Eyeliner: felt tip, pencil, liquid or cake type (the latter two require an eyeliner brush)

Ample lighting

A decent mirror

About 3 minutes (it's not a process to rush through)

Cake: Solid when dry, cake eyeliner is activated with a wet liner brush (like some watercolor paint). Affords a lot of flexibility.

Liquid: Eyeliner that comes in a bottle like ink. Requires a separate brush. Has a rich, lush quality but can be more difficult to control

Felt tip: Sounds like what it is: an eyeliner that looks like a felt tip pen. Has the ease of a pencil but the staying power of a liquid.

Pencil: The easiest liner to use. Ranges in texture from dry and hard to soft and pastel-like. Dry pencils can pull at delicate eye tissue; very soft pencils can bleed over time.

Fix mistakes with a cotton swab dampened with non-oily eye makeup remover. Remove excess before continuing.

Instead of drawing a solid line along your lower lid, apply dots of color along the lash line. The result is less severe.

2torial #0625: Learn2 Apply Eyeliner Beyond the tired raccoon look All thumbs? Tired of drawing zig-zags on your face when all you want is a nice neat line? Applying eyeliner is much simpler than it seems. All that is required is an understanding of your materials and a few trade secrets. Cleanse skin and remove excess oils from upper and lower eyelids. Apply any other eye makeup you plan to use prior to adding liner and mascara. If you're a beginner, remove large bracelets or any other jewelry that may distract you.   Prepare your instrument Follow these guidelines so your liner will emit a thin, controlled line when drawn along a clean patch of skin (we'll use a hand here, but you can improvise). Once you've got the thickness to your liking, you can apply it to your eyes.   If you're using a cake: Moisten the eyeliner brush with clean water then draw across the liner cake. Draw a line to test the thickness and density. Add more water or liner as necessary. If you're using a liquid: Barely moisten the brush, then dip just its tip into the liner. Test the line; adjust fluid amount accordingly. If you're using a felt tip: Test liner flow by drawing very lightly on your hand. If tip is dry, give the liner a few sharp shakes to force more fluid to the tip. If the tip is too wet, draw it against your hand (or a lint-free cloth or cosmetic paper) to remove excess. If you're using a pencil: Sharpen the tip enough to produce a line to your liking. If too sharp, you can blunt the tip by drawing on a tissue.   Position the lining device Hold the lining device as you do a pen or pencil. Turn your hand so the applicator tip is parallel to your eyelid.   Stabilize your lining hand This step is critical. The anatomy of your eye often determines what will work best. Feel free to modify your approach after experimentation.   Method #1: Hold the lining device with your dominant hand. With the fingertips of your other hand, slightly stretch the eye to be lined from the outside corner. Stabilize the base of your lining hand against your other hand.   Method #2: Hold the lining device with your dominant hand, holding the arm perpendicular to the ground. Stabilize your elbow with your other hand.   Method #3: A variation of #2. Instead, stabilize the base of your lining hand just under your cheek bone. You can hold your elbow or not.     Focus The most common error is trying to focus on the whole eye while simultaneously drawing on just one small part of it. Instead, tighten your focus and look only at what you're lining. -end- Learn More!