Overview
Makeup and cosmetic procedure trend creating elongated, upward-slanting eyes through tape, threading, or surgical lifts.
Technique Origins
Makeup version: Taping temples/outer eye corners to lift and elongate eye shape, then covering tape with hair/makeup.
Cosmetic procedure: PDO threading (dissolvable threads lifting brow/temple area) or surgical blepharoplasty.
Popularization
Bella Hadid, Kendall Jenner, and Instagram models showcased dramatic eye lifts. Procedure searches surged 400%+ (2020).
Peak Popularity
2019-2021: TikTok tutorials on tape tricks hit 500M+ views. Cosmetic clinics reported 300% increase in fox eye lift procedures.
Controversy & Cancellation
2020-2021: Accused of racial fetishization and Asian fishing - appropriating Asian features (epicanthic folds, almond eyes) as trend while Asian people face discrimination.
Celebrities caught doing “fox eye” pose (pulling eyes slanted) faced backlash. Trend increasingly seen as offensive cultural appropriation.
Decline
2021+: Widely criticized and abandoned by mainstream influencers. Procedure still exists but no longer marketed as “fox eye.”
Legacy
Sparked important conversations about beauty standards, racial fetishization, and cosmetic surgery trends borrowing from ethnic features.