Despite what you may have heard, it's not the best idea to apply dark eyeliner to your bottom waterline because this can actually shrink the appearance of your eyes. Instead, apply your go-to eyeliner just below your lower lashes to help make your eyes look bigger.
Lining Your Waterline With Black Eyeliner
Rimming your eyes in inky black liner makes them look tinier than they actually are. Instead, make your eyes look wide awake with a white or nude-colored liner like the Maybelline New York TattooStudio White Eyeliner. A light color opens up your eyes, making them look larger.
The waterline is the area of skin between the base of the lash line and the cornea, where the eyelids meet when closed. Applying eyeliner to the waterline is a technique known as tightlining, enhancing the eyes and making eyelashes appear fuller.
Tightline. Tightlining is probably one of the sure-shot ways you can use eyeliner to make your eyes seem bigger. The key is to apply a black or dark brown eyeliner on your upper waterline and lash line. You need to make sure the skin beneath your upper lashes is all covered with the pencil.
The way to apply eyeliner to make the eyes look bigger is by drawing a very thin line, black or brown, just above your lashes. Once you reach the last third of the lashes, taper the eyeliner outwards in a straight line and draw back in to create a flick.
It's a bit of a beauty myth that small eyes shouldn't use eyeliner. When used in an entire ring around the eye, black liner can exaggerate the smaller shape, but the trick is to use a contrasting white or pearl-coloured liner in the lower waterline and keep the smoky eyeliner to the lower lashes instead.
As it turns out, it's probably not the safest idea. Applying eyeliner on the waterline increases your risk of contaminating your eye. Any bacteria or contaminants on the tip of your eyeliner have the potential to travel into your eye and cause discomfort, irritation or redness to those with sensitive or dry eyes.
White eyeliner is a makeup artist trick for brightening up the face and making your eyes look bigger and more awake, particularly when used on the bottom waterline. When using a dark color on the bottom lash line, it can make eyes look smaller and drawn-down, but white has the reverse effect.
Consider applying a colored eyeliner like nude or white eyeliner to your lids. These neutral shades help you achieve a brighter, natural, and more awake look, ultimately making your small eyes look even bigger. Try this trick with the L'Oréal Paris Infallible Pro-Last Waterproof, Up to 24HR Pencil Eyeliner in Nude.
"Keep the liner to the top lid for a more lifted, youthful effect." If you really, really want to go after your bottom lash line, Stiles recommends using a lighter color there than you're using on the top. "This will still give you definition, but feels softer and more flattering," she adds.
Professionally, white eyeliner is a makeup artist trick for brightening up the face and making your eyes look bigger and more awake—particularly when used on the bottom waterline. When using a dark color on the bottom lash line, it can make eyes look smaller and drawn-down, but white has the reverse effect.
If you want to make your eyes look bigger then use white or nude liner, especially if the rest of your eye look is very dark. Using black in the water line closes the eye and makes it look smaller.
As an incredibly sensitive area, the waterline requires a special type of eyeliner. (Just imagine the red and watery eyes brought on by irritation from a generic black eyeliner or worse, a liquid liner!) “I look for silicone-based liners that are longwearing and waterproof,” says celebrity makeup artist Jamie Dorman.
Winged eyeliner can also help create the illusion of bigger eyes. If you have smaller eyes it's better to avoid heavy eyeliner on your upper lid, as this can make it look smaller.
But while liner can help to open up your eyes and brighten your appearance, tightlining your waterline, or the inner rim of your lashes, will only stand to make you look older. “First of all, makeup inside the waterline instantly creates the illusion of smaller eyes.
For an eye-opening effect, try swapping dark liner for white eyeliner or nude eyeliner like the TARTE Fake Awake Eye Highlight. Billy says she loves to use a nude eye pencil along the upper and lower waterline for bigger, wider-looking eyes.
Eye Makeup Tip #3: Line Your Waterline
Wearing eyeliner along your lower lashes is a surefire way to make your eyes look smaller, but if you want them to appear even smaller, there's a slight adjustment you can make. Rather than pressing the eyeliner into your lashes, apply it slightly above, along your waterline.
Tip #2: Smudge a Bit
Not all lines have to be precise. According to Arlt, a little smudging never hurts, especially if you have smaller eyes. “If you line the bottom of your eyes with a pencil right at the lash line, then smudge a little into the outer corners, it will make your eyes appear larger and wider,” he says.
Brown eyeliner will give a soft dimension to your eyes while still making them appear rich and intense. However, if you want a sharp and sleek look, black eyeliner is always an excellent choice. To make your brown eyes appear brighter, go for colored eyeliner in contrasting shades.
If you have brown eyes, blue, green, and purple liners will make them pop, though jet black can also be flattering. For hazel eyes, purple, green, gray, and taupe are all excellent choices. People with green eyes should look for burgundy, rust, and other warm, reddish tones, though black and brown can also work well.
A little white or nude eyeliner on your bottom lid can work wonders to make you look more awake and refreshed. Gently pull on your under-eye and trace the line between the lower lashes and the inside rim.
"When makeup is applied to the area known as the waterline, it can potentially block the glands known as meibomian glands that release an oily substance that contributes to the tear film, which can subsequently lead to dry eye or irritation," Garshick said.
On what shade to choose to brighten the waterline, Aharon notes that “it really depends on your skin tone, the natural color of your waterline, and the effect you're attempting.” For every day, she's partial to an off-white or nude shade that's a bit more versatile and subtle than a stark white.
What's the difference between tightlining and waterlining? Tightlining is applying eyeliner underneath the upper lash line, whereas waterlining involves applying eyeliner just above the lower lash line.