Based between London and the Middle East, sisters Fyza and Sonia Ali are two beauty mavens who run the popular blog soniafyza.blogspot.fr. Fyza was trained by Kim Kardashian’s makeup artist Mario Dedivanovic and specializes in Middle Eastern beauty. Sonia is the face/model of the beauty blog.
We all love big eyes, especially in the Middle East. Ahead of a makeover, “I want my eyes to appear bigger” is the most popular request. If you’re among those women who want to achieve the doe-eyed look, these are the tips and tricks to help create the illusion of large eyes.
First thing: avoid black eyeliner. As much as we love a smoky look, different colors should be used. Black eyeliner in the waterline is great for women who already have large eyes, but if you have small peepers, it will only serve to make them appear smaller.
Before applying your eye makeup, think about what colors will go well with your outfit or hijab. For your eyelids, choose champagne/light gold colors; matte texture is much more effective, but opt for a shimmery powder if it is an evening look. You can choose any crease color but for the classic look, try Naked from Urban Decay with a 224 M.A.C brush—it gives the best, seamless shadow application.
Use the Vanilla pigment by M.A.C on your inner tear duct area, this will give an instant brightening effect. If you are a cat-eye type of a girl, concentrate on the ends of your eyes; and thin out the wing/flick as it approaches the tear duct.
For daytime, I usually like to smoke out a wing with a chocolate brown color. The waterline is where you will see a difference—use an eyeliner that matches your skin tone, but do not use white, which can come across as harsh. I like to use the eye pencils from M.A.C; the best thing about them is that they come in your skin tone shades, for example: NC25, NC35, NW30, and NW50. These are available at the M.A.C Pro stores.
On the lower lash line, you can use any color you want because at this point, your eyes already look big. I like smoked out purple, burnt orange, and aqua. Sometimes, I apply a double wing by adding the skin tone liner between the two wings in the outer corner.
Finally, curling your lashes will also make a difference. Recently, my favorite thing to do is apply the Benefit Cosmetics They’re Real! colored mascara in blue, green, and purple. This adds the perfect exotic touch without being too over-the-top. You can choose to add lashes of your choice; Ardell Wispies or Red Cherry WSP are great for the classic, everyday “awake” eye makeup look.
—Sonia and Fyza Ali
