Makeup Tips to Make Your Eyes Pop

Go all out on lashes

Showstopping lashes used to require a fake fringe (not to mention glue and a steady hand). But now you can get that lush look with just a few swipes of a mascara wand. “These new formulas have the perfect combination of volumizing and lengthening fibers, plus brushes that grab the tiny hairs other mascaras miss,” says Melissa Silver, a makeup artist in New York City.

To maximize the eye-opening effect, get the wand as close to the root of your lashes as possible, then wiggle it up in a back-and-forth motion, instead of just sweeping out, says Silver: “You’ll be amazed at how much more mascara you deposit this way.”

Brighten up with liner

You know to line your top lid, but when’s the last time you took an eyeliner to your lower lash line? “Lining the lower lid with a lighter shade gives you an instant eye-opening effect,” says Stern.

Good news: You don’t have to stress over pairing the right shades, thanks to new dual-ended liners that do the color matching for you. Try an eye pencil with a bright color on one side and white on the other. “Highlighting [the lower lash line] area with white brightens your eyes,” says Stern.

Try a (colorful!) smoky eye

If you fear a smoky eye is too dark and heavy, you’ll love the new take on it: jewel tones. Rich gem-colored shadows (purples, greens, blues, and golds) “look good on everyone, and they’re less harsh than grays and black,” says Carissa Passerella, a makeup artist in Denver.

Here’s how: Use a dense brush to deposit color on your lid, from the lash line up to your crease, using small back-and-forth strokes. Then go in with another brush and apply a slightly darker shade on the outer part of the lid, blending slightly into the crease. “Building color gradually over the lid and smudging your liner are essential,” says Passerella.