Originally published 2019-06-04.
Nose hair extensions are false eyelashes glued around the rim of the nostrils so that they look like long, thick nose hair. The look was a joke, not a real salon service: it started with one playful Instagram selfie in 2017, spread as a meme, and has resurfaced every year or two since. If you came here wondering whether people actually wear them day to day, the honest answer is almost nobody does. And if you were tempted to try, your real nose hair has a job that is worth protecting.
Where the nose hair extension trend came from
The look is usually traced to the Instagram account @gret_chen_chen. In early October 2017 she posted a close-up selfie with strips of false lashes fixed to the base of her nostrils and a deadpan caption calling them nose hair extensions. Bustle wrote it up on 6 October 2017 as that week's viral beauty moment, and the writer clearly read it as a gag: the piece suggested the poster was simply being goofy.
That did not stop others from joining in. Make-up artists and beauty fans posted their own versions, a few filmed mock tutorials, and the hashtag #nosehairextensions collected a modest pile of photos. Around the middle of 2019 the idea came back again, which is when outlets such as TODAY ran fresh stories and the images in this article did the rounds on social media. Figures quoted at the time put the hashtag at a few hundred posts; that is a reported number, not one we could confirm, and it is tiny next to genuinely popular beauty tags.
Why a silly beauty look goes viral
Most grooming advice treats visible nose hair as something to hide, trim or wax away. Nose hair extensions flip that rule on its head. Instead of removing the hair, the wearer adds more of it, using a product normally reserved for the most glamorous part of a make-up look. That reversal is the whole joke, and it is why the photos stop people mid-scroll.
Viral beauty stunts tend to work this way. They borrow the language of real trends, with words like extensions, tutorials and must-have looks, and apply it to something absurd. Viewers share them to laugh, to be disgusted, or to ask friends whether this can possibly be real. Every reaction counts as engagement, so the stunt travels far beyond the handful of people who ever try it.
The reactions collected under the posts show that split. Some commenters loved the cheek of it, others found it repulsive, and plenty simply asked why. Very few treated it as a look they would wear to work. In that sense the trend sits alongside other tongue-in-cheek beauty memes, such as glitter brows or extra-long toenail designs, that are made more for the camera than for daily life.
What your real nose hair does
The hair just inside your nostrils is not decoration. It works as a coarse first-stage air filter. As you breathe in, those hairs catch dust, pollen, grit and other particles before they travel deeper into the airways. A thin coat of mucus in the nose makes the particles stick, and they are later swallowed or blown out. Nose hair also helps to warm and moisten incoming air.
There is even some evidence that having more of it may help. A 2011 study of people with seasonal allergies found that those with denser nasal hair were less likely to develop asthma, and the researchers suggested the extra hair may trap more pollen before it reaches the lungs. One study does not settle the question, but it fits the basic idea that this hair is there for a reason.
Nose hair is also different from cilia. Cilia are microscopic hair-like structures lining the nasal passages and airways that sweep mucus along. The visible hairs at the front of the nose are much larger and do the rough filtering at the entrance.
Why gluing lashes into your nose is a bad idea
Lash adhesive is designed for the outer edge of the eyelid, not for the moist skin inside the nose. Using it there brings a few obvious risks. The glue can irritate the delicate lining of the nostril, trigger an allergic reaction, or tear out natural hairs when the strip is pulled off. Any small break in the skin around a hair follicle can let bacteria in.
That last point matters because doctors already warn against yanking out nose hair. Ear, nose and throat specialist Dr Michael Benninger told the Cleveland Clinic that long nose hairs are harmless, but that removing them the wrong way can cause trouble. Plucking and waxing can lead to ingrown hairs and infections, and plucking has been identified as a major risk factor for nasal vestibulitis, an infection of the skin just inside the nostril. Fixing false lashes in the same spot and then ripping them away is not much different from plucking.
If something irritates, swells or becomes painful inside your nose, take it out and talk to a doctor rather than waiting it out.
Common myths about nose hair
Myth: nose hair is purely cosmetic
It is part of the body's defence against airborne particles. Removing every strand takes away a layer of protection, which is why specialists recommend trimming rather than stripping it out.
Myth: trimming makes it grow back thicker
Cutting a hair does not change the follicle beneath it. Nose hair does tend to become longer and coarser with age, which is linked to long-term hormone exposure, so people simply notice it more as the years go by.
Myth: nose hair extensions were a real salon trend
There is no sign that salons offered them as a service. The look lived almost entirely on social media, created for photos and laughs.
How to tidy nose hair safely
If visible nose hair bothers you, the gentle approach is the best one. Small scissors with rounded tips or a powered nose-hair trimmer can shorten the hairs that poke out while leaving the rest in place to keep filtering. Work in good light, trim only what shows, and clean the tool afterwards. Skip tweezers and wax, especially deep inside the nostril.
As for the extensions, enjoy them for what they were: a cheeky internet joke that briefly made the least glamorous part of the face the star of the show. The photos are funny. Your actual nose hair is better left doing its quiet, useful work.
Sources: Bustle, 6 October 2017; TODAY, 2019; Cleveland Clinic: Should you trim your nose hair?; Wikipedia: Nasal hair. Photos: Instagram users who shared the look, including @gret_chen_chen.
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