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All you need to know about the bewitching charm of eyeliners

There is no look that cannot get a thousand times better with the correct application of eyeliner. It is the most quintessential beauty product in any woman’s dresser. It is also the most carried-along one – you will almost always find a kajal or kohl or an eyeliner in a woman’s purse. This proves how much reliable the thing is as far as quick makeover is concerned.

Here you have got a brief of all you ever wanted to know about eyeliners – history, types, components, creative ideas of applying and so on.

The origin history of eyeliners

Remember the movie Cleopatra where Elizabeth Taylor looked like a dream with those double eyelashes and wing-tip liners? That is actually where the trend started – the Egyptians. Both men and women in Egypt and in some parts of Mesopotamia used to wear dark eyeliner around their eyes. This had a scientific reason too – to protect the eye contour from the direct heat of the desert sun.

Experts have found out that the Egyptians made their eyeliners out of a good many materials including copper ore, antimony and Galena, which is basically the mineral form of Lead (II) Sulphide. They got the mineral from the nearby lands of Punt, Coptos and other parts of western Asia.

Adaptation to the modern day

After the fall of the Egyptians in the hand of Roman Empire, the style of eyeliner faded away from the West. In the east, the style might have been there. But with British colonisation and the consequent effect of neat and clean Victorian era style kept the popularity of eyeliners underground.

But in around 1920, it was dug up from the dead – literally as well as figuratively. The world was already taking after the pop culture thanks to Hollywood and theatres. Women wanted to look like their onscreen and onstage counterparts. At this juncture, the worldwide coverage of the excavation of Tutankhamen’s tomb and the look of his golden mask brought the rage back to the centre of the changing cosmetics industry.

You wouldn’t expect an ancient male monarch to influence women’s fashion, but that is exactly what happened.

The new styles of eyeliners

From 1920 for about 40 years, the eye makeup revolved around the basic eye liner pencil. In about the 1960s, this changed. The liquid eyeliner came into style and was popularised exactly how every beauty product is popularised – by the cinema and fashion industry. Makeup artists and fashion associates started using liquid eyeliner for better and bolder strokes.

This is the time when eye makeup took off inspired by the punk-rock and gothic styles as well as classic Hollywood style. Long before she turned into the sassy Olenna Tyrell for the HBO saga Game of Thrones, she was one of Hollywood ladies who rocked the classic cat’s eye style with panache.

The different types of eyeliner available

Our current cosmetics market knows five different types of eye liner. They vary in application style, texture, component, longevity and sometimes even define your look.

1. Wax-based eyeliner pencil: These look like the crayons from our childhood. They are literally made of wax and are soft and creamy. They are the easiest to apply – just like colouring. Only it is your eyelids instead of a book. These are referred to as kajal in a generic sense.

You will find wax-based cream eyeliners in pot containers as well, which can be applied using a brush. Wax-based eyeliners are available in both darker and lighter shades.

2. Liquid eyeliner: Liquid eyeliners come in a container usually with a sharp-tipped applicator brush. One needs to be cautious while applying them since it is liquid and easily spreadable. But when done correctly, it creates the best eyeliner look and the most precise.

3. Kohl eye liner: Kohl is the traditional product used in India for ages. Mothers have used it to put kaala teeka on their children. It is the same product that certain Muslim men use as Surma on their eyes. However, they have been given a makeover and made into soft pressed powdery pencils. People who ever extra-dark tones on their eyes choose kohl eyeliner over others.

4. Wooden eyeliner pencil: These are literally like colour pencils, which come in dark, matted shades. You can literally sharpen them like you used to sharpen pencils back in school, in case the tip gets blunt.

5. Gel eyeliner: The gel type of eyeliner is the latest addition to the family. They have a shinier, darker look, quicker to dry and easier to apply because of its semi-solid, semi-liquid texture. It is softer than average kajals but denser than the liquid eyeliner.

The classic styles of applying eyeliner

Over the years, the fashion world has seen innumerable styles of eyeliner application. Most faded, but some stayed on as timeless styles.

1. The classic smoky eyes: This one will probably never go out of style. It is best done with a basic creamy stick or kajal. It takes some time to get the smudging technique perfect, but when done, nothing quite like it.

2. The wing-tip: This swansong inspired look is the one where the stroke of your eyeliner forms the tip at the end like the wing of a bird. It makes the eyes look bigger and dramatic.

3. The all-around basic one: This is your everyday office look, where you simply outline your eyes with the pencil or liquid eyeliner without any sort of extra effects. It looks decent and works with almost any sort of attire – traditional or western.

4. The cat’s eye: The classic Hollywood style cat’s eye is hard to leave out from this list. Here the line is drawn thick towards the ends and extended outwards from your eyes to give a sleek look.

5. The tight lining: This style is to make your eyelashes look thicker and denser by applying the eyeliner tight against the waterline under the lashes of your upper lid and above the lashes of the lower lid.

With all the benefits of waterproof and smudge-free best eyeliner products nowadays, and the options of choosing from a variety of dark and light shades like black, brown, blue, green, and even beige and white – we will never stop exploring what we can do with a few strokes on the eyes.