Bollywood Eyes

I surely miss giving tutorials. So I made one just for you.

Aside from the vintage look, one of my favorite looks is the Bollywood look, which is very exotic and very sexy. I love the dramatic eyes, the lush lashes, and in contrast, the creamy-textured lip and the bronze glow all over. It would really look good if you have a Bollyw00d or Indian-themed party or you're in that mood to just radiate the glow of an Indian princess.

For my Bollywood eyes version, I used the mineral makeup brand Elegant Minerals. It's pretty easy to do. All you need is to start with clean skin, then apply your favorite EM foundation and concealer and also, you might need a kohl pencil or smudgy eyeliner too.

So let's go with the eyes first, since I'll be doing an eye makeup tutorial.

So here's my bare, slit-like eye:

I already did my concealing and I set my makeup with rice powder in Warm Neutral.

I did my eyebrows next. Here, I used my trademark ashy eyebrows using EM in Khaki but you can go a tad darker if you must by using a matte brown shade like Oak.

(Funny hair effect). The whole eye looks more structured with a defined brow.

Now here's what I did. next, I lined my eyes with kohl pencil but you can use your traditional black (or dark brown) smudgy eyeliners. Make the line on the upper lashline thicker. Then, using a Q-tip, sponge tip applicator, or your ring finger, smudge the eyeline on the top lashline up to the crease. This will act as a "base" for your eyeshadow to hold on to.

Now, set the eyeliner on the lower lashline with a bit of a smoky blue-grey eyeshadow. I used Elegant Minerals in Smoky Black here. Since the powders here are in loose form, it's best you use little first then build on as you go. If you use too much, not only will you overdo it but you can end up with black speckles on the cheeks. Then, layer the same shadow on the upper lashline and build the color up to the crease, building and blending as you go (see illustration below).

The whole layering process is best with a small shadow brush, so just continue doing this and build in layers. Another challenge with smoky eyes to make both sides even so check and double-check them and blend and adjust as you go.

For more dimension, add some black eyeshadow like EM in Eclipse on the upper and lower lashline and blend this towards the crease. Get the black shadow to encircle the entire eye to mimic the effect of traditional kohl.

Finally, highlight the browbone with a nude shimmery shade like Elegant Minerals in Latte with a large shadow brush. Again, it's best to use little first and then build on as you go.

Lashes can get lost with that heavy eye makeup so after curling them, be generous with mascara. If you have time, you can add on full false eyelashes.

So that's how the smoky eyes should look like. For eyes this heavy, we need a nude lip, so choose a nude lipstick in a creamy or satin finish. Then, brush skin with bronzer for a warm glow. For accessories, you can stick bindhis or rhinestones and add chunky jewelry to feel the princess vibe.

What's good with this is that you need not stick to black. try an ivy shade, a plum, or even warm copper browns. you can even add liquid liner in a contrasting shade for drama. Just have fun with makeup!