Is it drawing the perfect cat liner flick, blending beautiful gradients, or figuring out ways to make your eye makeup last through work?
My biggest eye makeup challenge is getting things properly lined up and even, particularly when it comes to shadow. I’m right-handed, and when I apply products on my left side, I push a little harder with the brush, and reach a little further, which can make the end result uneven.
I have to remind myself all the time to use a lighter touch on my left eye. “Use a lighter touch on your left eye, Karen.”
Lately my brows have also been a challenge. I’m trying to grow them out, and my left brow is just being a pain in the you-know-what. My brow bald spot (whom I call “Raul”) simply refuses to go away.
Dangit! Grow brows, grow!
Last thing is probably just remembering to try new looks and be adventurous! It’s easy to fall back on my safe colors and routines because I know they’re easy and work for me, but where’s the fun in that? It’s makeup, right? If it ends up looking wackadoo, just wash it off. 🙂
Do you have any eye liner/shadow/mascara/etc. issues? What are your biggest challenges when it comes to eye makeup?
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
Ummm I’d say evening out my brows when I fill them in. Sometimes I feel like I over do it and then I look ridiculous ha!
Another is the cat eye liner but lately the brush that came with the L’oreal lacquer is really good and I’ve been able to do great cat eyes…go figure!
My issue is finding dark crease colors that don’t change colors on me. When I place them they look fine, but when I go to blend it out the colors turn almost green on me.
Def. the cat flick, oil slick by end of day and eye makeup smudging
I Have all kind of eyeliner issues, I can’t wing out my eyeliner to save my life and I haven’t been able to find a black eyeliner that claims to be waterproof (and isn’t) for my tightline that hasn’t smeared on my bottom waterline, I don’t know how I can fix the tightline issue most of all. As far as the wigned eye liner goes, I believe there is no hope for me because I watched numerous amounts of tutorials & techniques to get it done, so I gave up. I don’t have any mascara or eyeshadow issues thank goodness!
The perfect cat eye is almost impossible for me. I love the look, but can’t keep my hand steady enough. Ugh.
I also feel like my brows never quite look right… Also trying to grow them out but I’m thinking the super-full-brow trend is not working for me…
Cat Eye! I can’t figure it out for my eye shape for the life of me!
Finding something that lasts on my lower waterline without irritating my eyes. The hunt continues.
I also have that right side vs left issue–takes some effort on my part to not look lopsided when I apply my eye makeup *sigh*
I can draw a modestly flirty winged line but alas, the more dramatic cat eye still eludes me. Maybe I should try that L’Oreal liner/brush Megan spoke of?
As for tightlining, I despaired of having a nice clean line until I saw a tutorial using black loose powder shadow and a small angled brush. Works for me without smearing all over my bottom lid 😉
Getting my eye-shadow to stay on my eyes… is seems like the powder won’t adhere and becomes airborne the second I apply it. I am trying different eye primers. Just purchased Two-Faced, it seems to help but I am at a loss on how my co-workers eyes seem painted on, yet you can tell its a powder not cream. Help!!
You should try putting down a base like a MAC paint pot, maybe that will help! :]
My biggest challenge is that I cannot seem to line my lower waterline properly. I love the look when I see it on others, but for some reason it just looks odd on me. I gotta practice sometime when I’m at home.
I just got my eybrows threaded today and I feel like a new woman! I know it’s just in my head, but I feel disheveled if my eybrows aren’t groomed properly. It’s the little things that make a difference, you know? 🙂
I can never get my liquid eyeliner to match when I try to do the “flick” cat eye thing. So frustrating! Also sometimes I try to go for a “natural eye” and it somehow ends up looking like I’m going out on the town. Dunno how that happens, haha.
I can’t do can’t eyes for the life of me! I’ve been trying for the longest and it just doesn’t work.
Making my left eyeshadow math my right is a big problem for me too.
Definitely drawing the perfect eyeliner wing! I still haven’t mastered that, and I hate it. I’m also not too skilled with applying fake lashes.
Brows…always brows! I can’t find the right shade (taupe is just too blah for me), formula- gel vs. powder. vs. pencil, and since my own natural brows are nearly gone the right shape stymies me, too. Sorry you asked? 🙂
Definitely my brows. They drive me crazy. Also, trying to find ways to make my hooded eyes look bigger.
2 words: FALSE EYELASHES!!! I feel like if I could get the hand of them, I’d be golden. I have really sparse eyelashes to even volumizing mascara barely makes an impact. I finally managed to apply the false lashes properly the other night but they felt SO uncomfortable when I blinked! I’ve heard MAC’s lashes are great but haven’t tried them before. Does anyone have any recommendations?
Oh dear, sorry for all of the type-o probs!!
My hooded lids can be a challenge. I often get eyeliner transferring above my fold. Recently I’ve discovered tips/tutorials for monolidded eyes to be helpful.
My challenge is when I try to define my crease with a darker eyeshadow I usually end up with too much darkness on my lid. I need to wear a darker color to contour my crease without it looking like a night time look! I look good in bright eye-shadows like golds, blues and greens because browns just blend in with my complexion or worst my dark under eye circles. A lot of days I can’t wear much lipstick because of my unintentional smokey eyes!
I’m heavy handed all around. I always go with really blendable eye shadow and a good blending brush. It’s hard to fill in my eyebrows because of my heavy hand. I usually end up lookong angry all the time :/
I always stick to neutral/brown shades. I should definitely try to step out my comfort zone and try some brighter colors. And i have hooded eyes and they are uneven too, so i always struggel to get them to look more even :\
My biggest challenge in getting my eyeliner to be even on both eyes. One line always ends up thicker or with a slightly different shaped wing than the other and then I fuss back and forth trying to get them to be the same. Sometimes I end up ruining both eyes and have to start over.
hello! i’m really low maintenance when it comes to eye make up. :/ i’d like to step up my game and learn how to apply eye shadow, but i’m so lazy and i’m a perfectionist, so it would probably be a time consuming task for me.
i just bought stila’s eyebrow marker, thingamahjigg. i’ve tried it before, and it added a LITTLE more colour to my sparse brows, but i couldn’t justify the price for the benefit. i’m going to give it another go, and try it for a little longer than the first time.
my issue is water resistant mascara. i found cover girl’s lashblast in a water resistant formula (purple tube). it does the job for an everyday mascara, and it was easier to remove than a waterproof (no eye make up remover needed!). i like the too faced mascara that i won from you and too faced 🙂 it’s great, and it makes my lashes look sooooo long and pretty (i don’t use the fibers. the fibers irritate my eyes.). but the mascara is a waterproof-like formula that needs help to wash off. so, i save it for special occassions. 🙂
one day, i will visit a make up counter and have them school me on eye shadow. i think my best bet is a MAC counter. what do you think, karen and tabs? 🙂
Eye makeup is always tricky. I obsess over my brow shape and always work on perfecting it.
Applying liquid eyeliners, especially those that come with a brush applicator. I just can’t get the hang of them. And I’m not very good at doing a cat’s eye. It just doesn’t look good with my eye shape and I haven’t figured out how to fix it yet.
Blending a nice smokey eye! UGH I can’t do it!!!
Stuff transfers under my eye like crazy. Attracts everything but men and money. I’ve switched to all waterproof/smudgeproof liners and mascara. The UD 24/7 liquid liner does a great job but, waterproof mascaras still travel on me even when I don’t use it on bottom lashes. Any recs for a truly waterproof mascara that does.not.budge would be welcome!
Neena, I started using maybelline full n soft waterproof after reading about it in Karen’s blog. It doesn’t flake or travel on me, the first I’ve used that doesn’t. Chanel inimitable has a good waterproof formula that is thicker but I find it can clump, at least on me. Another idea I picked up on this site is to use a mascara primer. Might help things stick!
Hi NeenaJ – Try using NARS Pro Prime on your lids and under your eyes. It’s been a big help to me, at least for traveling liner. 🙂
I have the same problem with my left eye. My crease color always ends up so differently on it! And eyebrows, eek. I’m just growing them out to get them professionally shaped, because I’ve given up on learning to do them myself. I can never seem to find the right shade of powder/gel/what have you to use on them, either.
I’m dying over the fact that you named your eyebrow’s bald spot. Anyway, my biggest issue is probably trying to angle my eyeliner wings so they don’t become eaten by my (unevenly) hooded eyelids. I always end up with one eye that looks perfect and the other just looks…ugh!
Unfortunately, I have extremely oily eyelids, so no matter what I put down on it (including primer), it smudges and creases like nobody’s business. Shadows, eyeliners, and mascara… they all make me look like a raccoon that got punched in the face.
Without a doubt is doing the flick/cat-eye. I wish I can do it everyday because it looks so cute and flirty but it takes too much time to perfect and correct. :/
My issue is actually wearing it, I usually just do mascara for daytime and stay away from shadow unless I’m going out.
But when I do wear it, I don’t normally venture from my neutrals.
Also, one eye of lashes never curls as well as the other, so I constantly look lopsided! So frustrating.
Luckily, I’m a pro at cat eyeliner. Took me awhile, but once I got the hang of it, it takes two seconds. But I struggled with it for a LONG time!
I also don’t like shiny-drying liquid liners. I’m all for matte, so I use the Bobbi Brown Gel Liner and I LOVE it.
Girls who can’t do the cat eye-
Invest in a bent eyeliner brush! Sonia Kashuk makes a good one. They aren’t that expensive and they make it MUCH easier than an angled brush or a non-bent liner brush! Think of it like painting!
Ugh-cat’s eye on my deeply creased/hooded eyes. I’ve tried drawing it on with my eye open (otherwise it just gets hidden in the crease) but then I’ve got a line that very long and looks stupid when my eyes are closed (even partially). I’m too young for an eye lift!!!!
Also have trouble getting anything to stay on my lower waterline. MAC Fluidline has been the best (Smashbox sucked) but still tends to wear off pretty quickly.
I have monolids, so it’s hard for me to make my eyes look like they have eyeshadow on. I have to go outside the normal eyeshadow bounds for the colors to really show.
Also, when I curl my lashes, I always end up erasing or smearing my eyeliner in the process. I’m kind of wondering if I should just curl my lashes first and then put on eyeliner.
Subtle ‘flicks’ I can do just fine, but any sort of more dramatic winged liner and I just can’t draw the shapes at the same angle on both eyes! I think it’s because you’re supposed to aim for your brows (right?) and my eyebrows are basically not there (yay being a fair natural blonde). And then also I have eyebrow issues – I LUST for nice, luscious brows and I have tiny, sparse ones.
I have very creased eyelids–I don’t know how else to describe it, but each eyelid has a few creases that extend out to the corners of the eyes (not to be confused with wrinkles or crows’ feet). In addition, my eyelids are quite heavy, almost “sleepy.” This makes it difficult to apply eyeliner, especially cat-eye liner. It looks fine when my eyes are closed, but when I actually open my eyes, the eyelid creases warp the line I’ve tried so hard to draw. I’ve more or less given up on eyeliner; I do get it right occasionally, but not reliably.
I also have even eye makeup issues, especially with eyeliner! I usually use liquid liner and do a little flick at the end, and they never ever look the same on both eyes. -_-;;;
My eyebrows are very thick, but I have parts that grow in a different direction than the others! It’s so weird – I don’t want to overpluck and have too-thin eyebrows or bald spots, but hairs sticking out in all directions is also not my favorite look.
Eyeliner. Powder, pencil, pen…doesn’t matter. My hands aren’t that steady, and no matter what I do it seems my lines are uneven and make my smallish eyes look even smaller. Doesn’t help that I wear glasses & can’t really see what I’m doing…
I agree with other comments about getting a good waterline product to last and not irritate. On top of those challenges, I run into problems keeping my eyeliner from migrating onto my contact lenses. I wear gas permeable lenses (the smaller, hard lenses) and a lot of creamier liners are just a disaster. One eyeliner that doesn’t seem to bother my lenses, however, is the Sephora Collection Waterproof Retractable Eyeliner. But it doesn’t come in a nude shade, so still on the hunt. Maybe I should get LASIK!!
Happy Juneteenth everyone! Getting eyeliner to stick on my sometimes watery water lines (esp inner and outer corners) and TIME – I can get it all to look good, but it takes an hour!!! So obviously, I rarely invest the time. Would love shortcut tips, tho maybe it’s just practice.
My biggest challenge is dealing with my hooded eyes. They can be annoying when I try to recreate an eye look that looks great on another eye shape.
My biggest challange is applying mascara without the wand touching my lids. However careful I am, I always end up bashing the mascara wand on my lids, atleast 3 out of 5 times. This particularly happens when I am cautious about it right from the beginning I start applying my make-up! Grr..
My biggest challenge, which is very recent, is getting my lashes to look as thick as they have in the past. They seem more sparse lately, which is freaking me out since I’ve always been able to count on them as my “best feature”. I’m hoping it’s just some strange “bad lash week” phase. 🙂
mines is creasing! no matter how much primer and base i use, unless im using urban decay eye shadow, i ALWAYS CREASE! it drives me crazy
Definitely getting my makeup even on both eyes. Most times they look fine, on their own, and then you realise how different they look. One side is usually slightly darker than the other, or the shape after I blended it out is totally different (that’s the hardest to fix =( )
Longevity, creasing .. ugh. Revlon color stay works fairly well .. but most eye shadows crease badly on me .. especially drugstore brands.
Monica
My eyelids are darker than my face and my eye shadow would always look horrible but thanks to the MUA at Mac she showed me a lighter concealer to make my eye lid one color yay that problem solved. My second issue is that I have skin that folds over my crease (not cute) so you cant see my crease color. When I do a darker color in my corners I always seem to look like got punched in the eye not cute either I almost ready to give up
My makeup issue is the same as yours. I end up applying more eye makeup on one side as I’m right handed.
#1 is def oily lids. No primer or base will help, I still see creasing within 6 hours.
#2 would be not being able to do the looks I want. I know it takes practice, but sometimes I have in mind the way I want it to look and when I’m done with the look it’s not what I intended. It doesn’t look bad, but it’s usually not as dramatic or sultry as I intended. Guess I need to keep practicing and watch some youtube videos!
Blending! I can never do my eye makeup well enough to post macro shots.
I have no idea whether I am a warm or a cool ! and I have skimpy eyelashes !
Michele