11 Bright, Colourful Eyeliner Looks You'll Want Re-Create This Summer
Gone are the days of—dare I say it—classic black eyeliner looks. Well, at least for this season. Enter the era of the playful, colourful and bold eyeliner looks, where more is definitely more. Whether it’s down to the mask-wearing from the past couple of years, the summer vibes or the hyper-focus on Euphoria eye makeup, which really put bold eye looks on the map, we’re all about it. Just this year, Google UK received half a million searches per month for eyeliner alone, an increase of 14% versus last year.
The good thing is you’ve already got the skills down. Apply the same techniques you would for your classic liner to create an array of flicks and lines and let your creativity bloom. While classic black liner is all about technique and precision, colour eyeliner looks give way to being a lot less precise and more playful with your look. In this realm of eyeliner looks, there is no such thing as a mistake; it’s all part of the end result.
Using colour on the eyes is an easy way to inject some fun into your look and really play around with makeup. As well as refreshing and adding an electric twist to your look, colour tends to be a mood booster. The beauty industry, from high-end to high-street, has embraced the trend with an entire rainbow of bright liners for you to play around with.
Before you exist, faster than I can say colourful eyeliner, hold on, while daring and eccentric creative looks are part of the fun, there is something for everyone. From delicately lining the inner corner of your eyes to elaborate triple-tone eyeliner, we’ve found the 11 most delightfully striking eyeliner looks you'll want to re-create this summer.
The Best Colourful Eyeliners and Looks to Try
First things first, Rebecca Moore, Nars senior artist, suggests prepping the eyelid. "Use an eye shadow base—my favourite is the Nars Smudge Proof Eyeshadow Base—to prevent eyeliner from moving or smudging throughout the day," she says.
A simple flick of colour is the perfect way to ease yourself into the trend. It garners just the right amount of attention to the eyes. Plus, if any colour screams summer, it's coral.
This vibrant coral shade looks great on all eye colours.
Now, this is how glitter liner is done. As someone with hooded eyes, I find the traditional eyeliner flick so hard to wear, but this negative-space, floating eyeliner is redefining traditional eyeliner—and with glitter. I’m obsessed.
This duo-ended line contains a felt-tip blue eyeliner on one end and a creamy kohl liner in shimmering silver on the other.
A swipe of yellow along the lash line instantly brightens the eyes—and who doesn't love this optimistic hue?
Shiseido's eyeliners are so pigmented and glide on like a dream with a long-lasting finish.
This is a softer take on the inner-corner eyeliner look. Use a bright eye shadow to create smooth, delicate liners, replicating the eyeliner look without the precise lines. This is like a massive cheat code if you don't have a steady hand for traditional eyeliner.
Glitter eyeshadow on top, contrasting liner on the bottom—this is the makeup definition of go hard or go home.
This formula transforms from liquid to eye shadow once dry, giving you endless ways to wear it.
Who said lines were meant to be straight? Update your liner look with some wavy and spiralling lines. They look especially good in lilac, the colour of the season that’s dominating everywhere from homeware to fashion.
We're totally obsessed with this pastel lilac, which is a steal at £5.
Contrast lower and top liner when you’re feeling bold and want to really hone the attention to your eyes. You can opt in for tones of the same shade for a retro look like this.
I’ll be the first to admit I am no good with eyeliner. Plus, I don’t have the patience. If you’re like me, then this is the eyeliner look for you—eyeliner but not really eyeliner. So simple yet so chic and fun all at the same time.
This cobalt blue is surprisingly chic and a trending colour for summer.
Now this is for when you really want to show off. Holographic eyeliner will have people swooning and praising you for your creative skills, but it’s so easy to re-create. Take a leaf out of Hailey Bieber’s book, and use an eyeliner sticker as a cheat.
If you prefer a liquid liner, this holographic one achieves similar results.
Offset the harsh lines of eyeliner with delicate eye shadow. Yellow and purple are a winning summer colour combination.
This eyeliner really is budge-proof thanks to its waterproof formula.
A vibrant eyeshadow created by smudging out your eyeliner pencil can look really striking against your regular black cat's eye flick.
Urban Decay's formulas are well-known for their long-lasting, vibrant shades. We particularly love this electric orange.
Up next, Tik Tok's big beauty trends for autumn.
Zeynab Mohamed is a London-based freelance beauty journalist, covering beauty, wellness, lifestyle and identity-related content. Her background in psychology and her identity as a Black woman has influenced a lot of her writing and has become a driving force to create engaging content that touches on a perspective that is often neglected and speaks to other Black women who love beauty as much as she does. She is inspired by how individuals engage with beauty and how beauty can make you feel but also how beauty holds the power to connect individuals across the globe to form communities. She began her career in beauty journalism with the British Vogue team, where she discovered that beauty isn’t just frivolous but can be a tool to empower individuals and give them a voice which they were not afforded.
Zeynab is currently a beauty contributor toBest Knockoff Luxury Clothing . She has also written for Stylist, Elle, Refinery29 and Byrdie, building on her freelance portfolio and expanding on the type of content she creates in the hope of reaching diverse communities. When Zeynab is not writing and hunting down her next story, you can find her travelling the globe and tucked away with a good book.
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