2000s fashion makeover returns as the glow up, reshaping style evolution through social media and contemporary self-care culture
In the early 2000s, the phrase “fashion makeover” was everywhere – from glossy magazines to television shows dominating popular culture and promising dramatic wardrobe changes. With their dramatic “before and after” reveals, the formula was simple: swap outdated outfits, refresh the hairstyle, and watch confidence soar. Today, the same concept has been repackaged and made viral, often under a new name: the glow up transformation.
Why Fashion Makeovers Are Trending Again as Glow Up Transformations
With social media dominated by digital filters and instant virtual transformations, young people’s fascination with physical fashion makeovers is experiencing a glamorous return.
Just as millennials were once obsessed with television shows and YouTube videos featuring external stylists taking control of someone’s look, Gen Z appears equally interested in these fashion transformations.
The revival of the makeover aesthetic – amplified by the online communication strategies of brands such as Alexander Wang, whose WANGOVER videos on Instagram and TikTok have gone viral – has captured our imagination once more.
Today, however, a makeover is never just about swapping clothes or changing a hairstyle. It is about identity, reinvention, and the way fashion can rewrite the story we tell about ourselves.
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The #wangover series involves stylists, makeup artists and hairdressers to radically transform the style of random partecipants, resorting to Alexander Wang pieces
Alexander Wang’s WANGOVER: How Social Media Reinvents Fashion Makeovers
The WANGOVER is not a simple style tweak. Alexander Wang has elevated the fashion makeover into a spectacle, transforming people of all ages into striking embodiments of his brand’s DNA. Hair, make-up, and wardrobe combine into looks that are raw, deconstructed, and undeniably dramatic.
In doing so, he reminds us that fashion is not static. It is fluid – a tool of reinvention, and a mirror that reflects not only who we are but also who we wish to become.
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With WANGOVER videos, Alexander Wang showed its followers the transformative power of fashion, capable of bringing to light what people wish to become
The Psychology of Glow Ups: Dopamine, Oxytocin, and the Emotional Power of Makeovers
Our obsession with makeovers runs deeper than vanity. Psychologists have long noted the emotional rewards that come with transformation. The act of changing one’s appearance can trigger dopamine, the brain’s reward chemical, creating a surge of motivation and joy.
At the same time, the ritual of self-care involved in a fashion transformation can stimulate oxytocin, which promotes calm and well-being. In other words, an outfit glow up is not just about looking good – it literally makes us feel better from the inside out.
Why “Before and After” Stories Make Glow Ups So Powerful
There is also something profoundly symbolic about witnessing transformation. Glow ups echo the structure of the hero’s journey. We see a “before” – a moment of struggle or stagnation – followed by a shift into the “after”: the revelation of potential fulfilled.
From fairytales like Cinderella to modern-day reality shows, these stories captivate us because they reflect the hope that we, too, can evolve. Watching someone else transform allows us to project our own dreams of renewal, and in that reflection, we experience joy, empathy, and inspiration.
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In a kind of Gen Z version of the Cinderella stories, these stories tap into potential disclosure, revealing unexpected evolutions people did not imagine to achieve
Glow Up Confidence: Rituals, Self-Care, and Renewal
On a personal level, a makeover can boost confidence in ways that feel almost magical. Standing in front of the mirror after a haircut, a fresh outfit, or a new make-up look can feel like stepping into a stronger version of yourself. Many describe the sensation as liberating, almost as if they are shedding an old skin and emerging lighter, freer, and more aligned with who they wish to be.
The emotional resonance of these moments explains why so many people remember their “after” vividly – whether for a prom, a wedding, a job interview, or simply a much-needed act of self-care. Beyond confidence, glow ups often carry a ritualistic dimension. There is intention in the preparation, catharsis in the transformation, and renewal in the reveal. This process can feel like therapy, a reset that not only changes appearances but also clarifies emotions.
It is no surprise that people often seek a makeover during life transitions – after a break-up, before a new job, or at the dawn of a new year. The glow up becomes a symbolic fresh start: an outward declaration of inward change.
The Risks of Glow Up Culture: Balancing Transformation and Self-Worth
Of course, makeover culture is not without risks. The danger lies in becoming addicted to the chase for the next “after”. In a world of viral reveals and curated highlight reels, it is easy to lose touch with the “before”, to forget that worth and beauty existed even before the transformation.
When self-esteem becomes tied solely to external approval, the emotional power of style makeovers can turn from healing to harmful. This is why balance and self-awareness are crucial. The glow up should serve as an expression of identity, not a replacement of it.
Why Glow Up Transformations Are Shaping Modern Fashion and Identity
What makes the resurgence of fashion makeover culture so compelling today is the way it blends artistry, psychology, and empowerment. The fascination with Wang’s WANGOVER is not just about edgy leather or dramatic bobs. It is about witnessing the drama of becoming, the thrill of seeing someone emerge transformed, and the reassurance that change is possible for all of us.
Fashion, after all, is a living language. Each new look is a sentence in a story that continues to unfold. When embraced with intention, glow ups become more than surface-level transformations. They are acts of self-love, symbols of resilience, and reminders that we are never finished products but always evolving.
Especially today, a glow up is not just in the clothes or the hair. It is in the spirit that dares to step forward, to try again, to show up brighter and bolder than before.
Angelo Ruggeri
Journalist and Master, Styling, Business, Design Courses Tutor, Milan