Bold Eyes: Runway vs. Real Way

It’s in the (black) eyes this season. Fall 2012 runway shows featured models with bold black eyeliner, multi-colored, jewel-toned eye shadow, and wide swipes of brown shadow. Prada’s show included models with orange eyebrows and heavy black eye shadow with hints of white eyeliner as accents. The bold eyeliner and grease-like eye paint seen on runways are a bit much for everyday wear, unless you are the girl with the dragon tattoo, but you can tone down the trend to wear it in the real world.

Narciso Rodriguez had an almost real world approach to dark eye makeup, but the smudged eyeliner on the lower lid looked
 kind of like my eyes the morning after I forget to wash my makeup off. Is that in style? If so, my beauty routine just got much shorter. To make this an everyday look and keep it neat (and not like you just rolled out of bed), apply black liner like Rimmel London Exaggerate Eye Definer to your lower lash line, then use the sponge tip to smudge it downward. Apply a coat of black mascara to top and bottom lashes.

Lanvin and Ralph Lauren featured some bold, flicked-up cat’s eye eyeliner. To wear this look in real life, just thin that line out. Use a liquid liner like Maybelline Line Stiletto Ultimate Precision Liquid Eyeliner in Blackest Black and follow your upper lash line. As you approach the outer corner, flick the liner up into a cat’s eye. If you don’t have a steady hand, consider using an eyeliner pencil first for precision, then tracing the line with the liquid liner. Add mascara on the top lashes only.

If you like to strut like a peacock, why not let your eyelids act as your bright plumage? Brightly colored eyes were seen on the runways of Jason Wu, L’Wren Scott, and Roberto Cavalli. You could go the Stella McCartney route and wear just purple mascara for a night out, or you could incorporate just a few shades in the same color family to create a modern smoky eye as seen at Jason Wu. Opt for collections in jewel-toned greens, blues, or purples.

For a subtle day look, try CoverGirl Eye Enhancers 3-Kit Shadows in Sea Glass. Apply the median shade all over your lid, then add the darkest color at the outer corner and in the crease. Dab the lightest shade in the inner corner of your eye. Pay homage to the dark eye trend by lining your top and bottom lash line with a liquid liner, then finish with black mascara.

With so many bold eye looks, it’s surprising that a few designers chose simple, smoldering browns. Burberry, Blumarine, Loewe, and Louis Vuitton all chose smudgy brown shadow. This look is easy to recreate, as there are a few ways to do it. The simplest and most understated way is to use a brown, khaki, or mocha eyeliner pencil around your upper and lower lashes and smudging it. To make a bigger impact, apply brown eye shadow like MAC’s Charcoal Brown all over the upper lid. Carefully line the lower lid with the eyeshadow as well. Apply a taupe color like MAC’s Kid to the center of the upper eyelid to add a little bit of contrast. Apply a coat of black or dark brown mascara.

While the runway looks are incredibly bold, there are many ways to tone the looks down to make them day-friendly. No need to have your boss give to funny looks when you show up with grease paint on your eyes, you can stay stylish with these adapted real world daytime styles.