I’ve already admitted to my embarrassing secret of not knowing how to apply eyeshadow. But even though I’ve learned some makeup artist’s tricks for doing so, I still stare with my mouth agape when I’m confronted with an eyeshadow palette that boasts a selection of colors. Because: where does one begin?
The situation is similar to being a child in a candy store—there are so many options, which makes it nearly impossible to know what to choose. In eyeshadow’s case, it’s certainly nice to look at a tray with a dazzling array of hues to decorate your lids—but knowing which shades to use is an entirely different story.
Well, it was confounding until I met with Annie Lawless, wellness and beauty pro and founder of her eponymous cosmetics line (Lawless will be launching an eyeshadow palette on December 1, FYI), who revealed a super easy secret with me about finding the perfect color to enhance your eyes. Turns out it’s all about opposites.
“You just have to look on a color wheel at the colors that are the opposite of your eye color,” she reveals. “It provides the most contrast to your eye and really enhances them.”
Don’t have a color wheel handy? (I mean, same.) Lawless has some pro tips: “Brown eyes are amazing with berries and purples,” she says. “Blue and green eyes look amazing with anything that has a reddish, orangey, or terra cotta undertone. Hazel eyes can be flux but they do well with blue eyeshadow.”
For one bold example, the exact opposite of blue is orange—so Lawless says that your eyes will look ultra blue if you’re wearing orange eyeshadow. “Or if you have gold flecks in your eyes, like if you have brown eyes, they look good with a mustardy-camel shade. It helps pull out the gold in your eyes.”
When all else fails, go with a classic. “I love anything in baby puke-genre brown,” she jokes (“That’s just what I call it.”). “It’s so flattering like a camel trench coat. It’s very universal.” And universal is something I can handle.
For the rest of your look, here are natural red lipsticks that perform, and these are the best natural highlighters for a radiant glow.
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