Eye makeup is not a daunting task, and you need not devote hours to getting it right. Here are 14 professional eye makeup tips and tricks for you to try.

Preparation

1. Before you start applying any kind of makeup on your eyes, wrap an ice cube in a clean, cotton cloth and rub it gently over and beneath your eyes for a couple of minutes. This will reduce puffiness, if any, on your eyes.
2. It is ideal to apply eye makeup with the help of natural light. If that is not possible, make sure to check your makeup under different lights to get it right.
3. Choose one color to wear on your entire face, for your eyes, cheeks, and lips. Coordinate, or better still, match the shade of your eyeshadow, the blush, and your lipstick to give a dignified, polished look.

Mascara and Eyelashes

1. When you apply mascara, make sure you start from the roots of your lashes. This helps as it makes your lashes look longer.
2. To naturally curl your lashes, push them upwards gently with the tips of your fingers before the mascara dries out.
3. When applying mascara to your lower lashes, hold the mascara stick vertically and patiently run it across the entire length of your lashes. This will make the application smooth and prevent stringy looking lashes.
4. When using fake eyelashes do not use the strip lashes. Though easy to put on, they tend to appear exaggerated or unnatural, and clumpy sometimes. Use individual fake eyelashes that give your eyes a more natural look. And, the advantage is you can use as many, or as less as you need.
5. To make your eyes look bigger, or to open them out, wear black mascara on the top and a brown or fainter shade in the lower part.
6. Similarly, you can use a dark shade of eyeliner on the top of your eyes, and white or a nude shade of eye pencil on your waterline to make your eyes appear wider.

Eyebrows and Eyeliner

1. Instead of using a pencil to shape your eyebrows, use an old, cleaned mascara brush to gently brush your eyebrows. When brushing, start from the tail end first to ruffle the hair on your brows, then comb in the right direction, from your nose outwards, to make it look thick and neat.
2. When you feel like wearing a thick eyeliner, simply hold your eyeliner pencil over a candle flame for a second or two. Allow the tip cool down, then see how easy it is to simply slide the pencil over your lids to get a dark, intense effect.

Eyeshadow

1. To brighten up your eyes, use a shimmery eyeshadow that is one shade darker than your skin tone. Apply the same shade in the inner corner of your eyes and under your outer brow line to make your eyes appear brighter.
2. To make your eyeshadow color pop out, first, spread a coat of white eyeshadow all over your lids. Then layer it on top with the color of your choice. You will see how deep and vivid the shade appears with this trick.
3. To get a smoky look with your eyeshadow, apply a few lines at the outer tip of your eyelids. Then gently blend it inwards with a fluffy brush.