I have a theory about smoky eyes. And the theory is that they are not necessarily for everyone. There are ‘how to’ diagrams that come with products, supposedly idiot-proof palettes, YouTube lessons, all kinds of ways in, and yet, one woman’s smoky eye is a smouldering orb, while another’s is a blackened peephole. No, love and embrace make-up though I clearly do, the smoky eye is not for me. But how else to capture its impact? With a sharp-tipped, matt black pen such as L’Oréal Paris’s Super Liner.
I tend to get my base as close to perfect as I can, because this look can read as scrappy if skin isn’t peachy. Some people actively aim for scrappy and it’s true that it’s cooler than mega-groomed; whatever tickles your toes, goes. Then, start two-thirds of the way in towards the inner corner of the eye and proceed outwards with a light touch – you can always go over it again. Follow the exact shape of the lid, sticking almost to the lashline and then flick it outwards. Not too upwards. If, that is, you are going for almondy, feline eyes rather than beatnik stylings. It’s the difference between Kate Moss and Amy Winehouse.
Either leave it clean and daring with lots of mascara and a red, Robert Palmer lip, or brush a brown shadow (Bobbi Brown’s Cocoa, for example) over the line to thicken and soften it and further contour your eye. I leave my lower eyes unpainted. Everything happens on the upper lid. Flirtier. Not so much smoky as smokin’.
L’Oréal Paris Super Liner, £6.49, at boots.com
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