It used to be that I was a costume make-up artist, and that adding as many interesting textures, colors, and elements as possible was part of what made the whole production more interesting. Glitter, rhinestones, gems, glitter glue, uv-paints (that glow in black lights) were my forte.
More recently, as I began to research more wearable makeup, I ran into quite a few challenges. Of course, easy wearable makeup is not an issue. We all have our favorite quick routines, and I am no exception to this rule. However, when I tried to replicate some of the more interesting looks that I saw in magazine spreads and sephora catalogs, I had a very hard time getting the precision necessary to create real depth and vividness of color and hue. Even with good product, without the right tools, the eye shadows would not blend or layer properly. Rather, they would just crumble into a messy, diluted color heap. If for instance I wanted to add a deep purple for a crease-effect (I say crease-effect, because like many Asian women, I have a very small crease and need to create the illusion of a larger crease with eye shadows) and if I already had a bright pink on my lids, the purple and pink would just mix together to form a vague messy hue.
It took me several tries and a lot of shopping to figure out a few things. First of all, I have a smaller eye than many of the caucasian gurus on youtube (I just "found" youtube in the last month or so, and it's amazing as a resource), and this was even true of many of the Asian gurus as well. So rather than using normal eye shadow brushes, I had to find smaller brushes to fit my smaller eye-area. I also needed to find precision tools in order to use the eye shadows as a true artist's medium, rather than a messy bunch of powder. This being said, these are some of the brushes that worked for me:
1. Sephora professional small eyeshadow brush. This brush is more densely packed than some other small eyeshadow brushes that I found, and the density is important in order to properly pack the color onto the lids. Large or even medium sized eyeshadow brushes do not allow the precision to create multi-colored or even monchromatic-depth of the same color on the lid.
2. Sephora platinum smokey eye (or pencil) brush: This is probably my favorite brush so far. The bristles are incredibly soft and yet the brush can create from a thin to medium lines for eyeliner, or for lining the crease area for a cut-crease look. You can also use it to smoke out eyeliner or to blend out the edges for a smokey-eye look. It also causes less fallout because of the precision of the tip. This brush can create a number of looks, and in my opinion, is the most important brush for creating eye-looks of any complexity in a small eye.
3. Sephora professional crease brush: This brush is smaller than the platinum crease brush, which I find to be helpful again for a smaller eye. I don't really use the crease brush for my crease, even for a smokey look, as I prefer the precision of the pencil brush or even smaller brushes with natural bristles that are sometimes labeled "lip brushes." Now, I don't have a monolid, or even a light crease. I was born with a very deep but very small crease, which I think requires smaller and more precise tools. A monolid can get by with the larger tools because one doesn't have to worry about the shadow falling into the deep lid and doing weird things. Therefore, I find that a precise tool is necessary for defining the crease. However, the sephora professional crease brush is perfect for blending out colors, which is necessary for creating depth and polish in a more complex eye-look. Other brushes I have seen on youtube that I think would also work - blending brushes such as the e.l.f. blending brush, or other dense, soft, graduated natural bristles that come to a rounded point (unlike the sephora platinum smokey-eye, which just comes to a straight point).
Those are the three most important brushes, in my opinion. It's nice to have a couple of the small eyeshadow brushes as well, in case you want to do a multi-color look. Next are tools that I find are very helpful, but not of the same degree of importance in my opinion.
1. The sephora professional smudge brush: This brush allows you to smoke out cream eyeliners easily. It is densely packed and a longer shape, to allow for precise smudging (you need to have the control for precision even more when you have a small eye, otherwise you won't have a smoked-out eyeliner, but a big messy raccoon-effect).
2. The sephora professional angled liner brush: This brush allows for precision in applying cream or gel based liners. It has the right amount of stiffness (even though the bristles are soft) to create a precise line. When the liner brush is not stiff or dense but skinny enough, you can't get a small enough line for the tiny deep crease. Again, if you have a monolid, you can get away with a thicker line - or even if you have a double-lid with a light crease. But with a very deep crease, if you don't create a very precise line, the line will invariably smudge and lose the effect of the cat-eye, or whatever precise look you are trying to create. Some liquid liners are also good for this purpose, depending on the brush or the tip of the liner (or you can use a regular liner brush of your own). Makeup forever used to make the BEST liquid liners EVER. I am so sad that they discontinued those, but with the right angled brush, you can use this method to create a precise and flattering cat-eye.
3. The sephora platinum eyebrow brush/lash comb. The platinum comb has a metal rather than plastic comb. The metal tips are sharp (!) I tripped once holding onto the metal ends of this comb, and it poked right into my palm. So yes - it's sharp, but it's fantastic at separating lashes. Other eyelash combs cannot even come close to the precision of this comb. It works perfectly to declump lashes every time. This tool is for everyone, not just people with small eyes. I love it, because you can apply as many coats of mascara as you want without getting spidery or clumpy.
4. The Shiseido eyelash curler. I know that the Shu Uemura curler gets way more attention (and I have two of the Shu Uemura curlers, so I'm not really complaining about the quality), but the Shiseido curler is wider and somewhat flatter in shape. A lot of Asian reviewers have commented that the shape works better in general for the Asian eye, and I would tend to agree. I had to be careful with the Shu Uemera curler not to catch my skin in the curler (which definitely happened sometimes). The Shiseido curler definitely works better for my eye shape. It also seems to get the lashes curled more evenly, as it's less rounded and therefore allows for more length along the lashline when grabbing lashes to be curled.
And last but not least, these are a couple of products that are really necessary to create a vibrant-eye that doesn't smudge, crease, or fade throughout the day (and I have done intense physical exercise to test this out, and my eye products didn't budge at all when using these products).
1. The obvious product that most people are familiar with is using a good eye primer. I like Too Faced Shadow Insurance, but the other product that is often hailed as being the "best" primer - Urban Decay Primer Potion. There are a few others that are touted by various youtube gurus, but the Too Faced and UDPP are the most widely recognized.
2. Something I picked up from watching the youtube gurus: NYX jumbo eye pencils. These are thick and creamy. Used on top of the primer (the primer helps to keep the creamy pencils from creasing) the sticky texture gives powder eyeshadow even more ability to adhere. I also like to experiment with other cream or gel shdaows/liners, to see which shadows show up best on which product.
Ok - I know this was pretty long! I didn't mean to ramble on quite as much as I did, but as a consumer, I always want to know what products work best on my type of eye, and why - so I have tried to take the time to explain. There are some other products that I definitely want to share, but these are the items that took me from muddy eyeshadows to clear-cut and colorful looks... these were also the items that were eluding me at first when I was trying to figure things out, so hopefully, this post will help other people who might have similar issues. Still, the thing that will allow for the most clarity and precision is always going to follow that old adage: "practice makes perfect." Although it helps to find another person with similar features and learn what they are using, ultimately, we all have to experiment to find what works best with our individual skin type, tone, and texture.
Good luck, and most importantly, HAVE FUN out there! Makeup makes me so happy, I hope that you feel the same, deriving joy from waking up each day to the palette of your face, and using your unique artistry and vision to make your life a beautiful work of art.
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