How to Apply Eyeliner: A Simple, Safe Routine for Beginners

Choose a liner you can control

Our picks cover three formats: a liquid pen, a felt-tip pen and a mechanical pencil. If you are starting out, look for a listing built around easy application. Maybelline says its Hyper Easy liquid pen has a flexible brush tip and a grip designed for stable application; e.l.f. says its H2O Proof pen has a fine felt tip for thin or thick lines; and L'Oréal's Infallible Never Fail is a mechanical pencil with a built-in sharpener and smudger.

Want more options? Our best eyeliner guide compares a pencil, a liquid liner and a gel pencil.

How to apply eyeliner, step by step

1. Check your eyes first. The FDA advises against using eye cosmetics if you have an eye infection or the skin around your eye is inflamed.

2. Stay outside the lash line. The AAO advises keeping makeup outside the lash line, away from the eye, so it doesn't block the oil glands of the upper or lower lid.

3. Work from the inner corner outward, per L'Oréal. L'Oréal's directions for its Infallible pencil say to apply along the lash line starting from the inner corner and working outwards. The AAO's advice in step 2 still applies.

4. Soften or sharpen. For a smoky look, L'Oréal says to gently smudge the line with the built-in smudger. For a crisper line, e.l.f. says its felt tip can go from thin, tight lines to thick cat eyes.

The waterline question

Some eyeliner listings say their product can go on the waterline; Revlon's ColorStay listing, for example, says it is suitable there. The AAO's advice is different: keep makeup outside the lash line, away from the eye. If you line your waterline anyway, the FDA says to stop using any eye cosmetic that causes irritation.

Eye-makeup safety basics

Both the American Academy of Ophthalmology (opens in a new tab) and the FDA (opens in a new tab) publish simple rules for eye makeup:

Don't share it. The AAO says never share eye makeup, even with family or close friends; the FDA notes another person's bacteria may be hazardous to you.

Replace it. The AAO says to throw away eye makeup after three months, because bacteria grow easily in creamy or liquid eye makeup.

Take it off at night. The AAO says to remove all eye makeup before sleeping.

Keep still. The FDA says never to apply or remove eye cosmetics in a moving vehicle.

Stop if it stings. The FDA says to stop using any eye cosmetic that causes irritation, and the AAO notes glitter eye makeup is a common cause of corneal irritation or infection, especially for contact lens wearers.

Finishing your eyes? See our tubing mascara picks and our under eye cream guide.