Now that we covered what I like to cover up the face, let’s move northward on the face to.. the eyes! Again, this is just a list of what I like, what I’ve found is made well, delivers, and—in my opinion at least—is worth your money. So, on that note, onward! 

NARS Hardwired eyeshadow palette

 If I were stranded on a desert island… I wouldn’t give a damn about eyeshadow.  Okay. Stupid joke. This would most definitely qualify as my Desert Island Pick for eyeshadow, if glam mattered a lick while I was dragging my carcass around desperately searching for water. Why I Like It:I have a drawer FULL of eyeshadow palettes that I am constantly cycling through, but truly, this is the one I find myself reaching for most often, for work and for daily wear. You get six shades—two light, all-over shades—one matte vanilla, another a little warmer of a nude with a touch of shimmer; two medium tones—a rich, shimmery emerald, and a fawn brown; and two dark shades—matte black and matte dark brown. What I find most appealing about this is the lack of shimmer. And although two shades are shimmery, the shimmers (is that a word?) are finely milled and don’t scream Seventh Grader Experimenting With Makeup, like some lines’ shimmer shades can. I used this palette every single day at work for a good nine month period, and never got sick of it. Combination possibilities galore. Very blendable too. Just make sure to dab a touch of foundation or eye shadow primer on your lids first to help the color stick. How I Use It:This is just one of dozens of possible combinations, but my favorite look for work went like this:

• Swipe matte vanilla shade over entire lid.
• With a denser-packed brush (the one that comes in the kit is perfect!), use the dark matte brown in your crease, taking the color from the outer corner in toward the eye about ¾ of the way back toward the nose. Blend.
• Swipe the fawn shade above that line and blend in toward the darker shade. Blend.
• With a small, dense brush, put the tiniest bit of the matte black shade on the outer corner of your eye, on top of the brown, and blend in for a little extra dimension.
• Swipe the shimmery nude just below the brow bone for a touch of highlight.

Eyeko Skinny Liquid Eyeliner

 Why I Like It:Let me say this: I was never a fan of liquid eyeliners until recently, but I find they are the only way I can get color close my the lash line, so it doesn’t look like my eyeliner is hovering above the blond base of my eyelashes. With pencils, I just could never get close enough. The staying power of this liner is awesome, too. Doesn’t run. Washes off (with oil cleanser) like a dream. How I Use It:I lay the felt tip of this horizontally across my lash line, and push down a bit, to make sure I get as close to the base of the lash line as possible. To soften the line and get rid of the “shiny” finish of a liquid liner, I then take a flat eyeshadow brush, dab it in the black matte shadow from my NARS palette, and glide it over the eyeliner. 

bbrowbar eyebrow definer in Dark Blonde

 Why I Like It:My mid-tone brown brows have no real warmth in their color, and it is haaaaard to find a good pencil that matches my color without giving my brows a fake, too warm look. Although this isn’t a perfect taupe match for my brows, at least, it is close enough. Other reasons I like it? Twist-up applicator with super skinny pencil. Glides on (no pulling out stray brows!) Stays put. Comes in a great variety of shades. How I Use It:I fill in my sparse spots, which for me, are on the outer part of my brows. Then I lightly drag the pencil over the top of my brows, going from about a millimeter in from the nose line, up the arch, and back down the outer edge. I never fill in the inner part of my brow, because I feel it gives too harsh of a look. Some people like to square off the inner part of the brow, though, so hey, whatever floats your boat.After filling in, I glide on some Anastasia clear brow gel over top to hold my brows in place. 

Etcetera

 You’ll notice there are no mascaras on this list. I’m just not a believer in the idea of Holy Grail mascaras. I’ve been equally impressed with drug store brands as expensive lines. But here are some I’ve bought more than once, which means they are a-okay by me. Mary Kay Lash IntensityL’Oreal VoluminousEstee Lauder Sumptuous Extreme Also, lid primers are a MUST. I have wasted many a dollar (are we starting to notice a theme here?) on real deal, “official” eye shadow primers, and have been disappointed every. Single. time. Waste of money. I use a dab of my Dermablend foundation on my lid, which brings my lid color back to neutral (my eyelids have a purplish color naturally) so the shadow colors stay true, and stay put for hoooours. My record so far is 16 hours of wear. I also use an eyelash curler, though I’m not particular in the slightest about which one. I have a Revlon one, a MAC one and one by Surratt Beauty that I rotate through. I know some people are real snobs about their lash curlers (Shu Ueumura makes one people are wild about), but like mascaras, I have found no real difference in results. So, that’s it for the Eye Edition! I’m starting to think pictures would be really helpful here, but I haven’t the first clue about how to take makeup application pictures. So I hope my eloquent descriptions (HA) can get you by until I get my crap together to figure that all out. Also, I would LOVE to hear what you guys are using and loving! Okay, friends, til next time… Thanks for reading!