A Beginner's Guide to the Magic of Bright Eye Shadow
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For Allure's August issue, beloved makeup artist Violette mixed and matched her favorite colors — purple and yellow; pink and purple; yellow and orange, but never green and brown — for a series of extreme close-up eye makeup looks. Each was brighter and more intense than the next and just the splashes of colors we thought you would enjoy right now.
Although the looks were photographed before the pandemic, they are still incredibly relevant as we wear masks while around others. "We didn't know back then eyes would kind of be our only playful area of the face," Violette says. "Half of your face is gone basically, so you can give a little bit of info on your personality with your eyes."
With these vibrant, happy looks she created, you can express your happiness with just a glimpse at your makeup. Plus, Violette avoided base makeup, which is also necessary for effective mask wear. Her reasoning was to balance creativity with effortlessness, but I think her intuition might have tipped her off.
1. Aqua Wave
Before you reach for a shimmery aquatic blue shadow, like the Buxom Eyeshadow Bar in Schmooze, keep this in mind: "Turquoise, for me, is always a tricky color because it doesn't fit every skin tone, and it doesn't fit every day," Violette notes. On medium and deep skin tones, it looks fresh and vibrant. However, the bright blue brights out the gray and green in light and olive complexions and can make your skin look tired and dull as a result. The exception featured in this shot: light eye colors.
Although Violette mentions old-school teachings would say, "if you have green eyes, you can't wear green eye shadow. If you have blue eyes, you can't wear blue eye shadow," she finds that total nonsense.
The colors of the shadow and eyes work with the contrast, and blue eyes will naturally adjust to the look. "They become gray or green," Violette says. "But it's fun. You can change your eye color for the day."
When you're ready to proceed with your turquoise look, start off by smudging shadow on the inner and outer corners of your eyes with one of your fingers. "There's no better tool than that because we always have a tiny bit of oil on our fingers," Violette explains. Then, extend the edges out into your creases with a fluffy brush.
2. Block It Out
The color-blocked marigold, orchid, and fuchsia shadows of this look relied on art theories of color and light Violette knows unconsciously after studying painting growing up. They go a little something like this: The darkest color (purple, in this case) goes on the areas where shadows are cast and helps add depth to the look. The lightest, brightest color (yellow) is placed on the high points where the light hits. The in-between color (pink) is swept on, well, everywhere in between.
Depending on your eye shape, these colors will fall in different areas than the model shown above. Violette loves how it emphasizes natural features and allows you to still look like yourself, even though you have bold hues splashes all over your eyes.
Try this out with the Best of Beauty Award-winning Make Up For Ever Artist Color Eye Shadow in M-402, M-853, and M-924.
3. Purple Reign
For this '60s-inspired eye moment, Violette surprisingly only dipped into one pigment: the Nars Single Eyeshadow in Sultan. The oils on the model's lids naturally changed the color in areas to give the purple dimension.
Violette followed the model's eyelid shape when packing the shadow on. Then, dashes were added to inner corners to complete the geometrical, retro aesthetic.
4. Go Fish
Sometimes you're inspired by actual flowers, sometimes you're moved by "a fish that looks like a flower. Don't ask me why!" Violette remarks.
To ensure uniformity for the petals-meet-fins, Violette coated only the edges of flat brush with classic blue before pressing it onto the model's lids. Then, she worked inward, adding lemon, violet, and magenta. (We like the vibrant shades of the Anastasia Beverly Hills Norvina Pro Pigment Palette Vol. 1.)
The keys to keeping the colors from muddying together lie in slicking on a shadow primer first, as well as keeping the center of your lid that moves when you blink free of color. "The colors are so strong, so it's nice to have a little skin in order to get some air," Violette adds.
5. Blue. Period.
"One of my favorite things to do is apply a lot of makeup on the eyes and remove some parts," Violette muses. "I kind of work in reverse and that’s what happened here."
Violette loaded up a brush with a single shade of cobalt blue from the Sephora Collection Pro Editorial Palette. "Don't be scared. I put a ton of pigment on it," she adds. Then, it was swirled all over the model's top and bottom lids.
With a cotton swab soaked in an oil-based makeup remover, Violette randomly wiped away blue in some places. The liquid will leak into the pigment, making some areas darker blue than others and reconnecting some removed areas.
To up the intensity in some sections, Violette patted more pigment onto the high points of the eye, like the center of the lid and brow bone.
6. Beetle Lids
"I am obsessed with how the metallics [of a beetle's shell] turn from green into purple," says Violette. To reflect that onto lids, she blended together two rare duochrome blue and purple pigments. (The MAC Pigment in Deep Purple and Nyx Professional Makeup Pigments in Constellation are the next best things.)
The layout was the opposite of what she usually does. The darker, purple shade went on the high points instead of the contours of the eyes while blue when on the other areas.
7. Caution Tape
If you have two minutes to do your eye makeup, that's all you need for this look. Violette only took one minute per eyes as she streaked a vibrant yellow all over the model's lids.
Before that, Violette deeply moisturized the model's skin to create a pigment-grabbing base. Next, she concentrated lots of the MAC Eyeshadow in Chrome Yellow on the inside corner and randomly stretched the product out in lines along the creases with a pencil-shaped brush, like the Dose of Colors Pencil Brush.
Violette picked this yellow, in particular, not just because it's her favorite shade of the sunny hue, but also based on its undertone. Warm-toned yellows with hints of orange in them are the most flattering on all skin tones. She also advises drawing a black liner along your top lashes to make sure your eye shape doesn't disappear under the intense pigment.
Additional reporting by Danielle Pergament.
A version of this story originally appeared in the June 2020 issue of Allure. Learn how to subscribe here.
Read more about fun eye makeup looks to try:
Why You’ll Need Eye Cream to Create This Gorgeous Metallic Blue Eyeliner
Hilary Duff Created the Coolest Holographic Eye Look to Wear With Her Face Mask
Now, watch three makeup artists turn themselves into sunsets:
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Originally Appeared on Allure
