A woman thanked her handy Maybelline mascara stick after she was able to use it to change her Honda’s tire. Andrea Leon’s (@hotmessivfmom) massively popular TikTok earned a whopping 3.6 million views as of Sunday.
Throngs of other users on the app said they were impressed with her demonstrable ability to get creative under pressure.
Mascara: mechanic’s friend?
“That one time Maybelline mascara helped me change a flat tire,” Leon writes in a text overlay of her video.
In the clip, she can be seen turning a jack that’s been placed underneath her vehicle. The front driver’s side tire is visibly flat and in the TikTok’s caption, she detailed the situation further. Despite a sweltering Florida summer and a prior lack of tire-changing know-how, she got the job done.
“FYI- I realized after a bit that it wasn’t placed correctly. Watching a YouTube video helped me out!” she wrote. “Had to start over and adjust it but eventually got it right and changed the tire. Mama did it at 6 months postpartum in the Florida summer heat.”
While watching the video, you might be wondering why the Mascara brand has anything to do with it. But pay close attention to the apparatus Leon is using to twist the jack: that’s not a metal handle. Instead, the TikToker stuck a Maybelline mascara tube inside the jack’s turning mechanism. Thanks to the cosmetic brand’s container, she had a useful makeshift wrench that helped her in a pinch.
Advocating for sponsorship
@hotmessivfmom FYI- I realized after a bit that it wasn’t placed correctly. Watching a YouTube video helped me out! Had to start over and adjust it but eventually got it right and changed the tire 👍🏽 Mama did it at 6 months postpartum in the Florida summer heat 🔥. #imjustagirl #girlythings #maybellinemascara #flattire #flattirecheck #funnyvideos ♬ Just A Girl – No Doubt
Several TikTokers who responded to Leon’s video used the comments section as an opportunity to advocate on her behalf. Like this person who wrote, “@Maybelline New York you need to sponsor her! This is proof women can do anything with the right mascara.”
Another joked, “Should we change our name to Ulta Beauty and Car Repair?”
Someone else came up with a tagline for the company’s product that others in the comments seemed to enjoy: “@Maybelline NY lifting more than just eyelashes.”
One user on the platform stated they were impressed with Leon’s out-of-the-box problem-solving. “This is smart thinking not everyone’s brain is capable.”
Another angle
In a follow-up video, Leon showed other snippets of her life, including an additional angle of the mascara tire jack situation. From this recording, it was much easier to see that she was indeed using a plastic tube of makeup to twist her car’s jack into the car. Her video then goes into a montage of her rock climbing, lifting weights, and covering the top of her house with a blue tarp.
@hotmessivfmom Replying to @huughjasss ♬ Do It Like A Girl – Morgan St. Jean
However, she also gave viewers a little more context into her personal life. She added in a series of overlays: “I’m a Latina mama that’s endured a lot of pain, heartbreak & loss. Started my TikTok with sharing our IVF journey after enduring 8 naturally conceived pregnancy losses. It took 7 years to be heard and get to this point but then the world was shut down.”
The TikToker then went on to say that thanks to IVF she was able to become a mother. Leon added that she had overcome a lot of diversity, and used her viral moment to share encouraging messages to other women.
According to USA Today, only 1/3rd of women know how to properly change a tire. The outlet referenced an Insurance.com study on car ownership and maintenance that had 2,000 participants. Comparatively, only 6% of men said that didn’t know how to properly change a vehicle’s tire.
The Daily Dot has reached out to Walmart, and Leon via email for further comment.
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