color-correcting can be customized to suit any needs — you just need to know what you’re looking for. To neutralize warm or yellow tones, dot on a tiny amount of this blue concealer and blend it in with a brush or sponge. You can also try mixing the blue concealer in with your foundation to help with cooling down unwanted orange tones.

Conversely, if it’s dark circles and or sun spots that you’re trying to tackle, you’ll want to reach for an orange color-corrector (or something with a softer, peachier pigment if your skin is on the fairer side). This orange color-corrector has a built-in brush that lets you dab on and blend in the creamy formula without the need for additional tools.

This contour pen lets you create the illusion of a more sculpted nose without any permanent (or painful) methods. The double-sided tool comes with your darker contour color on one end to create a shadow-like effect, as well as a pearlescent highlighter on the opposite end. Though the pen’s smaller size is helpful for creating more precise lines along the nose, the pen can be used anywhere you want to create more dimension.

This sheet mask works harder than most, as it’s infused with tiny tranexamic acid capsules. Those visible capsules help to brighten dull, uneven skin, while ingredients like collagen, panthenol, and niacinamide boost elasticity for a glass skin-like glow. Designed to be worn overnight (or at least for several hours), the gel mask also makes for an indulgent treatment mid-flight when you’re trying to avoid jet-lagged, dehydrated skin.

You can turn any hand cream into a more intensive treatment by throwing on a pair of cotton gloves. Most effective when worn overnight, the gloves are made from 100% cotton and come in a range of sizes to give you a comfortable fit. Plus, unlike sheet masks, the cotton masks can be washed and reused.

This temporary color gives you a two-in-one solution for filling in brows and covering up gray roots. Though it’s marketed toward men, the wand-style applicator makes it suitable for anyone looking to camouflage sparse spots or unwanted grays with precision.

Another beauty hack you can borrow from your kitchen pantry comes courtesy of honey — Manuka honey, to be exact. Sourced from New Zealand (the Manuka bush only grows in New Zealand and Australia), Manuka honey is known for its antibacterial properties, which make it an effective treatment for wound healing. And that’s part of what makes the sticky substance so great as a face mask or spot treatment. As Manuka honey’s antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties help soothe breakouts or general irritation, it also works to draw in moisture and leave skin soft.

From millions of views on TikTok to celebrity fans like Hailey Bieber, hypochlorous acid isn’t short on fanfare. But the multipurpose ingredient, which is naturally produced by the body’s immune system, is arguably worth the hype. As an easy-to-apply spray, hypochlorous acid can be used to kill acne-causing and odor-causing bacteria. Especially handy post-workout or as a quick skin refresh on a hot day, hypochlorous acid is gentle enough for even the most sensitive skin types (in fact, it can actually help with notoriously finicky conditions like rosacea and eczema).

There’s really not much this exfoliating toner can’t help with in the way of skin care. Though it’s most commonly used to help get rid of dead skin cells on the face to help promote a brighter complexion, you can also use it on your chest, arms, or backside to help treat bumps and keep everything smooth. This dermatologist-loved toner has a precision tip applicator that also makes it convenient for applying to the scalp to dislodge buildup before you hop into the shower, if you’re looking for another way to use it.

Skip the messy dropper serums and get a “glass skin” glow with this serum spray. The mist-on formula is a lightweight essence that has tiny, emerald-green oil capsules suspended throughout. Once the capsules melt into the skin, they have a brightening and plumping effect, thanks to ingredients like PDRN (aka salmon sperm), hyaluronic acid, and peptides.

If you want to target under-eye puffiness or help reduce redness from an inflamed zit, consider making your own ice roller. This reusable silicone mold lets you create your own mini ice roller that can be customized in a number of ways. For something beyond your typical cube, try freezing milk for more soothing benefits or turn dandelion tea into a depuffing treatment.

You can apply this violet-based self-tanning mousse all over for a bronzed glow that simultaneously helps to cancel out any yellow tones in the skin. But if you want to try to give your contouring more staying power, add a teeny, tiny pump of the tanning mousse to a makeup brush and carefully blend it in where you’d normally apply your contour. The guide color can be rinsed off after an hour, but you can also let the tanner develop longer (at least four hours) for your deepest color payoff.

Consider yourself warned: This sulfur ointment has a smell that’s often compared to rotten eggs. But if you can power through the potent smell, you’ll also find it makes for a potent acne treatment (yes, even for stubborn cystic breakouts). In addition to killing acne-causing bacteria and calming redness, the 10% concentration of sulfur also helps to regulate sebum production.

No time for a teeth whitening treatment? You can still create the illusion of a slightly brighter smile with a lip gloss that contains a blue base. This cool-toned berry gloss from Maybelline is just one example; plus, it has the added bonus of enhancing the fullness of your pout with hyaluronic acid. And if you’d choose a lipstick over a gloss any day, the same theory still applies.

Beyond keeping your makeup from fading or smudging throughout the day, a setting spray can be used to give your eyeshadow a more pigmented punch. The trick is to pack your brush with your eyeshadow color of choice first, then spritz the brush with the setting spray and smooth it over your lid as you normally would. The fine mist helps to intensify the color and give you a smoother application, but because it’s still a setting mist, the hack also stops fallout and gives your eye makeup more longevity.

The coconut and coffee scent of this body scrub is an instant mood-booster first thing in the morning. But better yet, it keeps skin super-soft. Sea salt and Arabica coffee act as physical exfoliators that buff away dead skin cells, while ingredients like aloe vera, avocado oil, and shea butter help to restore moisture and keep everything feeling smooth.

This portable fan is a clever way to set your makeup faster (especially when you’re dealing with warmer temperatures). Similarly, you can use the fan, which unfolds to stand upright on its own, for speeding up the dry time in between skin care product layers. And because the fan is rechargeable and small enough to throw in your purse, you can use it to keep cool on the go, too.

Like an overnight mask for bare nails, this reparative treatment gets painted on before bed and works while you sleep. Panthenol is the hero ingredient in the vegan and cruelty-free formula, helping to hydrate nails and cuticles that are dried out and prone to splitting. When you wake up, the mask can be peeled off or rinsed away, making it an easy treatment to support nail strength and growth in between manicures.

The same way that topical minoxidil (the active ingredient in Rogaine) can help to stimulate hair growth on your scalp, it can bulk up barely-there brows. The key is to use a spoolie to brush the minoxidil foam precisely where you want it, applying the product in the morning to avoid having it transfer to other areas of the face while you sleep. Even though it’s a dermatologist-approved hack, you still may want to speak with your doctor before giving it a go.

This face mask can be used hot or cold, giving you a way to treat everything from migraines and eye fatigue to recovery from cosmetic procedures like lasers and microneedling. When stored in the freezer, the mask works especially well for reducing inflammation and general puffiness first thing in the morning. It’s filled with gel beads that allow the mask to better mold to your face, and it’s fitted with Velcro straps to give the mask an adjustable fit.

If you’ve ever wanted to bring the benefits of the retinol you use on your face to the rest of your skin, this body lotion has you covered. Combining retinol with a peptide complex and ingredients like shea butter and squalene, the lotion smooths skin right away while improving elasticity over time as the retinol works to stimulate collagen production and encourage skin cell turnover. This lotion was actually formulated for the face, too, so it’s also a great option for anyone who wants to simplify their skin care routine.