Time to trade in your trusty dark pencil.
The urge to only use dark eyeliner runs deep for most women who grew up watching their mothers wear it and then grabbed their own pencil during their first foray into makeup. However, that doesn’t mean that it is always the most flattering pick—it’s just the one we’ve always thought was the only option. As it turns out, color and placement is more important when applying eyeliner than going with the status quo.
Instead of making your eyes look smaller by using dark eyeliner in your waterline and on your lash line, consider a different approach: white eyeliner.
Why You Should Use White Eyeliner
Using white eyeliner helps to brighten up your eyes and give your whole face a radiant boost in a way that dark eyeliner does not. White eyeliner (or nude eyeliner) has long been used by professionals to make eyes look bigger, more awake, and even curtail the shadowy effects of tiredness. When using a dark color on the bottom lash line particularly, it can make eyes look smaller and drawn-down, but white has the reverse effect.
How To Use White Eyeliner On Your Waterline
To use white eyeliner for the most flattering effect, lightly brush it along your waterline on top and bottom as desired, or just on the bottom half, which lends the most brightening effect. Gently tug your top or bottom eyelid to expose the waterline for the easiest access.
Follow by using a soft brown eyeliner on top of the lash line (not in the waterline) to still get extra definition, and make sure to always focus top eyeliner on the outer half of the lash line, never all the way into the inner corner. If you’re still too hesitant to try out white eyeliner, choose a nude-colored eyeliner instead for a more subtle look.
While there might still be a time and place for black eyeliner, consider going a lighter, brighter route.
