Eye Makeup Tips

Image: FayTakesPhotos

Hey, Beautiful!

As I was struggling to remove a not-so-flattering raccoon look this morning (hey, didn't I remove all this last night?), I thought to myself, "Why don't I ever take my own advice?" Then I had a second thought: "Hey. Why don't I actually give out that advice?"

Call it a written affirmation to get myself back on track. (Yes, you can SO use affirmations for this. I mean come on. We're talking about makeup here. Borders on the sacred for me, I don't know about you.)

So I gathered my HG of eye makeup tips into five simple steps. These really are universal for everyone; you can't go wrong if you stick with them. Enjoy, Beautiful!

Start Light...and Build

Yes, you already know this. Or you think you do. Who isn't rushed in the morning and eager to just get the job done and go, already? I've been guilty on many an occasion of simply digging a bit harder into the shadow or using a heavy hand with my eyeliner.

The problem is, when you really do wind up with too much pigment (or too strong a line), you have to oversmudge or, worse, remove. And since most time-constrained women aren't willing to start all over with the makeup remover, you're undoubtedly grabbing a cotton ball or even a piece of toilet paper and...(shudder) rubbing.

Take the extra few minutes. You can always add. It's harder to remove. Your eyes will thank you.

Go Opposite On the Color Wheel

Such a simple trick, and so invaluable no matter what the season, your age or even what you're wearing: if you want to make your eye color "pop," choose a color in the family opposite your eyes on the color wheel.

Image: carpetcolorsolutions.net

My green(ish) eyes go full-on green -- or appear to -- when I stick with reddish-browns or lavenders, for example. And as everyone knows from the experiment stage (ah, middle school) onward, "blue is great with brown eyes."

Yes, I know. It's an old idea, it's not fresh, etc., etc. Know what? It works. Good enough for me, 'nuff said.

Throw Away Your Old Makeup

Yes. Really. Just do it. And this is from the queen of "it's still good, I'm not blind yet." Your eyes are precious. You only get one pair. And besides the obvious bacteria factor (most eye makeup is prone to this after 6 or so months even with preservatives), old eye makeup gets clumpy, crunchy and cakey.

Toss it and treat yourself to some fresh colors.

Waterproof Isn't Always Better

Disclaimer: I'm not hating, I'm just observing. Many, many waterproof products I've used -- especially waterproof mascara -- are a heck of a job to remove. Oh, not initially. You look in the mirror and think, "Hey. That's all gone. Good job, time to go to bed." Eight hours later you're back at the mirror going, "Hey. It came back." (Hence my "raccoon" vignette above.)

Waterproof eye makeup just tends to be harder to remove, even with specially-geared removal products. Let's face it: it's been engineered to stay there. And unscientific as that explanation may be, it's borne out for me time and time again in the morning...when I have to sometimes rub (even with remover) to get those last traces gone from beneath my eyes.

Use waterproof eye products only when you really need them (swimming, planning on crying a lot, etc.). One again, the less pulling and manipulation you'll need for later removal, the better.

Stroke Inward -- Don't Pull!

This applies for applying makeup, removing it, and for applying undereye creams. Move your finger (or your eye pencil or pen) inward...not outward. This makes creating some looks more difficult (a wing look, for example), but welcome the challenge. Find new ways. Moving the skin under the eye outward creates tension that, over time, doesn't always bounce back.

And you know what that means. Eye bags and wrinkles.

If you're using a finger application, use your middle or ring finger, not your index finger. Your touch will automatically be lighter and will pull less if use a non-index finger. Again, this means less pulling, less tugging and less tension.

Until We Meet Again, Beautiful

Hope you've enjoyed -- and I also hope that both you and I are able to take my advice in the future. (Darned raccoon eyes.) Next time: Anti-wrinkle creams -- are they worth it? See you then!

See my blog at Eyecreamadvisor.com. Till then!