Hey, brown-eyed girl. This article is for you. Here we have ten beautiful eye makeup tutorials for brown eyes.
Bet you never knew just how lucky you are with your charming brown eyes! Did you know, for instance, that brown color is a combination of all three primary colors – red, yellow, and blue? This means that with a pair of hazel-hued peepers, most colors of eye shadow naturally suit your eye color.
Best of all, you can take risks that other eye colors simply can’t. There’s also a smaller chance that you can get it wrong.
To accentuate your naturally dark features, we bring you 10 foolproof makeup looks designed especially for brown eyes.
Eye Makeup Tutorials For Brown Eyes
1) Classic Brown Eye Makeup
Here is an eye makeup look that is ideal for everyday wear – from weekdays at the office to off-duty on the weekends. This routine is straightforward and easy to follow, even for beginners.
Best of all, the colors perfectly match natural brown coloring. With a combination of neutrals, here is a color palette that will make you fall in love with your brown eyes.
Here’s how to get the look:
- As always, start off by covering the delicate eye area with a natural primer. These usually come in a nude base color and help to prepare the eyes and set the skin for the darker colors to come. It will also help your makeup stay on for a long time.
- Next, apply a light brown shade of eyeshadow to just the outer corner of the eyes.
- Now draw a thick line along the upper lashes with dark brown eyeliner and gently smudge, fading the color upward.
- Line the lower lash line and repeat the smudging effect.
- Top off the natural effect by applying mascara to your desired effect.
2) Olive Green Eye Makeup
Green eye makeup is one of those perfect pairings that go hand in hand with brown eyes. The earthy, rustic hues of olive green, in particular, really pick up any specks of gold and honey brown present in the iris.
Choose a sparkly metallic finish for a night out or, for a more subdued daytime look, olive green matte eyeshadow is just stunning.
Here’s how you get it done:
- Start by covering the entire eyelid with a primer and then a light neutral shade close to your skin color. If you’re unsure which color to use, look for an eye shadow set that includes three or four complementary colors. This will help take the guesswork out of which colors to combine.
- Take particular care to blend the color into the crease of the eyes too. You’d hate to have a solid line of color that stops suddenly just under the brown bone.
- Next, using a dark green color, fill in the lower half of your eyelid. Follow this up with a lighter color and apply it all over the eyelid, ending right beneath the crease. The two shades of green should now be blended into a uniform color.
- For an evening event, you might want to add some extra sparkle to your look. Apply a dab of metallic highlighter to the inside corner of your eye as well as right on the brow bone. Be careful to blend this into the skin though, or it might be a little over the top.
- Next comes the crease of the eyes. To achieve that sexy smoky effect, apply a dark gray color along the crease of the eye, blending it gently from left to right as well as onto the outer corner of the eyelids.
- Round off the look with dark eyeliner all around the eyes plus lashings of mascara.
3) Blushing Pink Eye Makeup
Here’s a top tip for brown-eyed girls straight from a professional makeup artist.
Amy Nadine, the makeup guru to celebrities like Lauren Conrad and Rachel Bilson, often uses blush around the eyelids to make them sparkle. A soft rosy pink is a perfect way to bring a subtle feminine glow to the entire face.
Let’s start:
- Start by looking at your skin tone. If you have a cool complexion, dust your eyelids with a dark gray eyeshadow. Warm-toned ladies – choose a bronzed brown color to fill in your entire eyelids, taking care not to color in above the crease of your lids.
- Next, using a tapered liner brush, run the same color eyeshadow along the lower lash line.
- Now take your eyeshadow brush and dip it into your most beloved shade of blush. Apply the color straight into the crease of the eyes, working back and forth. You should notice the color on your lids blending gradually into the pink on your crease.
- The eyeliner comes next. Apply your favorite dark shade to the inner rim of your eyes, followed by the outside upper lash lines too. Cool skin tones look great in black kajal pencil while dark brown works well for warmer tones.
- Complete the rosy look with a coat of black or brown mascara.
4) Cobalt Blue Eye Makeup
When you’re looking to create a statement, nothing is more eye-catching than dramatic blue eye shadow. To create a sexy, smoldering effect, look no further than deep cobalt blue, especially for brown eyes.
The crisp cool tones of blue contrast beautifully against the warmth of brown. Lighter shades like turquoise and baby blue are more suited to blue and green eyes. Ready for a pop of color?
Here’s how you do it:
- Using a pale nude color, fill in the entire eyelid, even covering the crease.
- Apply the deep cobalt color all over the eyelid but stop right underneath the crease.
- Now, using a blending brush, gently blend the bold blue color with the soft nude at the crease. Take your time during this step – the more you practice, the easier it will become!
- Next comes the eyeliner. Using either liquid eyeliner or a pencil, draw solid lines all around the eyes. The aim is for dark smoky eyes so don’t be scared to go bold. You could even smudge the lower lash line for an even smokier effect.
- Finish off with generous coats of mascara to both top and lower lashes.
5) Color Chameleon
For something a little different, here is a look ideal for bohemian summer nights. This color palette is a gorgeous mix of gold, lilac and blue – not usually colors typically worn together.
When paired with warm brown eyes though, the combination is just perfect.
Here’s how to get the easy summer look:
- As with all eye makeup looks, apply a nude primer all over your eyelids to set the eyeshadows and make sure the effect lasts all day long.
- Next, pat on a light shade of gold, covering the entire eyelid but stopping right underneath the crease.
- The next step is all about blending. Use a pale lilac color and run the brush all along the crease of the eyes, taking care to blend the edge of gold into the soft lilac color.
- Now it’s time to show off your artistic skills. Take a deep blue shadow and create a subtle V-shape at the outer corners of the eyes. Gently blend the colors until the blue, purple and gold subtly blend into one.
- The final steps are all up to you. You can use a bold black liquid liner for a dramatic look or, for a softer look, a deep brown pencil is also a great match.
- Finish off the color fiesta by running the lovely lilac color along your lower lash line for a smoky summer effect. A few coats of mascara, either black or dark brown, perfectly finish off the look.
6) Sixties Glam Eye Makeup
Such a look we’ve seen time and again on the red carpet – whether it’s on elegant Gwen Stefani or edgy Amy Winehouse.
Wear this dark sixties-style eye makeup, and you’re bound to make a grand entrance. If you’re a brown-eyed girl, this gothic effect packs even more of a punch.
With bold, solid black all-around your eyes, it’s guaranteed to make the brown of your irises shine even brighter. Then, for a stark contrast, keep the rest of your face sweet and feminine with rosy cheeks and pretty pink lips.
Here are the steps to get this dramatic look:
- Begin by drawing a solid black line along the upper lash line using a kohl eyeliner in deep black. Extend the line further than the edge of the eye to create a feline cat-eye.
- Next, follow the line back over the crease of the eye towards the inner corner.
- Still using the same kohl pencil, color in the eyelid area you just stenciled.
- Move to the lower lashes and apply the black pencil all along the lash line not forgetting the inner waterline too.
- Use a metallic black shimmer eye shadow to dust over the eyelids, breaking the matte effect and leaving a glittering finish.
- Polish off the look with a few coats of black mascara and you’re all set.
7) Shades of Purple
Whatever shade of brown you happen to fall under, rest assured that purple eye shadow will do the trick for you.
If your eyes have slight specks of hazel or light brown in them, purple manages to highlight these aspects. With the variety of color you’ve already got going on, a subtle purple creates all the contrast you need.
Make the most of your brown hues with this pretty purple look:
- Use your finger or a brush to apply an even, mattifying primer that will help set the shadows to come.
- Next comes a fine layer of creamy gold eye shadow. Apply this to the entire eyelid up until the crease.
- Now cover the gold shadow with a burgundy eye shadow going up above the crease and into the corner of the eye, creating a subtle cat-eye shape.
- The next steps are all about blending and highlighting. Take a gunmetal gray color and apply it all along the crease of the eyes, blending as you go. Apply the same color to the outside of the lower lash line and brow bone to create a highlighted glow.
- For even more color dimension, lightly dust an orange eyeshadow to the inner corner of your lower lash line and olive green to the top lash line.
- Finish off the look by lining the eyes with dark eyeliner plus lots of black mascara.
8) Romantic Rose Gold For Dark Brown Eyes
Is there any color prettier than romantic rose gold?
We love the delicate balance between rosy pink and warm gold. That creates a gorgeous feminine glow, especially for dark brown eyes. This makeup look is ideal for date night and, best of all, it’s super easy to achieve.
Follow these tips to find out how:
- Sweep the entire lid with a light copper-colored eyeshadow, ending right on the crease of the eye.
- Next up, apply a shimmery shadow in soft rose pink into the crease of the eye and slightly above it. Blend lightly into the crease, ensuring a gradual mix of the two shades.
- Now for the color purple. Choose a matte plum eye shadow to add some dimension to both the outer and inner corners of the eyes. Again, blend the dark color into the light gold and pink.
- Use this same shade of purple to dust along the lower lash line.
- Complete the look by drawing on a defined cat eye to the upper lid and follow up with one or two coats of mascara.
9) Natural Smoky Eyes
From the olden days of Cleopatra right up until the Kardashians, smoky eye makeup has always been a much-desired femme fatale look.
Follow these simple steps to create an easy smoky eye makeup look, perfect to highlight dark brown eyes.
- Take a black kajal eye pencil and trace a thick line all along the upper lash line.
- Using a blender brush, start gently smudging this inky pencil line all over the eyelid.
- Now apply carbon black eyeshadow above the crease of the eye, creating a half-moon shape. Take care not to go over the entire eyelid, just the crease area.
- Next, use a fluff brush to blend the carbon black shadow upwards and along the outer edge of the eyelid. The aim is to blend evenly across the whole area right under the brow bone.
- For some added shine, blend some silver eye shadow across your entire eyelid. It will highlight the whole area and add some nuance to your look.
- Next up, line your lower lash line with black eyeliner and then smudge it ever so slightly to achieve a smoky effect.
- Using a black liquid eyeliner, line the upper lash line by drawing a thick slanted line all the way from the inner corner of the eye, creating a cat-eye shape.
- Round off the glamorous look with generous lashes of black mascara.
10) Champagne Gold Glimmer
Here’s a standout look for special occasions guaranteed to turn a few heads.
Centered around varying shades of gold, this look highlights the complexities and depths of brown eyes. Plus, with an added dusting of glitter, we can’t think of a better way to celebrate the brilliance of brown.
Here’s how to get this shimmering look:
- First off, apply a nude-colored primer to the entire eyelid, all the way up to the brow bone. Now use a brown eyebrow pencil to draw a line that traces the crease of your eye (you’ll feel it as the point right on the eyeball). Also line the upper lash line, thickening the line into a subtle cat-eye shape.
- Use a small brush to blend the pencil line on the crease in an upwards movement, still leaving the eyelid bare. Focus on creating a gradient of color – light on the inside of the eye crease and becoming darker towards the edge.
- Now fill in the eyelid with gold-colored eye shadow, extending the color into the cat-eye shape on the outer corner.
- Follow this up with a sprinkling of glitter eye shadow to cover the gold base.
- Finally, line the lower and upper lash lines with black eyeliner and finish off with black mascara.