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Out of all the things that possess magical powers to glam you up in an instant, the eyeliner ranks first, hand down. But if your Google search history is all about ‘how to put on eyeliner’, consider today as the day when God answers your questions. Well, if you’re somebody who sweats it out at the slightest mention of an eyeliner, you’re in luck. We’re having the long-due discussion on all things eyeliner and you should join ASAP.
But first, before we go into the depth of eyeliner makeup tips, here’s a lowdown on all the different types of eyeliner out there. Go, pick your chosen weapon of mass destruction.
Other than figuring out which eyeliner formulation to use, you need to know the shape of your eyes; your eye shape determines how certain eyeliner styles look on you. For instance, if you have almond eyes, which is a common eye shape among Indian women, an eyelid covering liner look may not appear flattering. However, a regular wing that starts from three-fourths of the eyelid to the lower tip of the brow can make your eyes look elongated. On the other hand, if you have hooded eyes, you might need to draw a thicker eyeliner border for it to be apparent.
Other than specific eyeliner styles highlighting your best features, they may also bring forth key aspects of your personality. For instance, a cat-eye look exemplifies a sultry, seductive, confident, and powerful personality, whereas a soft wing may display a soft, romantic, and timid persona. Here’s a deep dive into the different eyeliner styles you can try.
Different Types Of Eyeliner
1. Pencil Eyeliner
One of the easiest ways to nail eyeliner makeup is to swear by a soft-tipped pencil liner since it works the same way as a kohl stick. It is great for makeup beginners and is also economical since you can use the same stick to darken your waterline. Also, if you’re a sucker for slightly smokey, smudged-on-purpose eyes, look no further.
Nykaa Recommends:
2. Gel Eyeliner
Getting your hands on a pot of gel eyeliner is the wisest way to perfect almost all eyeliner designs. The task may seem daunting at first, but the brush will become your BFF once you get a hang of it. The best part about gel liners is that you need not worry about accidental eye rubs ‘cause this stays put right until you’re ready to wipe it off.
Nykaa Recommends:
3. Liquid Eyeliner
Most women are concerned about how to apply liquid eyeliner but here’s the real deal. Liquid liners are best known for their super-fine tips, that make precise, thinner strokes easier to achieve. If you’ve got butterfingers, a trusted liquid eyeliner will be a good formulation to start your eyeliner makeup with.
Nykaa Recommends:
4. Sketch Pen Eyeliner
Blessed with one of the smartest eyeliner tips ever, a sketch pen liner has gained popularity recently. Designed like a fine-tipped sketch pen, all you need to do is glide it across your upper lash line. In fact, some amazing pens also boast a slanted felt tip that’ll make you a pro at winging your eye in no time.
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How To Apply Eyeliner
Perfectly winged eyes have been and will continue ruling the world of eyeliner makeup. However, we still know women who get cold feet just thinking of having to tediously draw an even wing across both eyes, probably ‘cause they still haven’t come across a fitting eyeliner makeup tutorial yet. But not until now! Here’s how you can rock one of one of the most popular eyeliner designs like a total diva.
- You don’t start away with the blush or the highlighter without setting a strong makeup base, right? So why skip it for the eyes? An eye primer removes any discolouration around the eyes and smoothens the texture of your lids so that the products blend effortlessly. With the primer in place, we bet that your eye makeup will last all day long.
- Next up, start tracing the upper lash line with your eyeliner Stay as close to the lash line as possible and use smaller strokes. It’s easier to build up than having to start again from scratch, just in case you make a mess.
- Now most women are confused about how angular should the wing ideally be. The correct way to do it is to draw it along an imaginary line joining the outer tips of your eye and your brow. Basically, your wing should point towards the outer end of your eyebrow.
- Once you’re done with the base, it’s time to focus on the thickness of your liner, based on how bold you want the look to be. Keep in mind that a flattering liner should be thinnest at the inner end and thickest at the outer. And yes, the outer tip of your wing should be sharp and pointed. So, clean up any imperfections with a moist Q-tip for a super-refined wing.
- Lastly, complement that killer wing with lashes to die for. Curl your eyelashes and apply two generous coats of mascara to add that extra oomph to your peepers.
Different Eyeliner Styles
Well, the good part about eyeliner makeup is that you get to pick between different eyeliner styles every morning. Whether it’s a killer flick or a dramatic cat eye, we’ve listed down eyeliner looks that will add another level of oomph to your eye game.
1. Basic Eyeliner
If you’re a liner rookie, we’d say start by acing the basic liner look. Not only is it the easiest to achieve and the best eyeliner for small eyes, but it’s also the ideal 9–5 everyday eyeliner style.
How to apply: Using liquid eyeliner like Kay Beauty Liquid Eyeliner, draw a thin line along your upper lash line, staying as close to the lash line as possible. Finish at the outer corner of your eye. Quick with zero chances of a mishap!
Best suited for: Monolids
2. Winged Eyeliner
We know it, winged eyeliner is probably already your favourite. The fact that you can play around with the intensity of the wing as per your mood is honestly the best part of a winged liner. Now we understand that acing the wing can be stressful for some of you but that’s exactly why the winged eyeliner stamp is a godsend. On that note, take note of the Nykaa Get Winged! Sketch Eyeliner Pen.
How to apply: Take the eyeliner sketch pen and begin drawing from the inner corner of your eye along the lids. Make the line slightly thicker as you go towards the outer corner of your eye. End the liner with a triangle that’s tilted upwards, toward the eyebrow.
Best suited for: Most eye shapes
3. Graphic Eyeliner
Whether it’s geometric, dotted, a floating crease, or the negative space liner, graphic eyeliner styles have taken the makeup world by storm. Whether minimalistic dots are more your vibe or an edgy underliner enhances your look better, we love how easy these not-so-basic eyeliner styles are. All you need is a pro-angled wand like the Guerlain Noir G Graphic Eyeliner Black and you’re set.
How to apply: Take the graphic eyeliner pen and start from the inner corner of your eyelid. Pull the liner towards the outer end, maintaining momentum to draw another line inwards, above the below line. This way you will have an arrowhead. You can get creative with multiple lines, dots, or strokes to achieve a unique look.
Best suited for: Almond eyes
4. Cat Eyeliner
On nights when you’re out to stun, a precisely drawn cat eyeliner is your best bet. Mostly mistaken for a dramatic wing, a cat eyeliner also includes enhancing the inner corner of your eye and your waterline to mimic feline peepers. That’s also the reason why cat eye makeup looks bomb on eyes with lesser lid area. Oh, and just so you know, L'Oreal Paris Flash Cat Eye Eyeliner comes with its own removable wing stencil!
How to apply: Begin with a basic winged liner as instructed above. Once you have the wing in place, draw a thin line that starts along the inner corner of the eye, stretching towards the bridge of your nose. Make a ‘>’ sign on the corner of the inner eye.
Best suited for: Hooded eyes
5. Coloured/Glitter Eyeliner
Tired of all that black? We all are! If your eyes have been silently yearning for a pop of colour, something that’s neither too subtle nor too dramatic, try a chic colour from the Nykaa GLAMOReyes Coloured Liquid Eyeliner range. Go from work to play by drawing a glitter flick along your regular black wing using the Swiss Beauty Holographic Eyeliner - 1 Milky Way.
How to apply: Begin with your regular black eyeliner followed by one in a colourful hue. Alternatively, you may choose to skip the black eyeliner altogether. You can also use multiple colours or a holographic eyeliner for a dynamic look.
Best suited for:All eye shapes
6. Reverse-Winged Liner
All the eyeliner styles we’ve been discussing involve applying the liner along the upper eyelid. In the reverse-winged method, you must apply eyeliner along the bottom eyelid. This leaves you with a sultry look and exudes an assertive demeanour. If you’re wearing an all-black dress with gold-plated jewellery, consider this eyeliner style! Channel your inner Cleopatra with the Urban Decay 24/7 Inks - Zero.
How to apply: Start at the inner corner of your lower lid and trace the liner until you reach the other end. Stretch the line to make a sharp, pointed wing. You can also apply kohl to your waterline for a powerful impact, plus a thin line along your upper eyelid.
Best suited for:Almond eyes
7. Smudged Liner
Gone are the days when smudged eyeliner was considered a travesty; when done right, a smudged look can give you a sultry appeal sans the hassle of smokey eyeshadow. Turn to the humble eyeliner crayon or stick to ace this look. Now is when those precision smudging techniques will come handy!
How to apply: Draw in a thick layer of liner with a crayon or eyeliner pencil. Make a small wing along the outer corner of the eye. Using your index finger, press on the wing and pull it out toward your ear. Doing so will smudge the liner, lending a soft ombre, smokey effect. We recommend using a dark brown eyeliner pencil like the Maybelline New York Tattoo Studio Smokey Eye Kohl Gel Pencil Eyeliner for a subtle look.
Best suited for:Round eyes
8. Double-Toned Liner
This cute liner look features a black border for your 9–5 and a pop of colour for your 5–9 after work. It might just be the easiest eyeliner look to hack, because even if you make a mistake, you can overline it with a different hue to cover it up.
How to apply: Start with your base eyeliner and make a small wing. Take a different coloured liner and draw above the black line to make it double-toned. You could also draw the wing or the cat line a different colour for a refreshing look.
Best suited for: All eye shapes
Tips To Make Your Eyeliner Last Longer
Here are a few tips to ensure your eyeliner look is long-lasting:
- Use good-quality, smudge-proof eyeliner that doesn't melt or break apart throughout the day.
- If you are using a pencil eyeliner, refrigerate it to prevent the formulation from melting.
- If you are using a liquid eyeliner, shake the container well before usage to avoid clumps.
- Apply setting powder or spritz makeup fixing spray to lock your eyeliner look in place.
- Avoid touching or rubbing your eyes if you get the urge to itch. Instead, dab your eyes with a damp cloth to minimise irritation.
Parting Thoughts
While applying eyeliner may seem daunting at first, it in fact is a technique that’s fairly easy to master. If you’re feeling under-confident, practice drawing your look on a piece of paper (muscle memory, FTW!). Last but not least, have fun with it; not only does eyeliner enhance your natural features, but it also draws attention to the eyes for a stunning look.
You Ask, We Answer
Now that all your qualms about how to apply eyeliner by yourself are cleared, let’s finish up by answering some of the most frequently asked questions. Look out for our product recommendations that’ll help you in acing even the most difficult eyeliner styles.
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Can I apply eyeliner on the lower lash line or will the formula harm my eyes?
Yes, you can apply the same product on both your upper and lower lash lines. If you have sensitive eyes, go for an herbal, ophthalmologically tested product like the Lotus Herbals Opulence Botanical Eye Liner – Black.
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My eyes tend to water and smudge my kaajal. I want to use a more long-lasting formula, like my gel eyeliner, on the lower lash line. How to apply eyeliner like kohl without making it water?
Using your middle finger, lightly place it under your lash line and press softly. This will push your lash line down ever so slightly without pulling or tugging on the skin.
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Although I love my dusky skin, black eyeliner doesn’t really show up. I was thinking about using coloured liners but am not sure about which shade will add a pleasant pop of colour to my eyes. Please help.
Coloured liners are high on trend right now and there’s no reason why should shy away from them, irrespective of what your skin tone may be. The Nykaa GLAMOReyes Liquid Eyeliner in shades of Dragon’s Heart and Poisonous Plum will make you look every bit of the delicious dusky babe that you are.
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I want to try the cat eye look. Is there a specific formula that you could recommend which would make the job easier?
How to use eyeliner for a deadly cat eye becomes easier when you’ve got the perfect product in hand. The L'OréalParis Super Liner Gel Intenza 36H is one beauty that we would place our bets on.
