How to Create a Cat Eye Look for Evening

Kim Kardashian wears a dramatic cat-eye look for an evening out.

Dramatic and mysterious, winged cat-eye liner has been favored by fashion icons from Marilyn Monroe to Angelina Jolie. The look is a graphic and high-impact choice for evening events, but perfecting the technique requires precision and practice. Allow yourself plenty of time when applying cat-eye makeup, and consider doing a trial run of your makeup several times before your party or social event. Black, gray and silver shadows create a smoky look, but any trio of colors can create a cat-eye evening look. Shades with shimmer give an evening look extra sparkle.

Things You'll Need

• Liquid eyeliner
• Pencil eyeliner that matches liquid eyeliner
• Base eyeshadow in color that matches your skin
• Light, medium, dark eyeshadow in similar tones
• Highlight eyeshadow in pale gold, silver or copper
• Eyelash curler
• Mascara
• Cotton swabs
• Concealer
• Medium fluffy eyeshadow brush
• Small fluffy eyeshadow brush
• Small flat eyeshadow brush

Instructions

1. Apply the base eyeshadow shade over the entire eyelid area with a medium-sized, fluffy eyeshadow brush. Make sure to blend the shadow evenly, and cover the area under the brow bone as well. This absorbs any oils on the eyelid that might shorten the durability of your look, and it evens out the tone of your eyelid.

2. Brush the lightest eyeshadow shade over the eyelid with the same medium fluffy brush. Follow by tracing the lash line, both upper and lower, with a small flat brush dipped into the medium eyeshadow. Blend the medium shadow into the crease of your eyelid, which is the fold where the lid retracts over the eye, with the same brush.

3. Dip the medium fluffy brush into the darkest eyeshadow shade and blend the color deeply and evenly into the crease. Use cotton swabs to whisk away any stray eyeshadow that spills onto the skin under the eyes.

4. Take the small fluffy brush and sweep the highlighting eyeshadow across the brow bone. Those with yellow undertones to their skin should use pale gold, while pink undertones match naturally with silver. Deeper skin tones may want to use a light to medium copper. Dab the highlighting shade at the inner corner of the eyes closest to the nose.

5. Use your index finger to pull your eyelid taut, drawing the corner of your lid toward your temple. Starting from the inner corner of your eyelid, closest to your nose, slowly draw a thin line of liquid liner along the lash line. The line should get thicker as it approaches the edge of the eyelid. Paint the line to the outer corner of the eyelid, then hold the lid for several seconds to allow the liner to dry. Release the lid, then flick the liner upward at a 45 degree angle toward the temple.

6. Line the lower lashes with a pencil liner that matches the liquid liner shade, joining the end of the lower liner to the upper eyelid at the outer corners. Curl your eyelashes and apply several coats of mascara.

Tips & Warnings

• For a softer, smoky cat eye, use eyeshadow instead of liquid liner. Dip a flat, angled brush in water or eye-drop solution, then press the damp tip of the brush in black eyeshadow. Coat thoroughly then draw the brush across the eyelids as you would an eyeliner pen.

• Sketch the liquid liner line with a light-colored eyeliner pencil before you apply liquid liner. You will be able to check your work before committing to liquid liner, and any mistakes will be easy to spot and fix.

• Avoid blue eyeshadow tones for this look, as they will make most skin colors look fatigued or bruised.

References

• "Glamour Magazine"; Winged-Out Eyeliner That Doesn't Look Wonky - You Can Do It; Petra Guglielmetti; April 2009
• "Marie Claire Magazine"; Get the Celebrity Look - Smoky Eyes; April 2011
• Bella Sugar; 5 Tricks for Getting Gorgeous Winged Eyeliner; Angela Levin; August 2010
• YouTube; Makeup Tutorial for Dramatic Evening Cat Eye; February 2009