Makeup tips for hooded eyes

You can make the most impact with a light hand in a few simple steps.

Ladies of a certain age, gather ‘round. I may not know much about certain subjects (one of my favorite quotes of all time, “I don’t know shit about fuck” - Ruth Langmore, Ozark), but I do know something about mature and/or hooded eyes.

You see, I happen to be mature. I also happen to be #blessed with hooded eyes since the day I was born. I am a master of hooded eyes, in fact, I really should hold a doctorate in this field.

If you are one of the lucky ones who didn’t look like your eyelids were experiencing a low-key allergic reaction 24/7 but are now at midlife and noticing some ch-ch-changes, let’s chat about it.

As our skin matures, it gradually loses elasticity. Couple that lack of elasticity with the constant pull from gravity and we’ve got some loose, excessive skin issues.

Whereas excess skin on the lower eyelid can cause wrinkles, puffiness, and bulges, the upper eyelids are usually plagued with an extra fold of skin that hangs a little lower than the days of yore…sometimes even over the eyelashes. Fun!

Crepey skin, sagging eyelids, fine lines and wrinkles, dark circles…hoo boy, women over 40, your eyes are in for a treat!

HOW TO WEAR EYESHADOW ON HOODED EYES

You don’t need to pack it on

Just like foundation and concealer, your forties and fifties really aren’t the time to pack it on in terms of makeup. Skin texture and fine lines can be exaggerated when you have too much makeup on, thus aging the face even more. This goes for the eyes too – we want to help brighten and open up the eye area, and that takes surprisingly less eye shadow layering than you think!

(With that being said, there are no hard-and-fast rules here. If you love a seriously smoky eye and/or vibrant colors on your lids, HAVE AT IT. Seriously, life is too short. These are simply tips that work for me to minimize the appearance of droopy, hooded eyelids.)

Placement, placement, placement

In terms of hooded eyelids, it’s all about the placement. The most important eye shadow you should own is one that looks like your own eyelid color, but just a tad bit deeper. When you have a slightly darker shade and use small, circular motions to apply eye shadow above your crease, you’ll be shocked at how much the droopy skin will visually recede and your eyes pop because you’ve created a faux shadow on your lid.

Keep the shimmery/light-reflecting shades on the movable lid only

We all have that thing that makes us cringe. Well, for me, it’s women with a shimmery shadow all over their lid, up to the brows. This is one of the quickest ways to add 10 years to your eyes.

Remember, we are visually trying to create a shadow or depth on our eyelid which in turn makes our actual eyes stand out. If we highlight the hooded lid with shimmery and/or light colors, we have completely defeated the purpose.

Never fear! You don’t have to ditch your pretty champagne-like shadows (which happen to be my favorite), just keep them on your movable lid, i.e. the part between your lashes and your crease. It looks so pretty when you blink or look downward.

Also, one of the easiest tricks in the book…just dab a bit of highlighter in the inner corners with a finger to open up the eye.

Create contrast with brows and lashes

Did you ever see the study that looked at participants in terms of perceived age and facial contrast? It is super interesting! Individual faces were perceived as younger when aspects of facial contrast were artificially increased, but older when aspects of facial contrast were artificially decreased. The findings showed that facial contrast plays a role in age perception and that faces with greater facial contrast look younger. Because facial contrast is increased by typical cosmetics use, we can infer that cosmetics function in part by making the face appear younger.

It makes sense when you think about it – younger faces typically have rosy cheeks, full eyebrows and lashes, and pigmented lips. As we age, we lose a lot of that contrast in our faces, so it’s great to help boost that contrast with mascara and brow products.

As for brow products, brow gels create a fuller, fluffy look while pencils create a more defined line. No matter what, don’t forget to work that product all the way through the tail of the eyebrow since that’s where we tend to get sparser first.

My favorite brow pencils are Make Beauty Infinite Brow and Kosas Brow Pop.

Curl those lashes

You simply can’t skip this step if you are wanting to open up the eye. Surratt and Shiseido never do me wrong.

After you curl your lashes, grab your mascara and go for it. I would be completely content for the rest of my life with only two mascaras, Sweed Cloud Mascara and Tower28 MakeWaves.

Don’t give up on eyeliner

Many tend to give up on eyeliner because it’s far more difficult to apply when you can’t see as well as you used to. (Hello from me and my multifocal contacts!) But eyeliner gives a wonderful definition to the eyes.

I prefer to work a pencil eyeliner into my upper lashes OR tight-line my upper lid. That way, the eyeliner is not taking up any of that precious (yet minimal) eyelid real estate.

The RMS eye pencils are by far my most-used. All three shades are fantastic! Whoorl20 for 20% off.

Moving on to eye shadows.

Neutral Eye Shadows for the Crease

Merit Solo Shadow - I am obsessed with these cream-to-powder shadows because they are so easy to use. Just dab a little onto your lid and blend out with a brush or your finger. Virtually foolproof. The “neutrals” line of 4 shades corresponds with your skin tone and for my light-to-medium skin, I prefer Studio and Vachetta.

Natasha Denona I Need a Nude Palette - If you are a powder eyeshadow gal, this is the palette for you PLUS it contains your shimmery shade components (see below). One and done, ladies! It’s all you need.

DIBS Beauty Coffee in Hand Palette - Another do-it-all palette and it’s small so great for packing.

Gen See Mixed Media Matte Liquid Eyeshadow - Another super easy-to-use eyeshadow - these are liquid eyeshadows so you apply with the doe foot applicator and blend out. Shroom is the perfect crease shade and once it sets, it doesn’t budge.

Victoria Beckham Signature Smoky Eye Brick Palette - Another powder eyeshadow palette - honestly, Victoria Beckham knows what she’s doing with neutral tans and browns. #nailedit

Victoria Beckham Contour Stylus - This product was created for contouring the face and works beautifully on eyelids. I like Travertine and Marble.

Victoria Beckham Eyewear Longwear in Pecan - When they say longwear, they mean it. If you have issues with eyeshadow moving around, take a look at these.

Eyelid Highlight/Toppers

Gen See Metallic Liquid Eyeshadow in First Light - I swear on all things beauty, the “First Light” shade is the best out there in terms of a neutral-toned champagne. I think I’ve worn it in 12 bazillion Reels.

RMS Beauty Eyelights Cream Eyeshadow in Moondust or Strobe - Both are lovely on the lid! Whoorl20 for 20% off.

Urban Decay Moondust Eyeshadow in Space Cowboy - Okay, this makes your eyelids look wet. It’s incredible, but I reserve it for nights out or special occasions. It’s the only out of the group that has visible shimmer/glitter particles in it.

Victoria Beckham EyeWear in Oyster - Has a slight gold/greenish tinge which I love.

Below is a short video on how I apply shadow to my hooded eyes. I also made this quite chatty video covering every single detail.

Happy hooded eyelid finagling! Questions/comments are always welcome.

xxSJ