While a matte smokey eye really does pack a punch, it can also be intimidating. The shape needs to be just right, the eyeshadow needs to be intensely pigmented and most importantly, your blending skills needs to be impeccable. Not up for the effort? Switch over to a softer, shimmery smoky eye instead. As Karisma Kapoor demonstrates in her recent look (executed by makeup artist Kritika Gill), it’s just as pretty to look at and works as a great day-to-night option. All you need is a cream eyeshadow with some sparkles in it and a good kohl pencil. For all the details, keep reading.
Get the look: Karisma Kapoor shimmery smoky eye and nude lip
- You want to start with well-moisturised skin. So let your first step be a generous application of a hydrating cream like the Kiehl’s Ultra Facial Cream. Next, prep your under eye area with an eye serum like the one in the deal-ended Estée Lauder Double Wear Instant Fix Concealer 24H Concealer + Hydra Prep. Buff a foundation of your choice all over the face and blend whatever’s left on your brush along the neck and décolleté. Use the concealer to cover up any blemishes and brighten the area under the eyes.
- For the eyes, use a shimmery black pencil liner like the Make Up For Ever Aqua XL Extra Long Lasting Waterproof Eye Pencil in D-12 Diamond Black along the lower and upper lash lines and smudge softly with a pencil brush. Then, apply a cool-toned gold cream eyeshadow all over the eyelids. Blend the cream into the dark kohl and use your finger to diffuse the colour along the eye sockets. Curl the lashes and apply two coats of your favourite mascara on the top and bottom lashes.
- With a brow pencil like the Kay Beauty Eyebrow Enhancer Pencil, fill in any gaps or sparse area in your brows. Then, comb through with a spoolie and set them in place with a brow gel like the M.A.C Brow Set in Clear.
- Set your base makeup with a finely-milled translucent powder. Using a fluffy brush, apply a peachy powder blush like the Maybelline New York Fit Me Blush in Nude Peach on the apples of your cheeks and smooth the colour outward to the top of your cheekbones. For a little bit of glow, swipe a pink-toned highlighting powder like the Benefit Cosmetics Dandelion Twinkle Powder Highlighter on the high points of your cheeks.
- Define your lip with a liner in a nude shade that’s close to the natural colour of your lips. Then, paint on a creamy nude lipstick like the Huda Beauty Power Bullet Cream Glow Sweet Nudes in Sweet Cheeks. For a little more dimension, pat a small dollop of clear lip gloss on the centre of the lip.