Wing It

lately i have been very fixated on colorful winged eyeliner, and instead of buying a thousand different colors of liquid or gel liner to get this look, i've been using my eye shadows! i already have a bathroom full of eye shadows, and this way i can wear a different color everyday if i want without spending a ton of money. now, there are a few different ways to do this, the better way being to use a liquid specifically designed for this purpose that helps the shadow to go on smoothly and stay on all day! some good options for this are products like MAC's Mixing Medium, a liquid that you add to shadows or pigments to get a liquid color, but unfortunately you can only buy this from the MAC Pro line, which you need a membership to (if interested, go here to join). for those of us who aren't MAC Pro members, i know of a very simple recipe to make a homemade version of the Mixing Medium that works just as well! check out this post from Pursebuzz for the ingredients needed and directions, and start lining! if you're not interested in making your own version, Too Faced has a product called Liquif-Eye, $17.50, which is a clear liquid housed in a little well with a felt-tipped applicator that turns any shadow into a waterproof eyeliner! and if you're me, you just use tap water for the job, LOL!

once you've secured your mixing liquid, you'll need an area to moisten your shadow and make it into a liner! a little tip i've learned is that the easiest thing to use for this is a clean contact lens case! just think about it, it has two perfect little wells where you can mix whatever you'd like, and is inexpensive and easy to clean. perfect! now choose your shadow; i personally like dark, shimmery colors, my current favorite being MAC's Deep Truth eye shadow, $14, a jewel-toned blue color. eye shadow pigments work perfectly for this job, and whether you use one from MAC or one of Bare Escentuals loose shadows, you'll need a brush to apply. my favorite for the job? MAC's 209 Eyeliner brush, $17. if you aren't using a loose shadow, my recommendation is to only moisten your brush slightly and use one small corner of your eye shadow pan to pull color from, so you aren't adding moisture to your whole pan of shadow. do a few practice strokes on your hand to make sure the color saturation is right, and line away!

i think that a bright pop of winged liner looks so modern and fresh, especially for the summer. my favorite way to wear it? without any other eye shadow to complicate things on a slightly bronzed face with sharp, groomed brows and neutral, glossy lips (might i recommend MAC's Bonus Beat lipglass from the Heatherette Collection?). you'll love this look, so don't be afraid to experiment and try it out! and when you get countless compliments, don't forget to thank the Kitty! ;D