Your Ultimate Guide to the Coolest Winter Eye Makeup
Winter blues? Never heard of her. Unless, of course, you're talking about the frosty makeup hues we can't get enough of this time of year.
The eye makeup looks we're about to show you remind us of everything we love about the wintertime, from shimmery shades that glimmer like the first snowfall to hazy smoky eye looks that bring the warmth of a beach escape. So whether you're dreading the dip in temperature or can't wait for an excuse to spend the day sipping cocoa in your coziest fuzzy socks, you can count on these winter eye makeup looks to inspire you the whole season long.
Read on for the best makeup trends to try this winter, plus makeup tips, tricks, and techniques for getting the look at home.
Look #1: Seeing Sparks
Why We Love It: Give your basic smoky eye a frosty twist by layering glitter over matte eyeshadow. This festive look pairs silver and champagne shades for a vibe that's equal parts grungey and glam.
Recreate It: Start by building up a smoky eye as you usually would, using cool-toned shadows in a matte or shimmer finish (depending on how much drama you're going for). MORPHE's 35O Nature GLOW Artistry Palette has all the grey-brown taupes and subdued golds you need for this look. From there, top off your lid and crease with a matching gunmetal glitter, like ILLAMASQUA's Illamasqua Jewel Vinyl in Wizzard. Finish with a few generous coats of mascara.
Look #2: Always Wired
Why We Love It: This inverted eye makeup look is a unique twist on a classic smoky eye, but we especially love it on days when we have dark circles or under-eye puffiness. There's no better way to cover up a sleepless night than with glitter, right?
Recreate It: Start by applying concealer under your eyes to make the colors pop more. Next, swipe a warm honey-colored bronzer or highlighter all over your upper lid and blend it into your crease. Highlight the inner corners of your eyes with a brighter shade, like MEECH AND MIA's Gold eyeshadow, and gently blend this shadow out across your lower eyelid. Finally, go over it with COLOURED RAINE's Connect Liquid Glitter Topper. This formula uses a mix of large and small gold and multicolored flecks of glitter that bounce the light across your face.
Look #3: Milky Way
Why We Love It: Sure, it's kind of a drag when the sun starts to set at 4 p.m., but there's nothing quite like watching it dip below the horizon as the city lights splash out across a warm navy sky. This look captures that very feeling of stepping out at dusk in the wintertime.
Recreate It: Layering colors and finishes are the keys to keeping monochrome makeup from looking flat. Pack a metallic navy shade like TARTE COSMETICS' Chrome Paint Shadow Pot in Steel the Show into your lids and follow it with a truer blue. KALEIDO COSMETICS' Diamond Foils in Deep Blue gives you that rich hue and shimmer seen here. You can stop here, or grab a shimmery rust-colored eyeshadow and chunky glitter to create the nebula effect in your outer corners.
Look #4: St. Valentine
Why We Love It: This is a softer, dreamier version of the "Ornamental Eyes" look from our holiday makeup guide. It's a rosy pink eye makeup look that's a perfect reminder of spring when it's cold, grey, and drab outside.
Recreate It: You need all the pinks. Start by blending a cool-toned, frosty base color, like OFRA COSMETICS' Eyeshadow in Pink Petal, all across your upper and lower eyelids and crease. Next, go over just your eyelid with a warm, rich magenta like MEECH AND MIA's loose eyeshadow in Pink. Mellow out your crease with OFRA COSMETICS' Eyeshadow in Crazy Pink, then gently pat some iridescent powder into the center of your upper eyelid with your fingertip. Finish with a healthy dose of glitter all over.
Look #5: Vacay Vibes
Why We Love It: Dreaming of a warm-weather getaway? Slip into your own personal lagoon with this fun and funky aquamarine eye look.
Recreate It: We're going to layer different finishes from the same eyeshadow palette to give this look some depth and movement. Using NOMAD COSMETICS' Lake Como Palette, create a matte shadow base with "Aquarama" before dusting on one of the shimmery shades. The "Bella Figura" shade looks beautiful on medium to deep complexions, and "Spezatto" is perfect for fair to light skin tones.
Look #6: Northern Lights
Why We Love It: It's living proof that all-over glitter is always the right answer. Not into a dramatic eye look? Tone it down by applying glitter just in the inner corner of your eye and the very center of your eyelids.
Recreate It: Carve out your crease with a warm-toned eyeshadow palette, then blend it out towards the end of your eyebrow for a smoky wing. Pat a glitter eyeshadow like PIXI BY PETRA's Liquid Fairy Lights in Crystalline all over your eye socket from your lash line up to your brow. Then, go in with a slightly different shimmery shade–like SunRay from the same brand–in the inner corner of your eye. Finish by brushing your eyebrows up and outward, using a gel to hold them in place if you'd like.
Look #7: Metallic Maven
Why We Love It: Channel your inner rockstar with this intense yet wearable smoky eye. It's casual enough to wear to your office holiday party, but glamorous enough for après ski drinks or a night on the town.
Recreate It: Sweep a glimmery base layer like ILLAMASQUA's Broken Gel in Silver all over your eyelids and crease. Let it set before packing on a dark grey eyeshadow, like MARSK Earl Grey, all over your lid. Finish by rimming your waterline with a waterproof kohl eyeliner, like SMASHBOX COSMETICS Always Sharp Waterproof Kohl Liner, for a defined eye look that won't smudge or fade.
Want in on all the Glam Bag fun? Take the beauty quiz now to get started. And don’t forget to check us out on Instagram and Twitter @IPSY.