Eye Makeup

By Anna Lynn C. Sibal

We know the old adage, that the eyes are the windows of the soul. The eyes are the first feature that a person notices on another person's face. A person can tell a great many things just by looking at a person's eyes, things like age, mood and disposition.

Even the simplest and barest of makeup can look smashingly beautiful if the eye makeup is correctly applied.

Eye shadow. The purpose of wearing eye shadow is to add definition to the eyes. With the correct use of eye shadow, the eyes can open up and have depth in them.

There are different ways of applying eye shadow, depending on the shape of your eye.

Small eyes. Women with small eyes should go easy on the eye shadow, as too much will make the eyes appear even smaller. To make the eyes appear larger, keep the color on the eyelid itself light but put a darker shade on the crease of the eyelid. Then, highlight under the brow.

Large eyes. A woman with large eyes would want to wear dark colors on the eyelid, including the crease. The highlight should be a flat color under the brow.

Deep-set eyes. The outer corners of deep-set eyes should be given emphasis. Light colors should be applied on the eyelid and under the brow, while a medium color on the crease would finish off the look.

Wide-set eyes. Women with wide-set eyes should also use light colors on the eyelid and under the brow and a medium color on the crease. A darker color, however, should be applied to the inner corners of the eye.

Hooded eyes. To make the hooded eyes seem less heavy, light colors can be used on the lid, blended with a darker shade from the center of the eyelid to the outer corners.

Round eyes. Women with round eyes can benefit from using one shade all over the eyelid and making it extend to the outer corners. It will make the eyes appear longer.

Oriental eyes. To open the Oriental eyes, light shadow on the inner half of the lid, a darker shade on the outer half, and a highlighter under the brow will do the trick.

Regardless of the shape of your eyes, avoid very dark shades if you have very light skin. Take it easy with the shimmer because they can highlight the imperfections of the skin that should be hidden. Also, the skin of the eyelids is very thin and delicate, so try not to pull on them too much.

Eyeliners. Eyeliners add further definition to the eye and put a more finished look to the effect desired with the application of the eye shadow. To apply the eyeliner, draw the line first on the lower lid, and then draw a line on the upper lid, starting from the inner corner and going towards the outer corner. The eyeliner should be applied closely to the lash line.

Mascara. In putting mascara on the eyelashes, a woman adds more life to her eyes and makes them seem brighter. The color of the mascara that you should choose, however, should complement the color of your skin.

Before applying the mascara, curl your lashes with an eyelash curler. Then look straight into the mirror with the chin lifted a little. Apply the mascara by touching the wand to the lashes, going once upward, from root to tip. Afterwards, when the lashes have dried, separate the strands that have clumped together with an eyebrow brush.

Also see: Easy Makeover and Perfect makeup colors and Perfect concealer