Hooded Eye Makeup: Everything You Need to Know

meet the expert

Keri Blair is the senior national makeup artist for MAC Cosmetics.
Nydia Figueroa is a celebrity makeup artist in New York City.

Techniques for Hooded Eyes

"It's all about how you enhance your natural features," says Blair, who recommends applying a tight liner to the lashline along with using a volumizing mascara, "When using techniques for a hooded eye shape, don't neglect your eyebrows as they play a crucial role in balancing your face and you can apply a lighter shadow shade than your natural skin tone on your lids as a base." It's the tiny details that can make a big impact, explained Blair, "You'll want to play up your eyes and make minor adjustments, such as applying a highlight to the inner corners to brighten, and balance your makeup look with a beautiful bright lip color." Creating thin liner is fairly straightforward, you can apply a long-wearing eyeliner with an angled liner brush for precision.

Figueroa explained how to create some contrast for hooded eyes when wanting to wear a dressier look, "The best technique I would recommend is focusing on placing a slightly deeper shade of shadow on the lid for contrast. With hooded eyes, you want to give the illusion that the hooded part of your eye is slightly pushed back so it appears more open. Since darker eyeshadow shades don't reflect light as much as lighter ones, this is a technique that can help accentuate when creating more dramatic looks." When utilizing deeper shadow shades, take a fluffy eyeshadow brush and lightly apply the shadow from the center of the eye outward, blending for a while until you create a soft, smoky look that gives the illusion of more lid space.

Tips for Enhancing Hooded Eyes

To help give eyes a more open appearance, Blair recommends, "Use an eyeshadow shade 1-2 shades lighter than your skin tone on the lid of the eye, first. This will give the look of a more open shape. When adding a deeper shade of shadow, use a small tapered brush into the outer crease of the eye", as the small point of the brush will help blend with more precision.

If you're just learning how to blend, that's ok, Blair says, "When applying the deeper shadow do it with your eyes open-looking into the mirror. This ensures you will see the crease color when your eyes are open! If you apply and blend when your eye is closed you may not see the crease color when you open your eye, resulting in a more closed shape." It's all about the motion, Blair touts that "small, circular, tornado-like motions when applying and blending your crease color helps blur and blend everything more seamlessly." Don't forget to apply eyeshadow primer to the lids, to help prevent shadow from creasing and smudging.

You can take it slow until you get comfortable with your application techniques. Figueroa mentioned, "For hooded eyes, it's all about the placement of shadow. I also find that matte eyeshadows and eyeliners work best on those with hooded eyes because it doesn't reflect as much light as a shimmer or frost. You can still apply shimmer in the inner corners to brighten and open up the eye area."

Mistakes to Avoid

Blair suggests avoiding going too dark right away with shadow colors: "One challenge is going too dark on the lid and outer corners. You want to add contrast but in a less extreme way. Think mid-tones for colors that aren't as dark as espresso brown or black."
The tools also make a big difference: "Only use brushes or tools that fit well for your eye shape," says Figueroa. "Avoid using brushes that are too large or stiff and make your application process more difficult."
Pay attention to the finish of your shadows and the texture of your skin: If matte shadow will be more flattering with your skin, avoid highly shimmering shadows that can enhance fine lines around the eye area.
Don't skip curling your lashes: This will make a big impact and it only takes a few seconds.

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Fluttery Lashes

Lucy Liu wears a natural makeup look with visible lash extensions and light pink lipstick — Getty Images

This look on Lucy Lui emphasizes how lashes can make a big impact with a hooded eye shape, whether they are faux or natural. Adding false lashes is a great way to open up your eyes and add some flair. Figueroa touts Ardell Beauty's Seamless Underlash Extension Wispies ($20) as her favorite. They are applied under the lashes so you don't see a lash band and look natural." An important callout for those with hooded eye shapes, the more natural the lashes look, the better.

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Thick Liner

Rashida Jones wears prominent black eyeliner with lashes and bold brows — Getty Images

This look on Rashida Jones proves that eyeliner makes the right statement for hooded eyes, bringing some drama without being overdone. The liquid liner is thicker and extends out into a slight wing shape along with a few coats of mascara.

When applying liner to resemble this particular look, it's important to allow it to fully dry with your lids tilted downward so it doesn't transfer immediately to your skin. Give each eye at least 20 seconds after liner application to dry completely.

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Thin Liner

Jennifer Lawrence wears a black tightline on her eyes and bold red lip — Getty Images

Black, thin tight liner applied to the top lash line enhances hooded eyes and is a small detail that adds great impact—truly perfect for any occasion. Paired with shaped brows and a bold red lip brings balance to the look and the eyes remain the focus, and there's no need for any complicated shadow application. To emulate Jennifer Lawrence's look, don't forget a few coats of thickening mascara to enhance your lashes. If you find that mascara tends to transfer to your skin, you don't want to wear it daily or you want something slightly more natural-looking, try Godefroy Beauty 28 Day Mascara Eyelash Tint ($10) for lashes that are more visibly tinted without the use of mascara.

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Metallic Shimmer

Jennifer Aniston wears a shimmering metallic shadow look with visible black lashes on the red carpet — Getty Images

Shimmering, metallic shadow can be used on hooded eyes, and this look on Jennifer Aniston proves exactly that. A tasteful shadow look with a shimmer finish is paired best with liner on the inner rim of the top and bottom lash line, plenty of mascara, and a soft highlight on the brow bone. The inner corners are highlighted just right, helping the eyes appear more open. When working with metallic shadow, keep it contained to the mid portion of the lid, and avoid bringing it up further towards the brow as this can diminish the eye shape. Test a few shadows out to see how the finish ends up looking, you'll be able to tell which ones flatter your eyes the most.

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Smokey Eye

Gabrielle Union wears a smoky eyeshadow look — Getty Images.

While Gabrielle Union's look might take some practice before your big debut, it shows how you can still wear a smoky eye with hooded eye shapes and make a lasting impression. The key is connecting the liner and darker eyeshadow shades on the top and bottom of the eyes, allowing the shape to appear more exaggerated. Fill in the shape with long-wear gel eyeliner like Essence Cosmetics Stay & Play Gel Eyeliner ($5) and blend dark shadow on top for added emphasis and long-wearing benefit.

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Simple Shadow

Emma Stone wears a natural makeup look on the red carpet with thin black eyeliner, and rose toned lips — Getty Images

For a natural hooded eye makeup look like Emma Stone's, apply a light eyeshadow color to the lid, bring it up to the brows, and add a simple thin liner for definition. This is the quickest way to enhance a hooded eye shape that's the least complicated. One color shadow adds some depth without being overpowering if you want to be as minimal as possible.