Liquid liner. For some women it’s a hero, and for others, a zero. I fell hard for Tom Ford’s liner, but the toe-curling price had me seeking a replacement. After trying multiple brands, I finally found the best liner on the block.
But first, how do I test a liquid liner? And what makes one liner better than another liner?
To test a liner, I always use it to create a dramatic winged liner look. The best tutorial that I have found is from beauty guru Eman. Her tutorial walks you through the steps to get that dramatic look just the way you want it every time.
If a liner can flawlessly perform her steps, it can do anything.
I discovered Eyeko Eye Do ($22) in my FabFitFun box around the same time as I was serendipitously running out of Stila eyeliner. Initially, I thought the tip was too thick to make precise strokes. But the smoothness of the application, the blackness of the formula, and the firmness of the tip work together to make fine and thick lines a breeze.
I mentioned the darkness of the formula, but this is a serious pet peeve of mine. I hate when a brand’s black liner is more of a dark grey. Or when the jet blackness wears off into a dark greyness as the night wears on. I want my liner to go on with a midnight-in-the-forest-during-a-new-moon darkness and stay that way.
Eyeko has the long-lasting shiny, black hue I want. Scratch that. That I need.
One of the nice things about the Eyeko brand is that they make several eyeliners all with unique benefits. They have a fatter pencil, a thinner pencil, and a waterproof option. Not a liquid liner fan? They also make a pencil liner with a stiff brush attached for flawless blending.
Do you have a favorite liner? Or a favorite way to apply liner? Leave your thoughts in the comments.
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I only tightline, but I love the Marc Jacobs Highliner gel pencil — it stays put (yet comes off gently with cleansing balm) and is easy to apply. It’s not cheap but it lasts a long time. I used to use gel liner in a pot with a skinny brush, but to get a good application you have to clean the brush after every use, which got old real quick.
Same re Marc Jacobs gel eyeliner for tighlining. I find that the color isn’t as dark as other kohl pencil eyeliners but I like that I’m not scratching my eyeballs. But I can only tightline with the black color; I tried the purple pencil and it was too light/it didn’t show up.
I also love doing wingtips (but can’t do it in a daily basis anymore as a working mom with a toddler), and will check out the above recommended liner.
I used to love the Eyeko liquid eyeliner, but I’m not a huge fan of shiny liquid liner. I got the Tarte Sex Kitten eyeliner. It’s perfection.
I always struggle with my liquid liner last through the day (even with the Tom Ford!). I have really oily lids and even with a primer, I just find that my wings have smudged and vanished by the late afternoon. Any tips?
This might seem a bit much, but this is what I do for my very oily eyelids. I blot them with tissue/toilet paper, I apply the eye primer, then I set with a setting powder. I then put on eyeshadow or what have you. The last two weeks I have been using the retinol eye serum by Dr. Dennis Gross on my eyelids and it has helped SO MUCH with my oily lids. Good luck!
After a boyfriend told me I should wear eyeliner so that I’d look more like Avril Lavigne, I scratched liner from my life for good (this was in like 2006?). I just can’t get that image out of my head!
…unfortunately, I did not scratch the boyfriend out of my life at the same time. Womp womp.
Belle do you still use the Physicians Formula liner? I got onto that on your recommendation and still love it, although I find myself using less eyeliner these days as I tend to get eczema on my eyelids (not from the make up but rather from the make up removal process).
I’m partial to Maybelline’s gel liner. Comes in a pot, apply with an angle brush. I’m not into shiny formulas (though L’Oreal’s Lacquer Liner is also a gel formula in a pot, wears nicely – and is shiny)
my favorite is the tattoo liner from Kat Von D!