I’ve been getting a few questions about which type of eyeliner is the best and to be honest, each kind of eyeliner is good for their own reasons! Don’t worry, I’ll break down three different kinds of eyeliners and provide recommendations for you guys today so you can decide which one will work for you.
1. Pencil liners.
So what can I say about pencil liners, we’ve all seen them, and it’s usually what we think of when we hear the word eyeliner. Pencil liner is great for a fast and easy application, and if you’re new to the world of eyeliner, then I would highly recommend this. It is by far the easiest eyeliner to control, and easy to fix if you make any mistakes. Pencil liners are easy to blend, so if you’re going for a smokey look then these are for you. However, I find that pencil liners have a problem with smudging throughout the day, which can be a problem if you’re looking for a clean line. Also, pencil liners are prone to giving you raccoon eyes which means if you’re going to be wearing makeup all day, you’ll probably have to touch up a couple of times.
recommended pencil liners:
NYX slim pencil liner
Urban Decay 24/7 liquid liner
MAC eye kohl
2. Liquid liners.
This kind of eyeliner is great for giving you crisp, clean liners which is perfect if you’re going for a cat eye or bat wing look. It can be a little tricky to use at first so don’t get frustrated if it takes you a little while to get the hang of it! If you’re just starting out with liquid liner, I suggest drawing a few lines on your hand first before actually applying it to your eyes so you get a feel for how light or heavy the liner applies and to go from there. I also suggest finding liquid liners that have a felt tip, because the brush tip applicators that come with the actual liner are usually flimsy and super hard to control. If you do happen to get a liquid liner with a brush applicator, you can always use your own eyeliner brush to apply. The nice thing about liquid liners is that it has great color pay off and it stays put for a while unless it gets wet, however, it does tend to flake throughout the day. Also, liquid liner usually doesn’t do too well in the waterline of you eye, so if you want to line the inner rims of your eyes, you’ll have to look into a pencil or gel liner as well.
recommended liquid liners:
L’oreal Lineur Intense
NYX felt tip liner
Prestige liquid liner
MAC penultimate liner
3. Gel liners
This is probably an eyeliner that some of you may not have heard of before, but is actually becoming more popular with consumers. Gel liners come in a pot, and require a brush to be applied. Gel liners are applied the same way as liquid liners, but are much more unforgiving when it comes to mistakes. Gel liners are pretty much water proof and they have great staying power, which is why I use this eyeliner not only on myself, but on my clients as well, especially brides. If you decide to start using gel liners, I suggest that you practice practice practice, because I find that nothing is more annoying than finishing my makeup off with eyeliner and having to take off all of my work because I couldn’t get the liner to match on both of my eyes. I’ve been finding more and more gel liners at the drug store, so it’s a lot easier to find these days.
recommended gel liners:
MAC fluidline
L’oreal H.I.P gel liner
Maybelline cream liner
Stila smudge pot gel liner
recommended eyeliner brushes:
MAC 209
MAC 266
Sonia Kashuk bent eyeliner brush
Here is a picture showing how these different liners apply:
from left to right: liquid liner, pencil liner, and gel liner.
And here is a photo where I tried smudging the eyeliner to simulate how it would fade during the day.
from left to right: liquid liner, pencil liner, and gel liner.
As you can see, both the pencil and liquid liner had a good amount of smudging and fading but the gel liner held up pretty well with minimal wear. However, deciding what liner is best for you just depends on what you need. I actually use each of these pretty equally depending one what look I’m going for for that day. I hope this has helped you guys!