4 Joyful Eye Shadow Looks to Try Right Now

There is nothing more joyful than a fun eye shadow look and now is the time to get playful. Spring is the season of new beginnings: the blooming of flowers, the birthing of baby chicks and lambs, the lighter evenings and sunnier days. Spring is full of life and after more than a year of what feels like deep hibernation and gloom, we can finally start to shed the layers of tracksuits and emerge from our cocoon-like homes. Whether you’re getting back out there with gusto or you’re tentatively starting to socialise once more, with masks a must, the best way to add a spring into your makeup look is with eye shadow. What’s great about most eye looks is that, once applied, there is very little need for touch-ups, unlike a bold lip that is as demanding as a toddler on a sugar high.

Now, you may think that creating an eye shadow look takes skill, but I promise you, the following four looks are easy. In part, because three of the looks were painted on with fingers making it child’s play, and because when brushes were required for the final look the product I used was such good quality that it applied where I wanted, as I wanted and didn’t budge.

Keep scrolling to re-create my favourite eye shadow looks and to shop all of the best colourful eye shadows right now.

Look #1: Shimmer and Shine

Who said glitter is just for the festive season? Not me. I chose the Nikkietutorials x Beauty Bay Pressed Pigment Palette (£25) to create this look. It’s a joyful palette that has a brilliant combination of shimmers and matte shades in neutrals and brights.

I used my ring finger to apply the golden shade All In from the inner corner of my eye up and out to just past the centre of my eye (where my brow arches). I then tapped a little of the pinky shimmer Roxy Catan onto the centre by my lashes to create a subtle pop of colour. Focusing the shimmer from the centre out opens up the eyes. Et voilà! An easy and glam look.

For all these colourful eye shadow looks, I finished with a slick of  Other Stories Satiny Black Dramatic Volume Mascara (£15). I paired looks 1 and 2 with Charlotte Tilbury Matte Revolution Lipstick in Pillow Talk (£25).

Look #2: Finger Painting

This might look advanced, but it’s so easy. Using the same palette as before, Nikkietutorials x Beauty Bay Pressed Pigment Palette, I applied different shades with my pinky finger: starting with a fluoro yellow called VLA in the centre, then a bright green called EW, followed by Bend Snap!, a vivid pink, and finally Plot Twist, a pastel cornflower blue. I made sure to clean my finger between applications so the colours didn’t get muddy.

If the vivid look is too much, you can use a small fluffy brush to dust away some of the pigment to create a softer more ethereal vibe. Just like I did in the picture below.

Look #3: Blue Skies

Inspired by spring’s clearer, more optimistic skies I created this soft, romantic blue eye look. Again it was super easy to do. I applied the shade On Ice from the Freck UFOMFG Pressed Pigments Palette (£17) to my eyelids. I used a small fluffy eye shadow brush and a windscreen wiper motion. Then I tapped on a little MAC Lip Conditioner (£16) over the top to create a glass-like effect. The gloss shifts the shadow a little, so I just kept layering up the shadow using my fingers and gloss to get the opacity that I wanted. No glossy eye will ever stay perfect, you’ll get a bit of creasing but I quite like a glossy eye when it looks a little lived-in.

Look #4: Pink Flick

Okay, this looks advanced, but I promise you it’s not too hard when you have the right products. I used Depixym Cosmetic Emulsion in #1183 (£18). A matte coral pigment, it’s blendable so you have some time to work with the formula before it dries down to a waterproof finish that doesn’t budge until you want it to. What’s great is that it feels weightless on my eyelids (some waterproof shadows can feel tight) and it was easy to remove with my usual cleansing balm (the Omorovicza Thermal Cleansing Balm, £59).

To apply the emulsion, I used the My Kit Co. 3.1 My Line and Fill brush (£14). The key to getting an even flick on both sides is to keep your eyes open and don’t stretch the skin, just look straight ahead into a mirror and paint the outline of the shape gently onto each eye, once you have the shape you want, fill it in.

I love the hopeful hue of this pink flick but Depixym has loads of different colours and finishes of emulsions for you to explore. Super versatile, you can use them as eye shadow, liner, lipstick or blush (if you use a little and really buff and blend).

Shop More of the Best Colourful Eye Shadows Below…