most asians have monolid eyes and the usual way of applying eye makeup don't work for this type of eyes. monolids don't have a defined crease and sometimes the upper eyelids either look puffy or flat. knowing the right technique of putting eyeshadow and eyeliner on monolids will help enhance the look, define the eyes and make it look bigger and rounder.

the hardest part of doing makeup for monolids is that it is very hard to bring out colors once the eyes are open. so it is better to apply eye makeup in such a way that you maximize the visible space above the folds of the eyelids to make the color more obvious.

the different eyeshadow techniques that work well with monolids are faking the crease or some people call cut the crease technique, graduating color from the lash line towards the browbone, and the cat-eye effect. each technique require proper selection of tools and color to make eyes stand out and not look too made up. lining the eyes also play a very important role in defining the shape of the eyes. adding the flick, tightlining and controlling the thickness of the eyeliner around every section of the eyes can either make your eyes bigger or appear smaller.

faking the crease/cut the crease

*photo from www.style.com
this technique is the hardest among the three since you need precision when it comes to drawing the crease as well as choosing the color to be used. the objective of this technique is to make the crease look as natural as possible. overdoing it would make it look drag and unnatural. unless you intend to make it look that way, then playing around with colors is ok.

i recommend using a good blending brush and angled brush to do this. it has to have the right density to blend in the colors well.

first you need to prime the eyes to make the colors pop and blend well. then apply an eyeshadow on the lids using a color that is a little bit lighter than the skintone. this will help the eyes look fresh and bigger. then using a 266 angled brush draw the crease using a darker shade starting from the outer corner of the eyes moving towards the inner corner close to the bridge of the nose. don't draw the crease too far from the lash line so it doesn't look unnatural nor draw it too close as it will not make any difference. at first the lines will be harsh and too obvious, this is ok since you will need to blend it out.

using a 219 pencil brush blend the drawn crease line up towards the brow bone. blend it in such a way that you maintain the definition of the line above the lash line and it gradually fades away up towards the brow bone. do not blend out too much that the color is way too high. make sure you leave a space below your brows for highlight.

then using a lighter color than the color u used for the crease, use a 217 blending brush to enhance the shape and make it more dramatic. starting from the outer corner of the eyes, lightly apply the color and blend it moving towards the center. you can either make it look round on the corner or combine it with cat-eye effect to make it very dramatic and sexy by also making the outer v more defined.

use the 224 blending brush to add highlight below the brows and remove any harsh lines. then apply eyeliner and mascara. i will discuss later the eye lining techniques later in this entry.

gradient
*photo from www.nymag.com
this technique is the easiest, safest and fastest way to enhance monolids. you simply apply the eyeshadow in such a way that the darkest shade starts from the lash line and gradually fading towards the brow bone.

you can play with different colors with this technique without making it overly done. this look is also good as everyday look and can either be worn subtle during the day or dramatic during the night.

with a 252 flat brush, pack in the color just above the lash line. make sure that you don't apply all over the lids and don't apply too much right away. it is easier to add color than reduce it when you have applied too much. make sure that you apply enough to cover up to the folds of your lids. using either a 219 pencil brush or 217 blending brush (use pencil brush if you have very small eyes) blend out the colors to create a gradient going up the brow bone. follow the curvature of your eyes with the mid section having the highest point of the curve. add more as you like.

tip: i usually use a dark brown shade and layer another color (say pink or purple) to make it look more fun. dark brown gives emphasis and make eyes look more dramatic than just adding color straight to your eyes. black would sometimes work with some people but this can be worn during the night. when you use black, you pack in the color first before adding the black on top of the color.

some add highlight in the mid section of the lid by layering a lighter shade to make the eyes look rounder (same as the picture above) you can experiment using different colors and have fun with it. :) also do not forget to add highlight below your brows for a fresh look. then apply eyeliner and mascara as usual.

cat-eye effect
*photo from www.style.com
the cat-eye is one of my favorite eye shading techinique since it perfectly work for my eyes :D this technique is almost the same as gradient just that we don't pack in the dark shade on all sections of the eye. instead we concentrate on putting the darkest shade on the outer corner creating a dramatic outer v shape.

using a 252 flat brush, pack in the color over your eyelids. make sure that this is the color that is not too dark or too light. then using a 217 blending brush, light apply a darker shade to the outer corner of your eyes and slowly blend it in using circular motion towards the center of the eyes. define the outer v shape by blending it outward and up forming a v shape using a 219 pencil brush. you can either just blend out or make it very dramatic by adding a black shade to your outer v. use the 217 again to blend the colors and remove harsh lines. add highlight below your browbones and in the inner corners of the eyes to make it pop out. put eyeliner on and apply mascara. adding a flick when you put an eyeliner will look really nice and sexy.

eyelining techniques
there are several techniques available to make monolid eyes bigger and dramatic. tightlining is the most effective way since it doesn't make your eyes look smaller and it looks natural. it enhances your eyes in such a way that it makes your lashes look thicker. also it gives definition to your lash line without making your eyes look smaller. you can check my other entry on how to do tightlining.

also using a waterproof liquid liner is effective for monolids, when dried up, this do not smudge out and it is easy to apply and help you define the thickness or thinness of the line that you want to put above your lash line. make sure that you line as close to your lashes as possible. depending on the shape of your eyes, the thickness of the line in each section varies. if you don't do this, this will not make any difference at all. if your eye shape look flat in the mid section (just above the pupil), apply the liner thicker than the inner and outer corners. this will make your eyes rounder. if the mid section is round but eyes look small on the outer corner then the liner should be applied thin from the inner corner and gets thicker as it goes out. when doing this, i usually start from the outer corner by drawing a diagonal line towards the center of the eyes and line the eyes from inner corner connecting it to the other half. make sure that you use a good angle brush or a felt tip liner. also make the angle as small as possible and just increase the thickness as you like. this is better than starting with a very thick line and later on realize that you made it too thick. same with the under eyes, depending on your eye shape, you could either make the mid section or the outer section thicker. avoid putting liner on the inner corner of your eyes if you have close set eyes. but for wider set eyes, adding liner on the inner corner would enhance the look.

there are other techniques out there that may also do great for monolids so don't stop experimenting and trying out new ways. always remember that adding makeup should help enhance your looks and not the other way around :)