TikTok make-up artists promote lube as a skin primer, claiming it helps foundation glide on, but experts say it could damage your skin
- Silicone-based personal lubricant has gone viral on TikTok recently, with influencers using it as a make-up primer
- Lukas Kohutek swears by it, Sean Anthony said it feels ‘glidy and smooth’, but dermatologists say it is risky
TikTok make-up artists are using lubricant as a primer, saying it helps their foundation go on smoothly. But some dermatologists think there could be adverse effects.
Make-up artist and TikToker Lukas Kohutek first used lube as a primer in February 2019 and hasn’t stopped. Back then, the technique didn’t get much attention, but it has exploded since, with the #lubeprimer hashtag netting 8.7 million views.
The first time one of Kohutek’s lube videos went viral was in July this year, receiving 1.5 million views. But the trend has resurfaced recently after a user called Rady used it in a video demonstrating the “best make-up hacks” in September, racking up six million views. Since then, several other beauty creators have tried it, including Sean Anthony, who said it feels “glidy and smooth” and “grippy, which is amazing for primer”.
Kohutek, who has 14,000 followers on TikTok, where he posts creative make-up looks, said the method was actually recommended by his best friend’s mother as a skin care product “because it is supposedly great for healing up scars after breakouts”.
Silicone products have been clinically proven to help with scarring, according to US online health portal Healthline. While often silicone-based, lubricant is not typically designed to stay on the skin for long periods of time, and there is no consensus on whether it’s effective for this purpose.