Abby and Charlotte Roberts Are the New Romantics of the Internet

The internet and TikTok have given us new types of aesthetic archetypes: part-makeup artist and part-character, transforming beauty content into a form of online anthropology. Sisters Abby and Charlotte Roberts, who now have a combined social media following of over 26 million, are part of this new culture, the internet’s go-to reference for the cool, the underground, the dark… the wretched?

If you’ve spent any time scrolling recently, you’ve probably come across one of their videos — chrome teeth, inspired by Mad Max: Fury Road; a recreation of Anok Yai’s Met Gala glam; a ‘lace face’; or a look inspired by Frankenstein. 

“Our childhood was filled with creativity, a lot of crafting with each other, giving our Bratz dolls makeovers, and silly videos together,” Abby recalls, while reminiscing about a youth spent with glue-covered tables, cameras pointed at each other and chaotic afternoons outside Leeds. “I remember sitting at the kitchen together making loads of mess (sorry mum),” says Charlotte. They also remember dogs, lots of them. “Some of our fondest memories were spent playing at our grandma’s house – she had 11 dogs at one point and it honestly felt like heaven,” Abby adds.

For both sisters, who admit to growing up very shy, creation was their own secret language, a way of communicating before they were fluent in self-expression.

Their first brush with internet fame came early. Abby uploaded her first YouTube video – an “11-year-old makeup tutorial” filmed with Charlotte, who was only nine at the time. What began as playful experimentation quickly turned viral, exposing the sisters to reactions from all over the world, and not all of them positive. “Some people were so outraged that kids were doing makeup so young and we had to turn off the comments – it was wild!!” Abby recalls. “But it was posted honestly with such pure intention at this point, I had no idea social media could even become a career. I started taking things seriously when I was about 14 or 15 and posted consistently on YouTube and Instagram ever since.”

“It started as another way of playing together, filming ourselves doing makeup inspired by our favourite YouTubers.” Charlotte adds. It was only when TikTok became central to their work that everything began to shift into something more formal. “It was never intentional to make it a career, but it just snowballed,” she says. 

By 16, the demands of school and social media had become difficult to balance. “I was given an ultimatum by my teachers to drop one or the other,” shares Charlotte. “I chose social media and dropped out of sixth form and have been doing this as my job ever since.”

For years, it has allowed them to fulfill a new kind of fantasy, where they are able to role play a favorite character or create an alter-ego. “Beauty is definitely a performance as much as it is self expression,” says Charlotte. “It helps me to switch into character, into the persona of Charlotte Roberts, whereas when I’m at home I like to keep it more simple. That line is something that’s become defined over time, where I think originally it was more one and the same.”

They also speak about the joy of translating what they are going through personally through the canvas of the face. “It’s definitely self expression, in whatever form that may take,” says Abby, adding: “This is especially prevalent to me when it comes to world building in my music and telling the story I want to tell. I feel like beauty has such an emotional side to it that’s so often overlooked.”

Over time, their relationship with aesthetics has evolved from perfectionism into something more expressive and cinematic. Rather than striving for flawlessness, they are increasingly interested in creating an extreme self that feels more ‘them.’

When asked how they push the boundaries of content while still reaching a broad audience, both sisters point to the balance between reference and reinvention. “It’s all about taking a popular concept and pushing it forward – for example taking the Met Gala, a huge global event, but using your own niche references and viewpoint on it,” says Abby. Charlotte adds: “It’s always a case of identifying what’s trending or what people are talking about at the moment and finding a way to put my own spin on it and make it feel original. At least that’s what I hope to do.”

Aside from expressing themselves through beauty, music sits at the centre of both sisters’ creative process. Entire visual concepts are often born from a single song, a melody or lyric.

For Abby, artists like Lana Del Rey, Fontaines D.C., Arctic Monkeys and My Bloody Valentine shape the emotional side of her work, culminating in something she describes as “cinematic, melancholic, theatrical and immersive.”

She adds: “I’m a huge fan of ultra-feminine pin-up style looks, vintage fashion and hair, drag and anything super camp – that’s always been a huge inspiration for me. At the same time, when I’m not in glam I’m such a tomboy and always kind of have been. If I’m not in makeup for content, I’m usually chilling in sweatpants with no makeup, playing Fortnite on my Nintendo Switch (laughs). I wish I was more cohesive, but I just love all the things. I think balance is important though – it’s okay not to fit into one box. You can be a baddie and a gremlin simultaneously.”

Charlotte draws heavily from icons like David Bowie, as well as the glamour and excess of 1980s image culture, citing bands like Dead or Alive and Depeche Mode as her recurring visual inspirations.

Despite their individual styles, both sisters remain connected through shared obsessions: vintage fashion, performance, drag aesthetics, cinematic beauty and artists who transform identity into mythology. “We’ve always been very similar in our inspirations – vintage fashion and similar music tastes,” says Charlotte. “It’s great to always have someone who gets the reference. I think we’re usually drawing from slightly different aspects of the same source and end up with individual outcomes.”

We ask how they would describe themselves as children compared to who they are today.

“A much more confident version of the same person,” says Charlotte. “I always think you’re most in touch with your true self when you stick with your childhood passions, and creating art was always that for me.”

Abby adds: “We were both super shy and reserved as kids. I don’t think any of our parents or family expected us to have such public careers. I was really socially anxious and could never in a million years have imagined myself on stage, but I’ve grown into it so much. I feel more confident now thanks to these experiences, and I genuinely love the thrill of entertaining – it feels so far from who I was as a kid.”

Although social media built their presence, neither sister sees content creation as the one and only destination. Abby speaks openly about wanting to explore every creative avenue possible, whether it’s music, acting, product creation, event hosting, or art, in order to avoid the regret of not having tried all that she loves. Charlotte similarly looks toward film and costume design as spaces where her visual storytelling can evolve into something more permanent.

Throughout the conversation, there is a sense that the internet was never the dream itself, but rather the space that allowed their private creative worlds to be shared with others.
Now, years after first uploading that video, Charlotte and Abby are entering a new era: learning how to stay artistically in tune, while remaining ‘weird’ in that fun, cool way (as they always were), all inside a machine within the attention economy – and building a new kind of romance in the process.

Creative Producer, Director & Stylist: @wohiviacreates 

Photographer: @iainmckell 

Talent & Makeup: @abbyroberts & @charlotteroberts 

Hair Artist: @hmua_kat 

Styling Assistant: @styledbynicolamorgan

Photography Assistant: @georgia_summers_

Charlotte’s Nails: @moodynails.lnd

Fashion intern: @s.uunyo

Location: @goldenhinde_

Wardrobe: @lighthouse_soho @rafaelapestritu @rellikvintage @viviennewestwood @sineadgoreylondon @lobby.pr @s0ma_f @thegreatfrogldn @heiterjewellery @claudiapink @sarahjanepalmer_london @between_beauty @chanelofficial @matthew.david.andrews @jenny_beattie_millinery