From painted-on tears to purposely flushed cheeks, “crying makeup” is about wearing your emotions on your sleeve. But can we only accept sorrow when it’s pretty to look at?

There’s nothing quite like marinating in your ennui. Sure, being happy is great, but there are days when I’d rather listen to grim music, revel in the gloomy weather and scribble my surly thoughts in a notebook. Sometimes, we all just want to be sad. And that feeling comes to life in TikTok’s latest beauty trend: crying makeup.

A distant cousin to Euphoria’s glitter tears, the trend is — as its name suggests — about appearing like you just shed a few tears. “This one’s for the unstable girlies,” says creator @zoekimkenealy. “You know how we look good when we cry?” — uh, not exactly, but go on — “If you’re not in the mood to cry, here’s how to get the look with makeup.”

Thus lies the trick to completing said maquillage: it’s a performance of pain, not genuine distress. Instead of the realistic mascara-smudged post-cry look, this fresh-faced fad borrows from the clean girl aesthetic. It…