Paging Carmela Soprano: ‘Mob Wife’ Makeup Is Trending on TikTok

Gone are the days of Barbie pink everything and ultra-minimalist “clean-girl aesthetic.” This winter, we’re embracing the delightfully bold  ‘mob wife’ look. If you’ve already got your furs, gold hoop earrings and leopard print ready, all you’re going to need next is a full face of makeup to wholly embrace your inner Carmela Soprano. We got the scoop from makeup artist and CTZN Cosmetics co-founder, Naseeha Khan, on how this trend wound up on TikTok, who’s wearing it and—most importantly—how to try the look yourself.

Naseeha Khan started her career as a personal makeup artist for the on-demand beauty service, Ruuby, based in England. She then co-founded CTZN Cosmetics, a makeup brand that she started with her two sisters in 2019. At CTZN, Khan is the head of product development and curation, where she focuses on creating inclusive color cosmetics for all complexions and genders. According to their site, CTZN works “with the intention of creating an equal experience for all beauty enthusiasts, no matter your culture, gender, age or race.”

The ‘mob wife aesthetic’ has made waves on TikTok this winter. Garnering 19k views as of writing, the hashtag ‘mobwife’ has people reeling, with a handful of videos on the app topping multiple millions of views and hundreds of thousands of comments both praising and admonishing the over-the-top trend. (P.S. We love it.) The trend features ultra luxurious elements of fashion, hair and makeup. Think bigger blowouts, chunky jewelry, nameplate necklaces, overlined lips, smoky eye shadow, fur coats, leather gloves—all the works—often pulling inspiration from Italian-American style concepts and other glamorous icons like Fran Fine from the television sitcom, The Nanny, known for her distinct, curly brown locks and eye catching lips. 

According to Khan, the masses are embracing more theatrical makeup in response to the minimalist look that has been in the spotlight for such a long time. "Mob wife makeup is becoming popular because it embraces messy smokey eyes, overlined lips and a full face of makeup,” she says. It’s giving both makeup artists and everyday folks a chance to get creative and try out styles that might have been deemed too "out-there" by the beauty standards that dominated the last couple of years. In this case, more is more. Pat McGrath’s ‘porcelain doll glass skin’ makeup for the SS24 Maison Margiela show is another prime example of the daring artistry that’s been making a comeback in a big way this season.

Khan adds, “I think mob wife makeup will be a dominating trend especially throughout the wintertime, as [the] fashion [world] is embracing fur coats, bold gold jewelry and more patterns like leopard print.”

The Mob Wife aesthetic has also been seen on the likes of Dua Lipa, Emily Ratajkowski and Hailey Bieber, who all donned elegant furs, glamorous gold accessories and bold makeup on the red carpet recently. When rocking this trend, chiseled cheekbones defined by expertly placed contour and bronzer, smokey eyes in neutral tones and pouty, overlined lips in shades of deep red, burgundy and ’90s browns are essential. We’ve also been seeing many attendees of New York Fashion Week hopping on the trend.

Luckily for you, we’ve already covered how to nail mob wife fashion, but no outfit would be complete without a matching face. “For a mob wife makeup look, I think incorporating a smokey eye, killer contour and statement lip is key. It should be kind of effortlessly messy but put together at the same time,” Khan says.

According to Khan, you should lay down the base of this look using a full coverage matte foundation. Next, you want to pay strong attention to contouring the entire face to create sharper angles, especially on the cheekbones, as you’ll be drawing quite a bit of attention to them.

For the eyes, you’ll want to smoke them out with a brown shadow on the lids and smudge a little just underneath the water line as well. Neutrals like chocolates, chestnuts, taupes, mochas and coppers are ideal for this and building up the intensity will emphasize the eyes even more.

As you move to the lips, remember that overlining them is essential. Focus on the cupid’s bow and accentuate the shape. To really get that power pout to stand out, opt for deeper lipstick shades like burgundies, browns and plums.

Khan sees this trend lasting throughout the winter as people bundle up in their finest furs to keep warm. Bottom line: If you’re thinking about trying out the look, now’s the time (especially before we see the return of those sun-kissed summer looks). Mrs. Soprano would be so proud.