Eyeliner Looks Too Harsh? Try This INVISIBLE Liner Trick!

If you're not a fan of harsh eyeliner, especially if you have hooded eyes, try this invisible liner technique for subtle definition. I'm starting with the Nudestix Magnetic Matte Eye Color in the shade Hot Stone. This is a cool grey tan shade. I've chosen this because it's just dark enough against my skin tone to create definition without looking too harsh. So wherever your skin tone, look for a shade that sits at a similar depth against your complexion, just dark enough to add definition without looking too obvious. I'm taking this all the way along the upper lash line and for now I want it to be just visible. Don't worry if it looks a little more obvious at this stage because we're going to knock it back. So take a cotton bud and softly blend over the liner to diffuse the edges. It's important that we still keep some definition at the root of the eyelashes so don't blend it away completely. The idea is for the liner to be barely there rather than obviously sitting on top of the eye. And if you do have hooded eyes, keep this nice and close to the root of those eyelashes because we don't want to lose any unnecessary lid space. So I've applied a light layer first, blended that out and then I've gone back in with a little bit more before blending again. Always start with the lightest coat because you really don't know how much definition you're going to be left with until you've blended it. You might find you need to build it up slightly, especially because we're going over this with a flesh toned eyeshadow. If the liner is barely there at this stage, we'll lose that definition completely once the shadow goes on. I'm going over the top with the shade Fair from the I Need a Nude palette by Natasha Denona. This is a matte nude shade that works really well with my skin tone and I'm using it to softly mute the eyeliner so it almost looks as though the definition is sitting underneath the skin rather than on top of it. That gives us that invisible effect while still keeping that depth right at the root of the eyelashes. So for your own eye, choose a matte shade that either matches your skin tone or sits around one shade lighter. Going slightly lighter can actually help the visible lid space look a little bigger which is especially useful if you have hooded eyes. This is almost like a no makeup makeup for eyeliner. It's for those days when you really only want to wear mascara but you still want that little bit of extra definition right at the roots of the eyelashes without it looking like you're actually wearing eyeliner. Now we're doing the same along our lower lash line. I'm using the point of the eyeliner here so that I can keep that location really precise and much finer than the line that we created on our upper lash line. So keep this as close to the root of the eyelashes as possible and only take it around two thirds of the way across. That little bit of definition through the outer part of the lower lash line helps to visually widen the eye without making it look heavy or closed in. It just makes it look slightly more rounded as well. Then once again take your pointed cotton bud and softly blend over that liner. Try not to pull the colour down too far because we really want to keep that definition concentrated right at the root of your natural lashes. Think of it as softening that line rather than smoking it out. Then use your fingertip with a small amount of that same nude eyeshadow and gently press it over the top. This is a great trick if you have hooded eyes because we want to maximise that sense of openness as much as possible. So take a nude eyeliner through the waterline. This helps to brighten this area and creates a little more contrast against that subtle definition that we've added at the root of the eyelashes. With a really natural belly there eye look we want to maximise that sense of openness so that the eyes still look bright and more awake. Curling the lashes is one of the easiest ways to do that but once we lift them it can expose more of that upper waterline and the roots of the eyelashes. So this is a great opportunity to enhance our invisible liner even further. I'm taking a darker brown eyeliner. This one is the Lisa Eldridge Seamless Glide Eye Pencil in Ground Coffee and I'm working it right between the root of the upper lashes. You won't really see this from above the lid but it adds extra depth right at the base of the eyelashes which makes them look naturally thicker and fuller. You may even find that you need less mascara because we've already created that intensity at the root. Next up we have mascara. Now a little disclaimer, mine is definitely coming towards the end of its life so it's getting slightly drier. And my lashes are also just starting to go through one of those shedding phases. I think it's because it's the end of summer. So this is definitely not going to do my lashes any favours today. But that's real life and I'm keeping it real with you that not every single mascara application is going to be perfect even for me. Just reach for a mascara that you know that works well for your own eyelashes because the important part here is the definition we've already created right at the root. So in case you're wondering, this is the Milk Makeup Kush High Roll Tubing Mascara. I've been using it for a few weeks now and like I said it's just starting to get a little drier. Because it's a tubing formula I'm finding it's creating those tiny bitty pieces through my lashes which I'm not particularly a fan of. But I'm not going to waste a perfectly usable mascara just because it's not giving me the best application today. So this is the finished result just with the mascara. You can see we've created that invisible liner effect where there's still definition right at the root of the lashes but there's no obvious dark line sitting across the lid. So the eyes look more defined, the lashes look fuller at the base but we haven't overwhelmed the eye or taken up any of that valuable lid space. This is also a great technique if you wear cluster lashes, individual lashes or strip lashes because it helps to disguise the lash band when you're applying them on top. You still get that extra depth and definition at the base of the eyelashes but without an obvious line where the eyeliner starts and finishes. So I'm applying five cluster lashes along the top lash line so you can see how this looks with a little extra lash enhancement. You get that fuller more defined effect at the root without needing to add harsh liner over the top. It's one of those makeup details where you can't quite work out why the eye looks so good because you can't actually see the eyeliner. You just see that soft polished definition. I really hope you found this tutorial helpful, if you did please give it a thumbs up. Don't forget everything I've used in today's tutorial will be listed and linked in the description bar so you can shop directly from the video. Please share this with anyone that you think would enjoy a more subtle, no makeup makeup approach to eyeliner. You can also check out my previous problem solving makeup tutorials and if you're looking to build confidence with your makeup, you're in the right place. Consider hitting that subscribe button because we'd love to have you in our community. I upload a long form tutorial every Sunday plus a short one during the week so make sure you hit that notification bell so you don't miss the next one. Thank you so much for spending a little of your day with me and I will see you again in the week.