Like, no joke, I think I must be the slowest person on this earth when it comes to blending eyeshadow, because you know those really super blended eye makeup looks? — they take forever. Forever! — and by “forever” I mean between one and three hours from start to finish, especially if I do them intending to take pictures.
In other words, it takes freakin’ work, homegirl!
Sometimes I’m OK with that and all the blending and gradients, and I think it’s worth all the effort, but sometimes I’m not. Sometimes I just wanna throw a little makeup on my eyes and get on with my life already.
When that happens, especially when I also want to take pics and still want to look polished and not like I’m deliberately avoiding blending, I grab two or more similar eyeshadows in the same, or almost the same, color family, like two browns (one slightly darker than the other) or two close shades of almost the same intensity, like the warm brown I’m wearing in my crease in the top pic with a soft gold on my lids.
It’s kind of obvious, but sometimes I still forget that it’s just A LOT easier to seamlessly blend similar colors (like two similar browns) than it is to blend highly contrasting colors (like black and white) on completely opposite ends of the spectrum, so I can still create a buffed-out, blended eye look in a lot less time.
Next time you’re having a lazy makeup moment but still want to wear something blended with more than one eyeshadow, give it a try. Just look for two or more similar eyeshadow shades in your collection.
Oh! — and please share any good similar eyeshadow color combo ideas in the comments. I’m always looking for ideas, and if you want, please also mention your skin tone. That way even if they aren’t great colors for me, they can help someone else. I think that would be nice.
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
P.S. Totally unrelated to makeup, but this is MBB, so when has that ever stopped me? LOL! 🙂 Last weekend we rented The Water Diviner on iTunes. It’s a historical drama starring Russell Crowe (he also directed it) that takes place just after World War I. Russell plays an Australian farmer who heads to Turkey looking for his three sons who went off to fight in the war.
It’s not exactly groundbreaking cinema, but it’s totally watchable and (I don’t think this ruins it) has a sweet ending. If you ever just want to throw something up on the TV that you can watch with your parents or kids up in the mix and not terribly upset anyone, I think it’s a good option.
Also, this song that plays during the credits at the end of the movie has been stuck in my head for days. It’s called Love Was My Alibi.
Isn’t this pretty? I’ve been listening to it right before I go to sleep at night, and again first thing in the morning (I believe it was co-written by Russell Crowe).
What kind of eyeshadow brush do you use for your blending?
Hi Mary Kate,
I use either a tapered fluffy brush or a domed eyeshadow brush. A lot of brands make them! Here are a few that I use from MAC.
Tapered fluffy brush — MAC 224
Domed eyeshadow brush — MAC 217
HTH, and let me know if you have any more questions about blending. Happy to help!
Whoa.. You look gorgeous in the pic Karen!
Thank you Nikki! I hope this tip helped a little. 🙂
The color combination you used on your eyes and cheeks for this look is so beautiful! And wow, multiple hours to blend an eyeshadow look is dedication! I do like using my Becca Ombre Rouges palette for that very reason- the colors work well together so you can’t really go wrong picking out 2 or 3 and blending them together. I was traveling recently and I brought an UD duo I got which included half baked and twice baked (gold and bronze). Those two colors work really well together as well I think!
Another duo combination I like is NARS Habanera, although those two colors don’t seem to work together at first glance (metallic mint and sparkly plum). They somehow do, and I get a lot of compliments when I wear that duo. 🙂 Oh and I’m fair, for reference.
Yep, staying in the same color range definitely helps make thing a lot easier and quicker!
I’ve always liked Russell Crowe. I think he’s outstanding in LA Confidential (one of my favorite movies of all time) and have liked him, as an actor, ever since. 🙂
I think the only eye colors I use that are NOT shades of brown/shades of pink are when I combine them (some brown, pink and usually light version of either for the inner corners). And I know you’ve mentioned it before but I love that you remind me that your eye looks take work. They’re always beautiful and I forget they don’t just appear in 2 minutes.
I like to stick to same colour range. Makes life easier. I love the combination that you have on your eyes! I usually stick to neutrals (a mix of cool and warm eyeshadows) they are the safest bet! 🙂
I am even lazier now since I became a mom ? not that I should be using that as an excuse… usually when I am in a hurry I just put a single color on my crease and lid (go figure! I told you I am lazy…) and then just highlight the brow corner and the he inner corner of the eye. That just seems to work somehow. Also cz I am always wearing kohl liner so that’s it for my eyes. I am fair too.
I agree, staying in the same color family really helps with blending. It works with any colors, too.
Wow..i love the eyeshadows that you used..Thanks for the great tip for newbies like moi!!..
i’ve always been a lipstick and eyeliner gal..after i started reading beauty blogs (from one year) i’ve been trying to blend eyeshadows once in a while but they rarely work out for me..will try this for sure.. 🙂
It looks good on you.