Celebrity Makeup Artist Shares How To Get The Perfect, Simple Smoky Eye

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Hard to master and virtually never out of style, the perfect smoky eye is a very powerful thing. But getting a smoky eye *just right* is an enigma that’s puzzled makeup lovers for decades.

Some days, it might come out perfect with relative ease, but others? There’s no telling how long you’ll be standing in front of that mirror for, trying to get your eyes to look symmetrical and distinctly un-panda-like. 

The internet is full of videos of influencers coming up with new tips and tricks for getting the perfect smoky eye, but I wanted to chat to a true pro about it. 

So, I asked celebrity makeup artist Pamela Cochrane, who’s been crafting looks for Lana Del Rey since 2011, to give her absolute last word on the subject.

Here are her step-by-step instructions on how she gets a perfect (and simple) smoky eye just right. 

Step 1: Start with an eye pencil

Pamela, whose work has appeared in the likes of Vogue, Dazed Beauty, and Elle, tells HuffPost UK: “Run a pencil along the lash line, thinner at the inner corner and gradually thicker towards the outer corner.”

If your eyes are smaller and/or hooded, she adds that you might want to start in the centre of your lash line instead. 

Step 2: Smudge

“With a small brush,” instructs the makeup pro, “smudge softly up and out.” Then, do the same thing with your lower lash line. 

Step 3: Eyeshadow

Now it’s time to really blur things out. Pamela says: “Press a similar or slightly lighter shade of powder eyeshadow over the pencil and blend upward and outward with a soft blending brush. Add a touch in the outer half of the crease for depth.”

Step 4: Finishing touches 

If you like your smoky eyes to be really intense, Pamela says you should line along the waterline too. 

Then top your look off with mascara, and you’re all done.

What to use

An artist needs great materials, after all. “Choose an easy-to-draw, easy-to-smudge pencil that has staying power,” recommends Pamela.

“Pressing [a] powder shadow on top helps lock it in and gives a soft, slightly mattifying finish.”

The following products are some of her favourites...

And as for brushes? Pamela says: “I love Hakuhodo brushes – small eyeshadow and blending brushes, and a smudge brush are best.”