Makeup Hacks for Eyes that Stand Out

Makeup hacks have been around for ages, and a lot of the time they involve homemade products or more often than not, ingredients that you are supposed to have “just lying around”. This isn’t usually the case, so these hacks never come to fruition the way that the YouTube tutorials say they do and end up being a waste of time.

So, lets look at the real hacks, the ones that are worth every penny you have to spend on them, but always produce great results. And even if they don’t, it can be fun to experiment and get away from these old products and habits that have cemented their way into your makeup routine.

When we really want our eyes to stand out, those dark areas need to go, and not be the part of our eyes that do the standing out! And concealer alone may not be the best thing for this. This is why, if you are used to just concealing, it may be worth looking at this hack – colour correction. In conjunction with concealer, it really works, and you can end up with a more natural tone underneath the eyes.

The way this works is by correcting the colour of the skin (from cool, dull or grey tones) to warmer tones that would be more present on the cheeks, you are then leaving yourself with an even finish that concealer will blend together rather than highlight. Concealer alone will still leave greyish tones under the eyes, so the colour corrector assists with an additional light layer of makeup that warms up the whole face.

If you have ever found yourself piling on the concealer and getting through way more than you need, or even gone as far as buying a lighter concealer in a big to brighten up the skin, then a colour corrector will banish those days for good. You won’t need to use as much makeup, and your skin won’t have different shades that end up being less than complimentary.

When using this hack, don’t be afraid to experiment with warmer shades of colour corrector, and even mix a darker peachy shade with a lighter pink to find your own ideal mix. You will be able to see the warmth in the skin, the disappearance of dark circles and gain an even playing field ready for your concealer application.

We all wish we were born with perfectly matching and full eyebrows, but for a lot of us, this just isn’t the case. I’m always so jealous of people with amazing brows, whether they are natural, filled in or Micro-bladed, they always look on point and like they have had minimal effort to get them. My eyebrows suffered severe thinning over the years, so it became my quest to get them back to looking fluffy and full by using clever makeup. Now the hack here is two-fold: getting those eyebrows to look made up without looking made up, and also making sure that they flatter the face.

Eyebrow shape plays a huge part in how the face shape appears and so any hack needs to be complimentary of this and take into account what suits individual facial features. Now, we are looking for hacks that make the eyes stand out, so the eyebrows in this instance may need to be toned down slightly to allow for the eyes to pop and create a really flattering canvas.

Our brows come in all different shapes and sizes and no two are the same, but one thing that tends to happen is the thickness of the hairs are mostly toward the main inward part of the brow and they get thinner and lighter out toward the tail or outer corners. The hack here is when filling in the eyebrows to try and make the whole thing as even as possible in colour so that it balances out the face and flatters rather than drawing unnecessary focus to the centre of the brows only. For eyes that are closer together, this is a great piece of advice as it gives the illusion of a wider face.

The other thing to take into account is the natural shape of your own eyebrow and how it may not be the most flattering for you. When filling in your brows you don’t want them to look unnatural, but you can change a couple of strokes with your eyebrow pencil to subtly give you a softer or less harsh shape. So, when you next go to do your eyebrows and have always followed your exact shape, try and change where you place your focus, for example, if you tend to accentuate your arch, skip the part where you follow the line with your brow pencil and roughly create extra volume at the ends and tail. If you like having a definitive beginning to your brows, try and soften this area up with lighter pencil strokes and going through it with a spool brush to fluff it up and give it more of a natural feel.

Eyebrows can be hard to get right every time, but the hack is to experiment with your shape, and even try doing one side as normal and the other side with less harsh angles and compare the two side by side. Seeing it this way can help you make some great decisions on which you prefer and going forward, you can start to practice it on both sides.

The absolute dream is to have long eyelashes at all times. When you see influencers on Instagram, makeup artists on YouTube or even celebrities on red carpets, they always have amazing looking eyelashes. And without spending a fortune on eyelash extensions, it can be hard for us mere mortals to compete in the eyelash world without putting in so much time and effort. Or is it?

For any look that will make your eyes stand out, you won’t be able to achieve this without the finishing touch to your eyelashes that most of the time goes beyond mascara. Sure, mascara is a godsend and I’m guessing even for the least makeup savvy of all of us, mascara will always be something that is easy and quick enough to apply so it’s handy to have around, but we live in an ever-evolving world where even buying mascara seems to be more complicated than solving complex mathematical equations.

Do you pick the lengthening wand or perhaps the 3D volumizing mascara? Is the water-resistant option good for your eyelashes or should you look more at less permanent ingredient options? If only it all came in a one-size fits all tube, we would all be sorted. But until that day comes, you have to figure out which one works best for you.

The hack here is having longer eyelashes in the first place, then using mascara to accentuate your healthy and full set of lashes and in turn, finishing off your stand-out eye makeup look. If you aren’t in a position to get eyelash extensions and are turned off by the thought of applying false lashes every day, then the only other thing for it is an eyelash growth serum. So, it won’t give you results over night, but it will – with a little patience – repay you with longer and fuller looking eyelashes so that you might not even need mascara.

An eyelash growth serum does exactly what it says on the tube, by penetrating deep into the follicle and driving in vitamins and natural extracts that assist with speedy growth, providing extra strength and durability and accentuating colour. With this, the results can mean longer, fuller and more lustrous eyelashes that stand out naturally after only a few weeks of applying.

The best part about this hack is it is so easy to apply. Literally, one application to the upper lids each night is all it takes. It is important to keep the eyes and eyelashes clean of makeup each night for the eyelash serum to be able to work its way in, but once it’s on, you don’t even have to think about it anymore, just relish in the results once you know your eyelashes are ready to be one of the stand-out features on your face.

Who doesn’t love a good eyeliner hack! And when the aim is to make your eyes stand out (bright coloured eye shadow aside,) eyeliner is the thing to go to. The reason is that how you apply your eyeliner can completely change the shape of your face as well as the vibe you are going for. There are times where you may prefer a more vampy look, or sometimes where you just want a toned-down day time aesthetic that compliments your eyes but doesn’t over-shadow the rest of your face.

Either way, eyeliner is the thing to experiment with so if you are stuck in your kohl eyeliner pencil ways, then keep reading and keep an open mind. To really get going, a pen eyeliner is a great tool to use if you are trying out new things as it can be a lot easier to use than gel or liquid eyeliner as you will have more control over the handling of the pen. Xlash do a great eyeliner pen in carbon black that has a felt tip applicator and allows for precision and sharp lines which is what you want when trying out new shapes.

So, why would you want to try out a new shape? Well, just like eyebrows, the way that you do your eyeliner can completely change the shape of your face and although there is a standard cat wing that a lot of people favour, they may not be making the most out of they eyeliner to create the most flattering shape for them. When you think of the classic cat-eye or winged eyeliner, you tend to start at the inner corner of the eye, follow the shape of the lash line and draw outward into a point or a small flick to create the wing.

But if you have naturally round eyes or larger eyes, this style can really accentuate the natural shape and make them look even a little too big, which yes it brings focus to the eyes but not necessarily in the most flattering way. A hack to combat this is to make the eyeliner lines tighter, closer to the upper lash line and to start the line from the centre of the eye rather than the inner corner. By bringing the flick out further and straighter (keep that line sleek and thin) you create lift at the corner of the eye, drawing the eyes upward for a more pinched look. This is incredibly flattering to most eye shapes and will be the fastest way to may your eyes stand out.