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There’s a particular kind of woman who has always terrified the world a little: the one who doesn’t mind being misunderstood. We’ve spent decades dressing her in sharp cheekbones, darker lipsticks, and a stare that could disarm a man at fifty paces. She arrived as Anjelica Huston’s Morticia, as Cher’s witches, as Michelle Pfeiffer’s Catwoman, and in India as Rekha’s siren-coded seductresses, Tabu’s morally delicious “villain” in Andhadhun, and Kareena Kapoor’s icy Poo when she decided vanity itself could be a weapon. Every one of them realised softness is optional, but power is not.
Wicked: For Good walks into this legacy like it was always hers. With the new film dropping this week, the internet is busy asking who is “Team Elphaba” and who is “Team Glinda,” but the truth is simpler: every woman carries a little wickedness, a shade she puts on like eyeliner when she needs to remember who she is. It’s survival instinct. It’s theatre.
And the best part? You don’t need a green complexion or Broadway lungs.
You just need a manifesto — a modern witch’s guide to being unforgettable without explaining yourself.
Welcome to your syllabus. Here’s how to be wicked — for good.
THE MANIFESTO (and the makeup that makes it real)
1. Pick a side. Then flip it.
A wicked woman doesn’t choose between “good girl glow” and “dark femme glamour.” She does both. She blends them. She weaponises contrast.
Your makeup ritual:
Start with a radiant, almost innocent base. Then add a feature that unsettles just enough — a sharp wing, a deeper lip, an undertone of trouble.
Try:
Make Up For Ever HD Skin Foundation for believable radiance
Huda Beauty Pretty Grunge Precision Liquid Liner for wicked wings
Lisa Eldridge Luxuriously Lucent Lip Colour in Duchesswhen you want a softer rebellion
2. Glamour is not decoration. It is armour.
Witches throughout pop culture have always used beauty the way knights use shields — not to look pretty, but to create presence.
Your makeup ritual:
Contouring isn’t a trend here; it’s architecture.
Eyeshadow isn’t colour; it’s mood.
Glow isn’t dewy; it’s supernatural.
Try:
Charlotte Tilbury Hollywood Contour Wand for sculpted cheekbones that say I know exactly what I’m doing.
Anastasia Beverly Hills Norvina Pro Pigment Palette for unapologetically dramatic shades
Danessa Myricks Dew Wet Balm in Clearfor that ethereal, witchy-from-within sheen
3. Commit to one dangerous feature.
Every wicked woman has one signature: Morticia’s hair, Elphaba’s green, Maleficent’s cheekbones or Rekha’s signature red lip. You need one focal point that becomes your rumour.
Your makeup ritual:
Pick your signature for the night — lips, eyes, or hair — and go all in. No half-commitments here.
Try:
Pat McGrath Labs Dark Star Mascarafor theatrical lashes
Ouai Hair Oil + Dyson Airwrap flyaway attachmentfor villain-level sleek
4. Be intimidatingly moisturised.
Every glamorous villain has skin that looks like she does not lose sleep over mortals. Hydrated, luminous, glazed-but-not-sweet.
Your makeup ritual:
Double moisturise. Then gloss the high points like a spell.
Try:
Tatcha The Dewy Skin Cream for rich, opulent hydration
Biologique Recherche Fluide Vip O2for oxygenated radiance
Hermès Plein Air Radiant Glow Powderfor that expensive glint
5. Let your eye colour lie.
Nothing is more deliciously wicked than confusing the room. Coloured contact lenses? Yes. Unexpected eyeliner tones? Absolutely.
Your makeup ritual:
Go green if you’re a brown-eyed girl. Go hazel if you’re deep brown. Use purple if you want your eyes to whisper secrets.
Try:
6. Own your shadows. Literally.
Wicked makeup isn’t about perfection. It’s about intentional imperfection — smokiness, softness, edges that look lived in.
Your makeup ritual:
Blend the edges of your eyeshadow like you’re erasing evidence.
Try:
Hindash Mono Blush in Romance — flawless for multipurpose draping
Kay Beauty Brown Eyeliner for soft definition
7. Perfume is personality. Pick one that could hex a man.
Fragrance completes the witch. Choose something a little dark, a little sweet, a little confusing.
Your makeup ritual:
Mist behind your knees. Behind your ears. On your pillow. And if you want to be unforgettable, your hairbrush.
Try:
YSL Black Opium Over Red— femme but dangerous
Byredo De Los Santos — smoky, mystical, modern
Dior J’adore L’Or— gold, warm, intoxicating
THE FINAL SPELL: WICKED, BUT WITH INTENTION
Wickedness is not cruelty. It’s clarity.
It’s treating glamour like a language and speaking it fluently.
It’s knowing your power and applying it with precision — sometimes with a brush, sometimes with red lipstick, sometimes with silence.
When you walk into a room, your makeup shouldn’t say you tried.
It should say you knew.
And when you’re done with your spell?
Baby, toss toss.
Read more:
Wednesday Addams’ Makeup Artist On Perfecting Soft Gothic Look On Jenna Ortega
Glow Like Your Horoscope: Lucky Beauty Rituals For Every Sign
