The Best Smoky Eye for Your Eye Shape (It’s Easier Than You Think)

When your eyes are close together, makeup is a great way to create an illusion of them being farther apart The trick is to use light colors on the inside part of your eyelid and concentrate dark colors on the outside for maximum smoke effect!

The Maybelline City Mini Eyeshadow Palette in Concrete Runway is an easy to use palette for your eye shape. Just divide your eye into thirds and apply the base (lightest shade) to your lid, concentrating on the inner corner. Blend your medium shade in from the middle of your lid outward and use the darkest color on the very outer corner of your eye, extending the shadow outward a little to balance out the closeness!

Because your eyes are set deep into their sockets, they give off the appearance of a prominent brow bone and large eyes. The best way to balance your features is to pull your eyes forward, while pushing the brow bone back. Avoid applying dark shadow over your entire lid for your smoky eye, as this could give your eyes an even deeper appearance.

A warm beige or metallic peach smoky eye is ideal for your eye shape as the shimmer will really bring your eyes out! Try the Maybelline City Mini Eyeshadow Palette in Chill Brunch Neutrals for your look. Brush the middle shade just above your crease and blend it up to your brow bone. Take the darkest color and contour your lid, working from the outer corner in and up toward the brow bone to make that area recede. Finish off by lining your lower lash line with a brighter brown like Urban Decay Vice Eyeshadow in Chopper.

Since the outer corners of your eyes droop slightly, a cat eye is key to creating a slightly upturned look. We recommend trying a liquid liner that makes cat eyes a breeze like the IT Cosmetics Superhero Liner. For your smokey eye, apply a light highlighter color to your entire lid, inner corners and your brow bone. Brush a medium shade from the middle of your lid to the outer corner and then blend an even deeper color right in the most outer corner of your eyelid. Be sure to blend out and up.

Hooded lids have an extra layer of skin that droops down over the natural crease, causing the eyes to look partly closed. What you really want to avoid is applying a dark shadow all over the eyelid as this could accentuate the lid and make it appear heavier.

Instead, using a medium shade (try the light brown in the Lancôme Color Design 5 Pan Eyeshadow Palette in Kissed by Gold), brush it on from the outer corner of your eye and bring the color up and over the entire hooded area, causing a receding effect. Brush the same shade along your lower lash line as well. Then take your contour shade and layer it on top of the medium one, but do not extend the color all the way across — this is merely to accentuate the depth of your smoky eye! Using the highlighter in the shadow palette, highlight the inner corner of your lower lash line and your brow bone (just a tad!) to create a break between your eyes and eyebrows, making your eyes appear wide open!

Your lids tend to have more of a flat surface, with little to no crease at all, but that doesn’t stop you from creating a fire, smoky eye look! Since your brow bone is also less defined, the trick is to create dimension by using various shades that work on a dark to light gradient (think ombré!).

The Dose of Colors Blushing Berries Eyeshadow Palette is perfect for defining your eye shape! Choose the darkest shadow (black or deep brown) in your palette and apply it closest to your lash line. Using the medium tone, go over your eyelid and blend upwards. Follow with the lightest colors at the top of the eyelid to finish off your gradual look! For a bolder, smoky eye, use Maybelline Eye Studio Lasting Drama Gel Eyeliner in Blackest Black for a defined, winged cat-eye and using a softer shadow shade, line the bottom lash line to achieve a wide-eyed look.

Because you have so much lid space to work with, a smoky eye works wonders on your eye shape! Since dark shades create the illusion of depth, you can apply darker tones all over your eye with thick liner along your lash line.

Highlight (only) the brow bone area and then cover your entire lid with a natural tone like one in the Urban Decay Naked2 Basics Eyeshadow Palette. Brush a medium shade on the outer corner of your eye and use a dark shade to line your top and bottom lash line. Add some of the dark shade to the middle of your lid and blend, blend, blend!

You basically have the opposite problem of close set eyes, so we recommending using eyeshadow to create the illusion that your eyes are closer together instead of farther apart. Visually “pull” the eyes closer by blending your shadow inward instead of out!

Using your lightest eye shadow color or a highlighter shade, brush the color over your lid and brow bone (try the Urban Decay Naked Palette), then using a medium shade, bring the color from the outside corner of your crease to the inside. Deepen the color of your smoky eye by using an even darker shade in your palette and brush it along your upper lash line working from the outside in, then pull the color up into the crease of your eye slightly. Finish off by lining your lower lid with the black shade, concentrating near the inner tear duct.