How to Apply Liquid Eyeliner in 6 Steps

Liquid eyeliner is an eye makeup product designed to line the eye. You can use eyeliner on your lower or upper lash line, or both. Liquid liner is highly pigmented, and with its sharp brush tip, it is ideal for drawing bold, precise lines—whether that’s a perfect cat eye or a winged eyeliner look. While black and brown eyeliners are among the most common colors, the beauty product is also available in blue, pink, white, and other hues.

Liquid eyeliner and waterproof liquid eyeliner typically come in a bottle with a removable brush tip or as a marker-like instrument with a felt tip. Both versions require accuracy and come in handy when trying to create sharp lines. Other common types of eyeliner include pencil eyeliner and gel eyeliner.

To ensure your eyeliner is long-lasting and doesn't fade during the day, apply eyelid primer before applying eyeliner. Eyeliner application should happen after you put on eyeshadow to make the lines sharp and visible. Finally, apply a few coats of mascara to complete your eye makeup.

Applying liquid eyeliner requires a steady hand to prevent smearing. If you are a beginner, follow this step-by-step tutorial for how to use liquid eyeliner:

1. 1. Shake the bottle of liquid eyeliner. Shake the product, so the formula is smooth and not clumpy.
2. 2. Hold the wand in your dominant hand. Using your primary hand, hold the liquid eyeliner flat—almost perpendicular to your eye—using your primary hand.
3. 3. Start in the middle of your lid. Starting from the center of your eye, draw a straight line as close to the upper lash line as possible, following the curve of your eye to the outer corner of your eye.
4. 4. Draw a line from the inner corner of your eye. Then, draw a line from the inner corner to the center of your eye.
5. 5. Make a wingtip. To create a wingtip, draw a line with an upward angle from the outer corner of your eye, using your lower lash line as a guide. You can fill in the line more heavily to create a triangle shape, creating a cat eye.
6. 6. Apply liner to your lower lid. If you want to apply liquid eyeliner to your lower lid, do it in small strokes. You want it to look like the eyeliner wing extends from your bottom lid. Draw a line from the wingtip to the center of your lower lash line. To fully line your bottom lash line, draw a line from the middle of the lower lash line to the inner corner.

Whether you have monolids, double eyelids, or hooded eyes, you can experiment with the thickness of your eyeliner to find the perfect look. For example, if you have a monolid, you might try starting your winged liner look from the bottom lid, filling in a small portion of your bottom lid to make a noticeable cat eye.

If you are new to liquid eyeliners, consider the following:

1. 1. Apply eyeliner with a felt-tip eyeliner. A felt-tip eyeliner is slim and similar to a pen, making it easy to hold and control.
2. 2. Start with a thin line. Start with a thin line and then fill in the eyeliner to make the line thicker, if you desire. The thicker your eyeliner, the bolder your eye makeup will be.
3. 3. Use tape as a guide. To draw a wingtip or a cat eye, create a guide for yourself by putting tape against your lower lashline.
4. 4. Connect the dots. If your hand is not steady, you can make a guiding line on your eyes using dots or dashes, which you can fill in with the eyeliner.
5. 5. Rest your elbow. To stabilize your hand, rest your elbow on a table as you’re applying the eyeliner.

It takes practice to perfect the application of eyeliner. Consider the following tricks to fix smudges or uneven lines:

• Use a cotton swab. If your eyeliner is smudging, dip a cotton swab in micellar water or makeup remover and dab away the excess.
• Fill the waterline with eyeshadow. The liquid eyeliner may not reach into the waterline when filling in your lower lid. You can use black eyeshadow to fill in the waterline. You can also use an eye pencil for your lower lash line, which will adhere better to the waterline than liquid eyeliner.
• Cover up with concealer. If your eyeliner lines are too thick or uneven, use concealer to cover up the imperfections. Apply concealer with an angled brush or an eyeliner brush.

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