Smokey Brown Eye look - Tutorial & Photos

areidz — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 18:14:37 -0700

I've been doing this eye look for a few weeks now fairly often, so I thought I would share with you how I created this look. Since my last blogs on makeup I have had a eye swelling problem caused by allergies that has made it so that my eyes don't look as nice anymore. I have a lot more lines and the skin is very stretched. Keep that in mind when you think about how this would look on you. Also, the photos of the products are a bit blurry. I'm having some problems with shutter speed on my camera. Sorry! If you have any questions on application technique or why I did what I did, please feel free to ask!

Here's the finished look:

All done!

Here's me with a clean face:
Before MU and Hair

Big Difference!

I'm going to focus on the eye in the following pictures/instructions. This is my first step-by-step "how to".

Here are the products I used on my face prior to starting with eye makeup:

Starting from the bottom left:
Laura Mercier (LM) Oil Free Foundation Primer
LM Oil-Free Tinted Moisturizer SPF 20 in Nude
LM Oil-Free Tinted Moisturizer SPF 20 in Fawn
LM Oil-Free Illuminating Tinted Moisturizer SPF 20 in Natural Radiance
LM Wedge Sponge
LM Powder Brush
LM Mineral Makeup SPF 15 in Natural Beige – LM Powder Brush

I start by mixing two dollops of Nude TM, one dollop of Fawn TM and one dollop of Natural Radiance ITM. I mix them well at my fingertips between both hands. Then I apply the products with both hands starting at my forehead working out, then my nose working out, a small bit at my upper lip and then finishing starting at my chin working out. I smooth out the foundation until things are fairly even, but not too much at the edges. I then take my wedge and work the product into the skin and into the hair and jaw lines. This gives a very even texture. I do not put the foundation on my eyelids as I use an eyelid primer later. After this, I add a very small amount of MM to the lid and swirl and tap with a powder brush as I plan to only use a little over the top of the TM. If I were to only use the MM I would have used a Kabuki brush. Anyway, this gives a more matte look in a very slight way. The illumination still shines right through but this keeps me from looking oily. The only reason for this step is that I would get shiny in the T-zone otherwise.

I continue my routine by next using concealers, brow products, then an cream eye shadow base.

This time we'll start with products from L-R including which brush used:
LM Secret Camouflage 3 (for hiding scars/acne) - LM Secret Camouflage Brush
LM Secret Concealer 3 (under eye concealer) - BE Concealer Brush
LM Secret Brightening Powder (setting under eye concealer) - LM Camouflage Powder Brush
LM Brow Powder Duo in Deep Blonde (I use the dark one) - LM Brow Brush
LM Brow Gel
MAC Brow Pencil in Lingering

I first use Secret Camouflage to conceal acne scars and current acne spots. I also have a bit of hyper-pigmentation which is also covered using this product. I even use it on scars that I have on my neck and it still covers naturally. Always use concealers after foundation, even when using MM. I then use the Secret Concealer under my eyes. I use it from the inner corner all the way across because I have dark under eye circles all the way across and you can tell otherwise. Most people, if they even need concealer, should only use it in the inner corner and inner 1/3 under the eye. I then apply a small bit of Secret Brightening Powder to my brush from what is left in the lid. One doesn't need very much. Pat the product onto the concealer and below the entire eye. I do however apply two layers over the concealer because I like how it really brightens the area. I don't recommend putting the brush directly into the powder.

Next I do my brows. Since I have fairly thick brows I tweeze constantly! I always do this prior to starting to work on my face though unless I forget. It's best done after a bath, shower or facial steam. I use the Brow Brush to apply a small amount of the Brow Powder starting with the innermost part working out. I dip the brush about three times during the process to do my full brow. I then use the MAC Brow Pencil to extend the brow a bit and trace the bottom edge of the brow for a more defined look. I use a small amount of Brow Gel to set the brows in place.

Next I start working on my eyes. Here are two pictures showing what I use. I've numbered the shadow colors so that you know which color I'm referring to during application.:

Midnight Sun Trio numbered

Products from L-R including brushes
LM Eye Basics (eye shadow primer) in Buff - LM Crème Eye Colour Brush
LM Midnight Sun Trio (eye shadow) - LM: All Over Eye Colour Brush, Eye Colour Brush, Pony Tail Brush
LM Chestnut Caviar Eye Liner - LM Smokey Eye Brush
Smashbox No. 10 Brush for blending
LM Eye Liner in Black Ebony - LM Flat Eye Liner Brush
Yves Saint Laurent Volume Effet Faux Cils Mascara in No. 1 (Black)

Here's where it gets a bit trickier. I'm posting photos step by step of the eye.

Prepped

I applied a small amount of Eye Basics to the entire eyelid, including the inner corner. As you can see, it has a slight shimmer (not all of LM Eye Basics do) and it almost matches my skin exactly. I prefer to use Eye Basics over UDPP because I have dark coloring above my eyes since my eye mishap and this gives me a nice clean palette to start with. The brush gives great control so that you don’t cover your brows with the color and also helps to use less product than if you had used the applicator.

Shadows One and Two

In this photo I have applied Shade 1 using the All Over Eye Colour Brush. I even applied it to the inner corner of the eye. This has a matte finish. I then used the Eye Colour Brush with Shade 2 all over the eye starting from the beginning of my eye, all over the ball and up past the crease just underneath the brow bone. We still want the brown bone highlighted by the first shade, as well as the inner corner of the eye. Shade 2 has a sateen finish.

I then applied Shade 3 to the outer corner of my eye (staying on the ball itself) with the Pony Tail Brush. I then worked it up into the crease and above very slightly about half way across the ball of the eye. This gives depth.

You can see better in this picture of where I actually placed Shade 3.

I then used the Chestnut Caviar Eye Liner on my lower part of my lid. I make sure to keep the product line at the exact place where my eye creases. Start with the inner corner and work your way out. It’s a bit on the more difficult side to use the brush rather than a finger, but it’s more precise.

Next I took my Smashbox No. 10 brush and dipped it back into Shade 3 (just a touch). I rubbed this back and forth in the crease blending it with the Caviar to make a more even move in depth of color up through the eyelid. This is what makes the smokiness. You want the darkest part of the color to be at the outer edge so I added more Caviar. The progression from really dark to very light heading up from the lash line is what defines a smokey eye.

I then applied the Black Ebony Eye Liner using the Flat Liner Brush. I didn’t want to do a full smudge so I worked it into the lash line itself and in the waterline. This type of eye liner needs to be used wet for optimum depth of color. I used a small spray bottle of spring water to wet the brush. I then brushed a bit of product out of the container and placed it on the back of my hand. There I was able to add more water to get the right consistency. This is key in using this particular liner. I used one coat of YSL’s Faux Cills mascara which puts on a Lot of product. Unfortunately, it has been a couple of months since I’ve purchased the mascara so there is some clumpiness. This is not normal for this mascara. As you can see, it really makes the eyes pop.

Here you can see that I did both eyes

Dusk, up close

Products from L-R:
LM Cheek Colour in Crushed Hazelnut – MAC 122 Blush Brush
LM Lipstick in Dusk – LM Lip Brush
LM Lip Liner in Hazelnut Brown

I applied the blush to the apples of my cheeks and extended in a lazy J formation towards my hairline. It’s a fairly sheer color on me but this fall I’m not going for the bronzed look (obviously). I then applied the lip liner and lipstick. The liner is a bit more brown than the actual lipstick. The lipstick is actually more brown than seen in this picture and looks even more that way on me because of my skin’s undertones. Pinks always look browner on me.

So, there you go! Most of these products were introduced in the summer as part of Laura Mercier's L'Heure Magique Collection. Questions and comments are very welcome! Thanks!

Beauty Product Junkies

Smokey Brown Eye look - Tutorial & Photos