Into the blue
Blue eyeshadow has had a major redemption arc over the last few years, being reinvented as perennially chic rather than dated or cartoonish. Emily gave a ’60s-style graphic eye a modern twist by creating a shimmery gradient for added depth. “It’s winter, it’s Christmas, it’s frosted!” she laughs.
Emily recommends using a cream eyeshadow stick to lay down a base first before packing a shimmery eyeshadow on top with a brush. “With a blue eye, the key is to work with shimmer rather than a matte texture because it blends better,” says Emily.
After applying a deep blue eyeshadow generously across the lids, she softly transitioned to an icy sky blue hue, winging the colour all the way up to her brows.
Silver lining
Unsure how to do glitter makeup for a party? “With an OTT silver shimmery eye, just be unapologetic,” says Emily. “Let it be messy. You’re going to have to radically accept that there will be some imperfections. Some specks may drop down onto your cheeks, but that’s actually the fun of it.”
For this tinsel-inspired eye look, Emily recommends leaning into different textures. She first used her fingers to pat a pan-pressed silver pigment onto the lids before going in with a second layer of silver eyeshadow – this time with bigger light-reflecting flecks – and smudging it close to the roots of the lashes to create a 3D dazzling finish. The rest of the face was left relatively bare aside from a softly diffused lip to keep the look elegantly undone.
After hours
If you’re looking for a variation on the classic smokey eye, look no further than this sooty, ombré iteration featuring a trio of shades: black, grey and silver.
Rather than try to create a dense base coat with a matte black pigment, Emily recommends “picking up your metallics and your pressed shimmery eyeshadows as these textures move better and are way more forgiving.”
In terms of placement, dust from dark to light across the entire lid to create a sexy, gradient effect without any harsh lines. Ensure the sheen from the black hue (Pat McGrath Labs Mothership III: Subversive) hugs the lash line. Then, using the Beauty Bay Bright Matte 42 Colour Palette, Emily blended the Molasses shade into the crease and Platinum over her brow bone, extending the colour out into a graphic wing.
For added intensity, “pair your smokey eye with loads of black mascara on both the top and bottom lashes, and go crazy with a black kohl eyeliner in the water line,” Emily adds. The final touch: a frosted red lip created using metallic red eyeshadow (Cherryade from the Beauty Bay Bright 42 Colour Palette).
For more from Fiona Embleton, GLAMOUR’s Associate Beauty Director, follow her on @fiembleton.
Photographer: Tiffany Nicholson
Stylist: Samantha Gasmer
Prop Stylist: Elaine Winter
Hair Stylist: Nastya Miliaeva
DP: Mar Alfonso
Sound Op: Lily van Leeuwen
Photographer’s Assistant: Leanna Slupinys
Photographer’s Assistant: Grace Puffer
Production: Féte Production
Location: Ginger’s Bar