How to make your eyeshadows shine...

Hello my lovelies! Today I thought I'd do a post on how to make your eyes/eyeshadows shine. Sometimes an eyeshadow just needs a little help to really show it's true color. Weather you own only drugstore eyeshadows or high-end ones, taking a few simple steps and using a few products can really make a difference in the way your eye makeup ends up looking. :)

Eyeshadow primer

If you tend to have oily skin and oily eyelids, you will benefit greatly from using a primer underneath your eyeshadows. There are plenty of great eyeshadow primers available on the market and you don't need to break your budget for everyone of them - the best and most affordable (from my experience) is NYX HD eyeshadow base, but recently I've also fallen in love with theBalm's Put a lid on it. I've done an eyeshadow primer comparison/battle post, so go check that out, if you haven't seen it yet.

But, even if you have normal or dry skin, I still think eyeshadow primer is somewhat necessary. Even if you find that eyeshadows last a very long time on you and don't crease whatsoever, you can still get an even longer wear with a great eyeshadow primer and also get better color payoff from the eyeshadows themselves. And the fact that you have normal/dry skin doesn't mean you won't sweat during high temperatures, so... :)

Eyeshadow base/eye pencil

Another great way to make your eyeshadows really pop is to use a colored base or eye pencil underneath them. For example - if you have really light eyelids with veins showing through (like me), you can make a huge difference in your eye look, if you apply a nude/skin colored base all over the lid, before applying your eyeshadows (MAC Painterly Paint Pots seem to be really popular, but I have yet to try them out for myself). That will give you a nice, even canvas to create a masterpiece on. :D The same goes for people with darker lids/darker eye area - you can lighten and even everything out with a great base.

Now, if you want to bring out the color of a certain eyeshadow more, you can use an eye pencil - I love the NYX Jumbo eye pencils. If you want to make a lighter shade more visible and vibrant, use a white colored pencil underneath it (like Milk) and if you want a black/dark eyeshadow to really be intense or perhaps to create a smokey eye look, you can use a black/dark grey pencil underneath (I have Black bean from NYX, but you can also use your 'plain' black eyeliner for this, if you know it won't smudge or wear off easily).

From L to R: Naked2 eyeshadow without a base, over theBalm primer, over NYX pencil in Milk

From L to R: Crave eyeshadow without a base, over theBalm primer, over NYX pencil in Black Bean

Eyeshadow brush

Last but not least I wanted to give a mention to eyeshadow brushes. Now, I'm really not a snob when it comes to brushes - if I like a brush and it preforms well, I don't mind if it's a MAC, Sigma, Real Techniques brush or a random $2 brush from the drugstore or eBay. :) But in general I have discovered that it can really pay off, if you invest in some good quality brushes. I'd especially recommend to invest in some good brushes for applying your eyeshadows (packing them on) and some great blending brushes (blending brushes make a huuuuge difference when you're creating your eye look). If you're big on gel/cream liners then I'd also recommend finding a few great angled eyeliner brushes which can also come in handy when filling in your eyebrows.

So, here you have a few simple but effective tips that can really help your eyeshadows look their best and your makeup looks turn out just the way you imagined them. :)