Rest In Peace - Taupe Eyeshadow
does your eye shadow make you look more tired? find out why!
I’m a nineties girl
I love a good taupe eyeshadow. I have purchased many of them over the years. It’s my makeup kryptonite. Perhaps it’s because I grew up in the nineties when everyone wore cool tone matte eyeshadows. If you are like me, then you entered the workforce in the late 90s/’00s. You spent hundreds of dollars at stores like Banana Republic and Ann Taylor to build your young professional wardrobe, then headed to your favorite department beauty counter for a polished everyday makeup look. The go-to makeup lines for classic foolproof makeup were Bobbi Brown, Laura Mercier, and Trish McEvoy. These makeup lines were and continue to be known for their neutral eyeshadow palettes and soft nude lipstick colors. Flash forward 20 years, and I bet somewhere in that black hole of a makeup bag, you still have eyeshadows with names like Stone, Slate, and Cement. Am I right? We are creatures of habit. Our logical brain thinks, “If it worked for me then, it should work for me now.” Our brain is wrong.
An “a-ha” moment
Did you ever look in the mirror after you did your makeup and go, “Ugh, I still look so tired?” Yep, I have been there. As I have grown older, my eyes have become more recessed (sunken in), and my under-eye area more hollow. This unpleasant combo naturally causes more dark shadows on my face. If I apply my trusty beige-gray taupe eyeshadow (which I have been using some version of since 1998) into my eye crease, do you think I am emphasizing or minimizing my tired-looking eyes? Ding. Ding. Ding. The answer is I am emphasizing the shadow that is already there by adding more taupe eyeshadow to my eye crease. I am making my already recessed eyes more sunken in. It’s not a cute look. Take a look at your favorite taupe eyeshadow. What colors do you see? Taupe is a mixture of gray, brown, and purple. Now, look at your under-eye dark circles. What colors do you see? I bet you see variations of blue, purple, brown, and gray. What do you think happens when you apply taupe shadow on your upper and lower lids? You guessed it! You are drawing more attention to your dark circles. Take a second; this is truly an “A-HA” moment.
what now?
It’s time to venture out of our comfort zone and switch over to warm golden brown tones. I know what you are going to say, “but Erica, I have told you over and over, I can’t wear warm tones because my skin coloring favors more cool tones.” I am just going to say it: cool vs. warm tone is marketing BS. EVERYONE can wear warm and cool tone makeup. It all depends on the undertone of the color. Golden brown eyeshadows will brighten up a deep-eye socket and give a lifted appearance to droopy, down-turned eyes. Do you want to know my secret for finding the perfect golden brown eyeshadow? Skip the eyeshadow and choose a matte bronzer. Bronzers are made to add warmth to your face, so it makes sense it would do the same if you added it to your eyes. Plus, I love a good multi-use product!
Shop my pro-makeup kit Bronzers
It’s called “brownzer” because the bronzer is specifically formulated for brown skin tones. Without a doubt, this is my holy grail never leave home without it product. I love this bronzer!! Try Chocolate Litty for deep brown skin tones.
I use this bronzer on myself every day! I had been on the Maybelline Pro Team for NYFW for years. This product was a happy discovery one day when I needed a bronzer. The contour shade has a lot of warmth and really opens up my deep-set eyes.
Apply it like a pro
Use two crease brushes when applying bronzer in the crease area. I hear the groans and complaints already. Why two brushes? Use one crease brush to apply the bronzer to the eye crease. Use the second clean crease brush to blend it out for a soft diffused look without any hard edges. Watch any professional makeup artist and you will see the two crease brush application. Try my old faithful MAC 217 brush. It never lets me down. Seriously, I own like 10 of these brushes. I could do an entire makeup application with only this brush.
When I apply bronzer all over the eyelid or as an eyeliner, then I use a small flat brush like the MAC 239 brush. It can apply an even layer of color all over the lid, but it is also small enough to get into the inner corner of the eye or line underneath your eye.
R.I.P. Taupe eyeshadow, but….
I still love taupe eyeshadow! Nowadays, I save it for when I am doing a dark smokey eye on myself. Paired with a smudgy black eyeliner, taupe eyeshadow gives a nice balance to a dramatic eye look. For an everyday makeup look, I switched to bronzer to make my tired eyes look more refreshed and awake.
Tempting to say R.I.P to your taupe eyeshadow? Leave me a comment below and tell me what color replaced your trusty old taupe shade. I love photos! Share your updated eye makeup look with me on IG @FacingForty, and use hashtags #RIPTaupe and #facingforty.