They say that the eyes are the window to the soul. Whether that is true or not, they are the key focal point of the face, so the eye look you choose to create can either make or break your makeup look. Renowned celebrity MUA and creator of RescuMe Academy’s Be Your Own Makeup Artist course, Nigel Stanislaus, shares the best of his tips and tricks from over two decades in the industry to best make your eyes pop.
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Making your eye colour ‘pop’
Depending on your eye colour, there are complementary eyeshadow hues which work to enhance your eyes ‘pop’ without creating an overbearing, heavy eye look.
According to Nigel, in general there are a handful of tones which work with each colour, and as a guide are generally the opposite on the colour wheel to your eye colour.
“The best colour for brown eyes are colours that lean more towards grey or a slate colour,” Nigel says. “I also love tilting a bit more towards violet coloured shadows as they really bring out the amber in brown eyes.”
For blue eyes? Think warm, earthy tones. “I find that blush and chocolate tones work best for those with blue eyes, as they contrast beautifully against blue,” he says.
He says that for those with green eyes, blush tones always work beautifully to enhance the colour, while purple makes them pop the most.
How to enhance hooded eyes
If you have a lot of lid space, in other words, most or all of your mobile lid is always visible, then you can pull off pretty much any eye look and be more creative with shadow and liner placement. However, Nigel shares that it’s not as easy for those with hooded eyes.
“The first and probably most important thing you should do if you have hooded eyes is to curl your lashes, as it gives your eyes a visual lift and makes them appear much bigger,” he says.
He also suggests that those with deeper set eyes should be more considered in where they place their eyeshadow, as well as which textures they opt for.
“If you are doing a smokey eye, I would keep the look mostly matte and be very strategic as to where you place shimmer, because it can make the eye look more bulbous,” he says.
“Remember that matte colours make areas protrude and shimmer brings a feature forward, so as a rule of thumb, place shimmer on the inner corner of the eye and matte shades in the hooded areas.”
He also stresses to not let these guidelines scare you away from creating a smokier eye look, as it works beautifully to enhance deep set eyes.
“A smokey eye is really pretty for hooded eyes, pay attention to the top lid, and be sure to apply shadow with your eyes open so you are depositing colour in the right areas,” Nigel says.
Ensuring a polished eye look every time
It turns out that there is a reason why makeup artists carry multiple eye brushes, and a good one at that. Nigel believes that in order to master eyes, all makeup wearers should follow suit and have at least four eye brushes in order to create a full range of eye looks.
“More often than not, if you want to do a sophisticated smokey eye you would probably use more than two colours, usually up to four,” he says.
“So, you’ll need probably two to three eyeshadow brushes – one as a placement brush which is a bit flatter with more condensed bristles to deposit product, the second is a more pointed, pencil-style brush which you can use to zero in to your lash line,’ he shares.
“You then need a big, fluffier brush which I call an ‘egg’ brush, Nigel says. “This is best used loaded with clear powder to give you a clean, polished blend.”
“Also, we can’t leave out a slanted eyeliner brush, to define the lash line, so really, you need a minimum of four. This ensures you can complete all steps to create any eye look in a polished way.”
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