Make-up for hooded eyelids: 10 techniques to open up your eyes

Hooded eyelids: why doesn't classic make-up work?

Make-up for hooded eyelids calls for a different logic, because the area you would usually make up is partly hidden. When the skin beneath the brow bone drops and forms a fold, it covers the mobile lid as soon as the eye is open. The result: eyeshadow carefully blended with your eyes closed ends up creased, invisible, or transferred onto the skin above after a few hours. English speakers talk about "hooded eyes", literally eyes "under a hood", an expression that has become widespread on social media.

This laxity has several origins. For some women, it is there from their twenties, simply a matter of family anatomy. For others, it sets in over the years, as the eyelid skin, the thinnest on the body, loses its elasticity and the brow gently drops^[2]. We have detailed these causes, and the cases where it is better to see a doctor, in our article on hooded eyelids and their non-surgical solutions. Just remember this: an eyelid that droops suddenly, on one side only, or with double vision, is a matter for a doctor, not for an eyeshadow palette.

The good news is that this type of eye is very easy to make up, provided you change a few habits. Professional make-up artists always work the same way: they look at the eye open, from the front, and place shadows and highlights according to what remains visible. The ten techniques below follow this method, from preparing the eyelid to removing your make-up.

How do you prepare the eyelid so make-up lasts?

A hooded eyelid is prepared first and foremost so that make-up doesn't slide into the fold. The fold of skin creates a small warm, slightly damp space where eyeshadow and eyeliner tend to migrate and leave a line after a few hours. Two simple steps, before the first touch of colour, change how long everything lasts all day.

Technique no. 1: a thin base, completely dry

Start with an eyeshadow primer, or failing that a very thin touch of concealer, patted with your fingertip over the whole mobile lid and up to the crease. The idea is not to cover, but to create an even surface that grips the powder. Let it dry for a minute before applying anything, then set it with a veil of translucent loose powder. If your eye contour care is rich, apply it earlier in your routine, or use a smaller amount on the mobile lid: skin that is too oily makes make-up slip.

Technique no. 2: the brow, the first lift for your eyes

A well-defined brow visually lifts the whole eye. The secret lies in the tail of the brow: extended slightly upwards, it elongates the eye, whereas a tail that droops accentuates the heavy-lid effect. Brush the hairs upwards, fill in gaps with small light strokes, and avoid over-plucking underneath the brow, which visually supports the eyelid. A touch of matte highlight, just under the arch, finishes the job.

Which eyeshadow for hooded eyelids?

To make up hooded eyelids, choose mainly matte shadows and apply them with your eyes open. This is the technique that changes the most, and yet the least known. Classic tutorials have you work with the eye closed, following the natural crease of the eyelid; on a "hooded" eye, that crease is precisely what the fold of skin hides.

Technique no. 3: draw a faux crease, with your eyes open

Look at yourself straight on in a mirror placed at eye level, with your face relaxed. Find the line where the skin above comes to cover the eyelid. With a blending brush and a matte shadow one or two shades darker than your skin tone, draw a shadow slightly above this line, starting from the outer corner towards the middle of the eye. This faux crease recreates the depth that the fold hides, and it stays visible all day. Blend upwards and outwards, never downwards.

Technique no. 4: mattes on the fold, light in the right place

Pearly or glittery shadows catch the light and bring out everything that stands out, including the fold of skin. On the part that droops, swap them for mattes in soft tones: taupe, light brown, powder pink. Save the light for the areas that benefit from being highlighted: the centre of the mobile lid, just above the lashes, and the inner corner of the eye. A small iridescent touch in these two places opens up the eyes without weighing them down.

Technique no. 5: work the outer corner in a V shape

The outer corner sets the direction of your gaze. A shadow in the shape of a sideways V, starting at the lash base and sweeping up towards the tail of the brow, visually lifts the end of the eye. Conversely, a shadow placed too low on the outer corner makes the eye "droop". Keep the most intense colour on this angle and blend it into the faux crease you have just drawn, to avoid any harsh edge.

Eyeliner on hooded eyelids: which line to choose?

On a hooded eyelid, the right eyeliner is a fine line along the lash line, which barely thickens towards the outside and sweeps up towards the temple. A thick line disappears into the fold as soon as you open your eyes, or breaks into two pieces: the "broken wing" effect well known to anyone with hooded eyes.

Technique no. 6: the line that follows the tail of the brow

To draw a flick that stays visible, draw it with your eyes open, looking straight ahead. Place the tip of the pencil or felt-tip liner at the outer corner, then aim for the tail of the brow: this extension gives you the angle. Draw the flick from this point, then join the lash line with a very fine line. If the fold of skin cuts through your flick, draw it a little higher and a little shorter: better a small, clean flick than a large one that creases.

Technique no. 7: intensify the lash roots with a pencil

When the visible space is very limited, give up on the line and work on the lash roots instead. A soft pencil, pressed in small touches between the lashes, thickens the lash line without taking up space on the eyelid. Blended with a finger or a brush, it gives deeper-looking eyes, with no graphic line to keep in place. It is make-up artists' favourite technique for very hooded eyelids, because it doesn't transfer onto the fold.

Lipocils Crayon was designed for this step: its melting texture glides on easily and blends, sharp or smoky as you wish, and it lasts all day without running. Its formula is enriched with the Lipocils complex, hibiscus and safflower extracts, with castor oil and squalane to protect the lashes. In our satisfaction test, 43 % of the 21 volunteers found their lashes longer and thicker after two weeks of use: this is a perception, and we prefer to say so^[4].

Lashes, the best allies for heavy-looking eyes

Curling and lengthening the lashes is the most effective step to open up eyes with hooded eyelids. Lashes that point upwards visually lift the fold of skin and draw attention to the centre of the eye. Straight or short lashes, on the other hand, disappear under the eyelid and leave the eyes looking closed.

Technique no. 8: curl before mascara

Place the eyelash curler as close to the root as possible, without pinching the skin, and squeeze gently for a few seconds. You can move it up a notch towards the middle of the lashes for a more natural curve, rather than a right angle. Always on clean, dry lashes: on lashes that already have make-up on, the curler breaks them. If you want a curl that lasts several weeks, look into a lash lift, whose principle and precautions we explain in our article on the Korean lash lift.

Technique no. 9: a mascara that thickens without clumps

On a hooded eyelid, a heavily loaded mascara easily transfers onto the fold. The right habit is to work in several thin coats rather than a single thick one, and to concentrate the product at the root. Here is the order we recommend:

• Place the brush at the lash roots and wiggle it from left to right to deposit the product there.
• Sweep up towards the tips while turning the brush slightly, to keep the curl you got with the curler.
• Look down for a few seconds while the mascara dries, without blinking.
• Apply a second coat only to the lashes at the outer corner, to elongate the eye.

Lipocils Mascara XXL Volume combines a silicone "peanut" brush, which thickens the lashes without clumping, with a care formula enriched with the Lipocils plant complex, peptides and provitamin B5. In a clinical test carried out on 30 people over 56 days, lashes gained an average of 1.93 mm in length at the outer corner of the eye^[3].

Mistakes that make your eyes look heavier, and how to avoid them

The most common mistakes come from techniques designed for open eyelids. The first is doing your make-up with your eyes closed: it looks like a perfect job, which disappears when you open your eyes. The second is darkening the whole upper part of the eye: an entirely dark eyelid recedes and looks even heavier. The third, finally, is a thick eyeliner line applied in one stroke, which creases in the fold.

Other details matter too. Eyeshadow placed too low on the outer corner pulls the eye downwards. Very rich cream textures migrate into the crease within a few hours. And the lower eye is often forgotten: a dark pencil along the whole lower lash line closes the eye in, whereas a touch of colour limited to the outer third extends it.

Technique no. 10: set gently, remove without rubbing

Make-up that lasts also needs to be removed with care. At the end of the day, place a cotton pad soaked in make-up remover on the closed eye and leave it for a few seconds before sliding it off, without rubbing or pulling the skin. Repeated rubbing irritates the eyelid, and irritated skin ages faster. As for hygiene, the US Food and Drug Administration reminds us that it is best never to share your eye products, not to wear make-up if you have an infection or an inflamed eyelid, and that manufacturers recommend replacing a mascara two to four months after purchase^[1].

Make-up and skincare: looking after hooded eyelids every day

Make-up corrects the appearance of a hooded eyelid for a day; skincare works on the quality of the skin, over time. An eye contour treatment applied morning and evening, patted on with the tip of your ring finger, hydrates and smooths this very thin skin, and daily sun protection limits its laxity. Some women add LED light, which has been studied on wrinkles in this area: we detail what you can expect from it in our article on the benefits of the red LED mask.

Finally, the lashes deserve their own care. Long, thick lashes make every step in this guide easier. If you choose a serum to strengthen them, check that it doesn't contain a prostaglandin analogue: these molecules, similar to glaucoma medicines, can darken the iris and hollow the eye area. We explain how to spot them on the label in our article on prostaglandin-free lash serum. You can also find all our make-up that cares for your lashes in the Care make-up collection.