Beauty / Blue Is For Brown Beauties: Picking The Right Shade Of Blue Eye Makeup For Brown Skin Tones

Blue Is For Brown Beauties: Picking The Right Shade Of Blue Eye Makeup For Brown Skin Tones

Beauty Jun 24, 2024

by Meena Khan | Features Editor - Beauty

Blue eye makeup is a breezy, dreamy beauty trend for summer 2024 that flatters brown eyes and all shades of brown skin. This blog explores the importance of how to pick the right shade of blue, the key products to create two different looks and tips on how to balance the blue eyes with the cheeks and lips.

Say No To The Navy And Yes To Royalty!

Have you ever heard of the old beauty trick that to make your teeth look whiter add on a dab of blue lip-gloss… the trick works because the pigment in the blue gloss contrasts with the lightness of the teeth. The same concept works for the eyes, various shades of blue around the eyes makes the sclera brighter and draw attention to your coffee peepers.

Please note that by blue, I do not mean navy, which is as brightening as a burnt-out lightbulb; I mean shades like cobalt, Klein and sky which are unapologetic and possess depth like brown eyes.

Blue Is Easy!

If your make-up tends to be neutral, and you are curious about blue, you do not need to do a 180 to create a great look, you just need a neutral shadow, two great eyeliners (light and medium blue) and a cobalt mascara.

After I have completed my complexion make-up, I like to colour wash a neutral shadow with a slight shimmer such as the rose gold shade in Ctzn Cosmetics Eye Elements dual shadow stick in Soleil. I swipe it once across each eyelid and then using my ring finger I tap the colour from eyeline to eyebrow. Note that I choose a slightly shimmery shadow base because I want the light to bounce around the eye area, so it intensifies the brightness of the eye look.

**Blue is for Brown Beauties. Ctzn Cosmetics Eye Elements in Soleil** Photo Credit: www.ctzncosmetics.com

Second, I curl my eyelashes to expose more of the sclera and to create a wide-eyed look.

Third, I like to slowly, and carefully line my waterline with the OG of waterline eyeliners: Vasanti Kajal Waterline in the shade Ice Blue. This skinny liner with the twist up pencil glides easily along the upper and lower rims, delivering beautiful, stormy ocean blue pigment that stays put instead of migrating into the tear ducts. The colour brightens the sclera and sets the stagefor the subsequent makeup.

Fourth, I use a sky blue liner such as Kulfi Kajal Eyeliner in Daydream to line the upper lash line from the inner to the outer corner. The paleness of the blue acts as a continuation the sclera and creates a great backdrop for the cobalt mascara.

Fifth, apply several coats of Benefit Cosmetics BADgal BANG! Mascara in Power Blue; the blue is so vibrant and joyful that it makes even the most obsidian of eyelashes surrender to the fun. The conial shape of the applicator allows you to get into the inner and outer corners of the eyes, so that each lash is coated in colour. The mascara stays put all day and it is impactful. This is my mascara for the summer!

The different shades of blue brighten coffee peepers and infuse the eye area with fun, blue energy.

Blue Is Romance!

If you are familiar with the beauty of the blue make-up look, then you should experiment with the watercolour look, where eyeshadows are used to incorporate an ethereal, diffuse look to the eyes, and Monet Nymphéas bleus reigns supreme. Our shades of brown skin means that we can handle varying nuances of blue, instead of being overwhelmed by them. This eye look would be a standout on the wedding circuit too.

In terms of preparatory steps, I suggest that you should set the eyebrows, set down a neutral canvass for the eyeshadow, curl the eyelashes and after the eye make-up is done do the complexion work. The order of operations ensures that your concealer will not fall prey to errant particles of eyeshadow.

I have come to see blue as merely the name of category of shades that evoke the sky and the sea. If you want to follow Monet’s path, I suggest investing in a quartet of eyeshadows that are based on shades of azure, so that you can use it for work and play.

I am impressed with the Clé de peau Eye Color Quad in Azure Blue Sea because it comes with three shades of soft, shimmery eyeshadows which range from sky blue, sea blue to soft navy with a pop colour of pearl. At first glance, these colors may seem light and ill-suited to deeper skin tones, but I beg to differ. The powder is lightweight which means that you can build up the intensity of the pigment and the colours are intense enough that they make brown skin tones radiate. This quad is sold separately from its case, which means that this is an upfront investment of both the case, which can be used for other quads, and the shadow.

Below is an example of how to use the quartet of colour for both work and play:

If you are aiming for a fun, summer work look, I suggest lightly dabbing the soft navy shadow on the mobile lid, and then adding the sky-blue shade in the inner corners to open the eye. I like to apply a deep brown eyeliner such as Vasanti Kajal Waterline Eyeliner Pencil in Rich Brown to the inner rim of the eye, followed by two coats of black mascara and then I tap the Benefit Power Blue mascara to the tips of the eyelashes. The hint of blue on the lashes perfectly balances the line between fun and professional. The look is not about harsh definition as much as it is about dabbing shadows and lightly defining with liner and mascara.

If you are aiming for a romantic night out look, focus on the lighter shades in the quad. I like to mix the sky blue and sea blue to create my own bespoke shade of shimmery blue, which I apply on my mobile lid to just above my crease. I then wet an angled brush, dab it into the soft navy shade and then line my upper eye line. To refract more light in the area. I dab my left ring finger, which has the least pressure, into the pearl shade and then dab it at the centre of the eyelid. I finish the look the look by applying the Benefit Power Blue mascara to the upper and lower lashes; the blue is so strong that it has the effect of a liner.

The Face – Soft And Sheer

Blue is a powerful eye look, and to avoid looking overdone, I suggest keeping the eyes and lips soft and glossy.

In my experience, blue eye makeup looks great with either cantaloupe or soft mauve shades, and which route you take depends on your personal taste.

If you love cantaloupe shades, below are some tips to celebrate your cheeks and lips:

For deeper skin tones, I suggest dabbing on a gold liquid serum such as Drunk Elephant B-Goldi™ Bright Drops on the tops of the cheeks. It infuses the skin with niacinamide which evens the skin tone, and there is a hint of gold that brings out the warmth of the tone. Follow with a matte blush, as this formulation tends to stay on longer and remains true to colour on the skin.

Nars recently reformulated its legendary blushes so that they are easier to blend and are longer lasting, and Obsession, which is described as a matte papaya, is great for dark skin tones.

For light-to -medium skin tones, I have been enjoying the Wander Beauty On-the-Glow Blush and Illuminator in Sienna Sunset a duo described as warm spiced peach. As the name suggests one end has a shimmery highlighter which you can apply to the tops of the cheeks, and a deeper matte peach shade that you can dab on as blush. This product can be easily blended with fingers.

I like to finish the look with a hint of colour on the lips. I love stains like the Clarins Water Lip Stain, because it literally stains the lips and you can build the intensity of colour with multiple layers of product. For this look, I recommend trying the shade Orange Water.

For the evening, I prefer a hazier, more mysterious look, and veer towards soft mauve shades. I am thrilled to report that I found a cheek colour that works on a wide array of brown skin tones, and it is the Westman Atelier Baby Cheeks Blush Stick in Garçonne, a mauve shade, whose intensity can be built up with thin layers using a blush brush with semi-stiff bristles. The finish is slightly satiny so there is a hint of sheen on the cheeks.

I like to finish the look with glossy lips, and Clinique’s legendary Almost in Black Honey is a universal beauty. I love how this sheer, deep wine unifies the pink and mauve shades of my lips into a singular mauve kiss. Its shininess adds a festive allure to the mouth. This product a must-have for any vanity!

Azure Musings

Growing up, I looked at blue make-up through the lens of comedic characters such as Mrs. Roper on Three’s Company and Mimi on the Drew Carey Show. As I grew older, I realised that shades of blue jeans and tops look good on me… so why not make-up. Once I broke away from the stereotype of blue eyeshadows, the make-up looks were as bright and broad as the sky and sea.

Featured Images from left to right:
Masaba Gupta Photo Credit: www.bridestoday.in
Khushi Kapoor Photo Credit Instagram

Meena Khan | Features Editor - Beauty

Author

Meena (@meenalaregina) always loved the idea of exploring the non-conventional idea of beauty. Having grown up as a pimply chubby teenager, she wanted to see the change in the world that best reflected your uniqueness as well. Her well-received collection of blogs where she tries on various beauty p...

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