{ Plum Pretty Sugar robe; Swarovski earrings }
I’ve been breaking out the bright eyeshadow shades a ton over the past couple of months, and this weekend – which was full of trips to the garden center for flowers, outdoor grilling, and bouncy-castle-inclusive fairs – I thought I’d go for the purple. In the past, I’ve incorporated purple shades into smoky grey or chocolate-brown looks, but it’s been more about giving the look depth than spotlighting the color.
New season, new beauty. Let’s try spotlighting.
The thing that’s tricky about purple, though, is similar to the thing that’s tricky about electric pink: pink, if not done right, can make you look sick, and purple can make you look exhausted. Or like you got into a fight.
So the key with this look is to spend some extra time on your canvas, brightening up the area around your eyes so that the effect of the purple is more “pretty” and less “I did not sleep last night.”
1. Start with a de-puffing eye cream.
2. Apply a creamy concealer under the eye and to the outer corner of the eye.
3. This step is crucial: the inner waterline of the eye can get red if you’re even the tiniest bit tired, and purple shadow will only draw more attention to that redness – so try using a nude pencil to lightly line your waterline and counteract the redness.
4. Apply a pale pink or beige shadow to the entire lid, extending up to the brow bone.
5. With your finger, apply a bright purple eyeshadow to the entire lid, blending well at the edges with a soft brush to eliminate any harsh lines.
6. Lightly blend a silver shade into the inner corner of your eyelid to brighten.
7. Curl eyelashes and apply several coats of mascara.
8. Optional: add half-strips of false eyelashes for extra drama.
Products Used Here: Orlane Absolute Skin Recovery Care Eye Contour Cream / Laura Mercier Secret Concealer / Tarte Inner Rim Eye Brightening Pencil / NARS Eyeshadow in Abyssinia (beige-y pink shade) / Urban Decay Electric Eyeshadow Palette (bright purple shade + silver shade) / Kevyn Aucoin Mascara (awesome awesome awesome) / Lola V False Eyelashes / NARS Matte Multiple in Anguilla (on lips) / Elizabeth Arden Beautiful Color Lip Gloss in Rose Creme
{ Hat Attack fedora; Samantha Wills earrings ℅ }
And lest you think that this is an exclusively nighttime look, here it is out and about during the day, en route to that bouncy castle.
