How To Pull Off Blue Eye Shadow Looks

Blue eye shadow has a bad reputation for being garish and unattractive. Wearing too much at once or picking the wrong shade for your skin, eyes and hair can cause your blue shadow to stand out far more than you intended. However, when you choose the correct products and apply them carefully, this color can actually produce extremely striking results. Here’s what you need to know about buying the best blue eye shadows and wearing them with style.

The Best Blue Eye Shadows and How to Wear Them

Eye Shadow Quality

Inexpensive drugstore brand shadows aren’t likely to produce elegant results. They tend to cake and may be difficult to apply evenly. Consider higher quality brands that use excellent quality ingredients and relatively few fillers. They have the staying power to keep your eyes looking their best even after a long evening out, but they can be applied subtly to avoid an overdone look. Here are some excellent choices:

• Sephora Collection “My Favorite Jeans”
• Bare Escentuals Bare Minerals “Azure”
• Laura Mercier “Deep Night”
• Clinique Colour Surge Stay Matte “Dark Denim”
• Kat Von D True Romance Pigments “Johnette”

You can find all of these at Sephora.

Never let your cosmetics get too old. Even high quality products can lose their advantages after their expiration date. They can also harbor bacteria that can irritate your eyes or cause an infection. Eye shadow has a shelf life of about three years. If you’ve had a shadow longer than that, it’s time to replace it.

Matching Your Complexion

Not everyone can wear blue eye shadow gracefully. On some people, the brilliance of this color can conflict with their natural skin, eye and hair colors, resulting in a garish look. Blue shadows often look best on people who have very fair skin without too much redness, especially those with dark or very light hair and gray or brown eyes. This shadow color can also complement very dark skin and hair.

This doesn’t mean that people with differing complexions can’t wear blue shadow, but it does mean that you should choose your shadow carefully if you’re a blonde with blue eyes or if you have olive skin and dark hair. Never match your blue shadow exactly to your eyes, since the shadow will tend to be more noticeable than your eye color. The same goes for matching eye shadow to your clothing. Stick to duller blues or tones with slightly green or purple tints if you have green or brown eyes, especially if your skin is also relatively dark.

Applying Blue Shadow

Blue is one of the trickiest types of eye shadow to apply correctly. Never smear it evenly all over your lid, as this can look clownish or childish. Instead, blend blue eye shadow carefully. Place the darkest blue closest to the lashes, using bright or light colors across the eyelid and as you approach the brow bone. Blend your eye shadow thoroughly with a professional-grade brush, rather than the sponge applicators included with most cosmetics.

Always use at least two different shades of blue. The lightest color should cover the eye area and some of the brow bone. Reserve your darker tone for accents along the eyelid and in the crease of the eye. If you wish to use eyeliner, choose a dark blue rather than black. It will harmonize better with your eye shadow and prevent an overly harsh look. Keep the rest of your look relatively light to avoid overwhelming your features with very bold makeup.

Shop for Eye Makeup at Sephora