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Eyeliner had likely been a staple in your makeup bag since high school when you thought the best means of application was in thick raccoon circles around your eyes. Fortunately, trends have evolved since then and eyeliner has become more of an accent to your features than an instant time machine back to early 2000’s Hot Topic. When applied correctly, eyeliner can brighten and lift your eyes, enhancing your natural beauty to draw attention to your best assets. If you need a little lesson on how best to apply it, we asked Sephora Collection’s National Artist Helen Phillips to give us her top tips for using eyeliner to brighten your face.
Don’t Skip The Waterline
It’s a classic trick, using white eyeliner on the waterline to make your eyes look bigger, and Phillips confirms that this tip actually works. “Lining your waterline in white creates the illusion that your eye is bigger by expanding the whites of your eyes,” she explains. For this look, she recommends the Sephora Collection Glide Liner in White Snow.
“This effect works even better when you create a contrasting line underneath with a black eyeliner and smudge it out – it’s used all the time in theatre makeup so that the audience can see your eyes, but it is super wearable and easy to achieve. I like to create that perfect smudge using the Sephora Collection Retractable Waterproof Eyeliner in Black because it already comes with a smudger built in and once it dries it won’t migrate to give you panda eyes,” Phillips adds.
Wing It Up
Winged liner is a wildly popular look these days, and for good reason. When drawn at the proper angle, Phillips explains that the wing can lift the eye, making it appear wider and brighter. “To achieve this, pretend you are drawing an imaginary line from your bottom waterline to the end of your brow. That will be your eyeliner’s trajectory and then you can make the cat eye as long or as short as you like—even a little flick up will do the trick,” she says. If you’re looking for liner recommendations, Phillips suggests the Sephora Collection Hotline Brush Tip Liquid Liner to allow yourself more control over the product as you trace upwards into your wing.
Trace It Out
Creating the perfect angle with your liner may be more difficult than it seems, so Phillips suggests stamping on the product instead. “If you have a tough time with symmetry, sketch it out using an eyeshadow and an angled eyeliner brush like the Sephora Collection Pro Eyeliner Brush #22 which makes it easy to ‘stamp’ on. Eyeshadow is easy to adjust, and once you have it you can just trace over it with the liquid,” she explains. This trick is great for making sure that the eyeliner actually works to lift your eyes, instead of having the opposite effect and dragging down your face.
Makeup is a great tool to have in your back pocket to enhance your natural features and brighten your face to make you look more awake. Try out a cat eye to alter the shape of your eye and lift your face, or add a little white liner to emphasize the size for a larger than life look. With a little practice on proper application, you’ll look more alert and bright eyed in no time.
