jordanchristine-deactivated2013 asked: I'm a huge fan of eyeliner, but I can't seem to find any that won't smudge by the end of the day. What are your favorite brands? Also, I'd love to learn how to do classic smoky eye makeup! Any tips?
Hi! What a great question. Eyeliner is surprisingly important to a makeup routine as it helps tremendously to make the eyes appear bright and to give you a more awake look. The first way I avoid smudging and disappearing liner is to make sure I use a good eyelid primer before I put on shadow or eyeliner. My personal favorite is the Benefit Cosmetics Creaseless Cream Eyeshadow. I put that on before shadow and everything on my eyes stays put all day. The Urban Decay Primer Potion is also great, and the E.l.f. line has a primer that is less expensive but still a good quality (you can find it at Target and local drug stores).
After primer - and eyeshadow, in my case, but obviously you don’t have to use shadow for the primer to still hold your liner steady - I would choose a smooth liquid eyeliner. I find liquid liners give a crisp line and stay put on my eyelids better than a stick liner, though that can vary based on how oily or dry your eyelids are. Here are my favorite brands of eyeliner, whether of the pencil or liquid variety:
From left to right (organized that way by consistency, starting with the most liquid to the least):
1. Mark. Get in Line Liquid Eyeliner - $6.50 on meetmark.com. This is my go-to eyeliner that I use almost every day. It has a small brush applicator that creates a fine, steady line. It lasts all day, no matter the circumstances of that day. I wear it to band camp (yes, band camp) and it lasts through blood, sweat and tears. My preferred color is the Coco Coquette, which is a deep brown, but they have a variety of colors for whatever you like best.
2. Eyeko Skinny Liquid Eyeliner - $15 at Sephora or online. I just received this in my July Birchbox and I love it. The marker tip applicator is great for getting a good, solid line and it’s extremely easy to apply. I have this eyeliner in a bright teal color, which is great for adding a pop of color to your look without hitting anyone over the face with it.
3. Nyx Slide On Eye Pencils - You can pick these up at drugstores or in Ulta for $7.99. I have a couple of the Slide On Pencils because they come in a huge range of colors and have the perfect middle man consistency between liquid and pencil. These go on so ridiculously smoothly (luckily they do, or they’d have to change the name) and do actually stay put for a long time. I have them in black, white, and pink. I use the black for standard eyeliner and then I use the white and pink to line the bottom inner rims of my eyes to help my eyes appear brighter and to make me look awake. The black, as it happens, is also great for creating a smokey eye look.
4. Stila Smudge Stick Eyeliner - retails for $20.00 at Ulta, Sephora and online. I also received this in a Birchbox a couple of months ago and it’s my other go-to eyeliner when I don’t use the Mark. brand. It’s called a “smudge stick” because once you first put it on, you can smudge and blend it into your lash line to either do a great smokey look or to just get a less precise line. Once it sets, though, it’s on there for good. I even have trouble removing this at the end of the day, sometimes. This is definitely more of a pencil than a liquid liner and it goes on beautifully. I have the color Lionfish, which is a rich copper, but it also comes in a range of shades for your particular tastes.
Those are my favorite picks for eyeliners! You could always experiment with more high-end brands if you wish, but I think that a great liner that is affordable is better than a super expensive version that works the same way.
I shall answer your Smokey Eye Makeup questions in a separate post, as to do it proper justice.
Thanks for asking, and I hope this helped!
With love, Kristin.
