Dummies' / Cheater's Guide to Winged Liquid Liner (plus Tips and Tricks)

sexorchocolateorpillowsorclouds asked:

can you give a small (or large!) tutorial on the liquid liner cat eye? not the runway super wild one, just something real and wearable but that will still make an impact. i'm going to a wedding tonight and i'd love to wear my make up that way. thanks so much!!

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Liquid liner is usually considered the most difficult to work with, compared to pencils, powders and gels. But it does give the most intense, opaque and dramatic lines, so if that's what you're going for, the below might help make things just slightly easier.

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Step 1: If you have oily lids, then no matter whether you're wearing shadow or not, it's best to apply primer and some powder onto the lids to keep them dry so your liner does not smudge or break down over the day.

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Step 2: This is the cheater's way of doing it.

I use a black shadow and a small flat angled brush to draw in a guiding line first. This line should be parallel to the curve of your lower lash line, and almost look like an extension of it. This is where you adjust the angle and length of both eyes until you're more or less satisfied that they're even. A powder is easier to rub off and correct than a pencil.

DUMMIES' TIP: Always draw THE EYE YOU ARE LESS COMFORTABLE WITH first (if you're right handed, start with your left eye) as you can match the flick on your main-hand side to the other much easier than if you did it the other way round.

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Step 4: Clean off your liquid liner brush so that you have a minimal amount of liquid on your brush (or felt tip) and then go over the black powder flick carefully.

CHEATER'S TIP: Don't worry about going all the way to the end. Just use a finger nail to scrape the base of the liquid liner and pull it out wards for that razor-sharp flick.

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Step 5: Finish by drawing a very thin band of liquid liner from the inner corners outward in short strokes until it reaches the wing. If you make any mess, just quickly wipe it away with a finger before it dries. 

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Step 6: Slowly thicken the outer half of the line (from center of eye outwards) if you want a more dramatic, slanted wing. If you want a simple kitten flick, you only need to thicken it very slightly.