20 Incredible Eye Looks You Can Do With The New BeautyBlender
While working in fashion magazines, I learned the importance of cost per wear.
The concept is simple enough to apply to your everyday wardrobe. All you have to do is take any clothing item and divide its cost by the amount of times you've worn it. It helps me justify splurging on Acne booties, Alexander Wang bucket bags and Helmut Lang leather jackets, because I know I'll wear the ever-loving crap out of them.
The same idea applies to beauty purchases. I am totally cool with throwing down a small fortune on a killer foundation or eyeliner I know I'll wear every day.
But, when BeautyBlender's new Liner Designer landed on my desk one afternoon, I was puzzled. How could I justify raving about a $16 product that really only does one thing -- makes my eyeliner application easy?
To help me on my quest, I recruited the help of makeup artist Natalie Sky. We proved that the Liner Designer is a lifesaver for simple eyeliner application, but it can do so much more.
Liner Designer has three sides: "short round," the shortest and curviest side; "straight-laced," the straightest line, and "curvalicious," which is somewhere between the two on the curvy spectrum.
The tools we used:
1. BeautyBlender Liner Designer, $16, Sephora 2. NARS Eye Paint in Black Valley, $26, Sephora 3. NARS Eye Paint in Solomon Islands, $26, NARS Cosmetics 4. Smashbox Always Sharp Lip Liner in Figgy, $21, Sephora 5. Laura Mercier Caviar Stick Eye Color in Burnished Bronze, $29, Nordstrom 6. Tom Ford High Definition Eyeliner in Black, $43, Nordstrom 7. NARS Eye Paint in Mozambique, $26, NARS Cosmetics 8. Too Faced Shadow Insurance Primer, $20, Sephora 9. NARS Eye Paint in Iskandar, $26, Sephora
Look 1: The Basic Bitch Wing
First things first: primer, which will keep your eyeliner from sliding all over your lids.
Next, align the “straight-laced” edge of Liner Designer at a slight angle upwards from the outer corner of your eye and about half an inch from the edge of your eyebrow. Using a gel liner (we used NARS Black Valley), draw a line from the corner of your eye to where you want your wing to end.
Be sure to use short strokes. It gives you less room to f*ck up.
Look 2: The Next-Level Wing
If you're looking for a bit more depth, place “straight-laced” under the line you created in the first look. Using those same short strokes, match the line to your already created look.
Boom, easy bottom liner!
Look 3: The Layered Wing
Time to add some motherf*cking color.
Using NARS Eye Paint in Solomon Island and the “curvalicious” edge of the Liner Designer as a tool for tracing, place Liner Designer atop the lid. Starting from the lid's center, connect the two lines using short strokes.
Look 4: Badass Cut Crease
I bet Cleopatra would be all up in this.
Place the “straight-laced” edge at a 45-degree angle to the outer edge of the previous wing. Draw a line from the outer edge to two-thirds of the way to your inner corner.
Looks like you got your Saturday night look all set, although I'd definitely wear this sh*t on Monday.
Look 5: Pop Of Color
Using “short round” (I know, what's with these names?) line your inner corner with that same beautiful NARS cerulean gel liner.
Look 6: Easy Lip Liner
Did you think every tip was going to be an eyeliner look? You were wrong.
Press the “straight-laced” side of the Liner Designer against the outer corner of the lip and use it with your favorite lip liner (we love Smashbox Always Sharp Lip Liner in Figgy).
Look 7: Power Brows
I'm always guilty of smudging my eyebrow pencil and having it end up somewhere distinctly above my natural arch. Liner Designer to the rescue.
Place the “curvalicious” edge against the bottom outer edge of your brows. Using an angled liner brush and your go-to brow powder, continue to fill in using short, upward strokes.
Look 8: Chubby Kitten Eye
Not all cat eyes are long and wispy. A shorter and chunkier wing creates just as much drama.
Place “straight-laced” at a higher angle and create a short line. We used Tom Ford High Definition Eyeliner in Black for the darkest, most long-lasting line.
Look 9: Doe Eye Mascara
Beauty YouTube gurus use credit cards. We used Liner Designer. We didn't have to get credit approval for ours, so we win.
Press the “curvalicious” edge against your lashes and mascara away. Bam, no more mascara tracks on your lid.
Look 10: The Smudge
Looking like you slept in your eyeliner is hard, especially if you religiously remove your makeup before bed every day.
Use the kitten eye you created in look eight as a starting point. Press “curvalicious” a little below your lower lash line and smudge a copper shadow (we used Laura Mercier Caviar Stick Eye Color in Burnished Bronze) from your outer to inner corner.
Look 11: The Cleopatra
Don't be afraid of a little drama.
Place "straight-laced" right above your crease to act as a barrier between your lid and brow bone. Fill in from corner to corner using NARS Solomon Islands. The blue is a sexy departure from a typical night-out smokey shade.
Look 12: Wingin' It
Don't feel constricted by black liner. An olive green (like NARS Mozambique) is just as sultry, but not quite as harsh.
Place "straight-laced" against your bottom lash line and create a wing the same way you would on your lid. Next, press "curvalicious" against your lid and create a wing. Allow for a bit of space between both lines.
Look 13: All About The Outline
Press the "curvalicious" edge alongside the wing, outlining the wing you created in look 12 with a black liner to create even more of a pop.
Our makeup artist's tip? Start from the outer corner and work your way in -- it's easier.
Look 14: Go For The Gold
If the blue wasn't enough punchiness for you, it's time to add a hint of gold. Align "curvalicious" with your lower lashline. Place it atop the thick blue line you created for look 11.
Next, using NARS Eye Paint in Iskandar, line your eyes with the gold shade.
Look 15: Glitter Brow Meets Gold Brow
Don't be afraid of getting a little funky. Align "curvalicious" with the bottom of your brow. Using NARS Iskandar, line your brow.
The subtle glittery pop is chic, bold and subtle enough to turn heads (and raise brows, duh).
Look 16: The Trident
If two wings aren't enough, three should satiate you.
Using "straight-laced," make three lines stacked above one another, with a hint of space separating each one.
Look 17: The Flick
If you don't love drama, try a micro-flick.
Use "straight-laced" and make a teeny-tiny line from your outer corner. Those short strokes are important, because they give you maximum control over how much product you're depositing on your lid.
Look 18: Boxed In
Time to up the ante.
Make a wing using "straight-laced" or reuse the one you made in the first look. Next, draw two lines -- one starting from your crease and one from your inner corner -- with a gel liner or pencil (we used that Tom Ford liner we raved about earlier) and connect the two.
Hello, badass.
Look 19: On The Edge
Line your upper lashline, but don't create a wing.
Next, using "straight-laced," draw a line going downward. Be sure to use a long-lasting gel or liquid, otherwise it'll just look like you smudged your eyeliner.
Look 20: Cornered
Create a small flick (a la look 17) and add a line pointed downward using "straight laced."
