Cat-Eye Clean-Up: How to Fix Winged Liner for the Eyeliner Impaired

Tips and tricks to clean up messy makeup application

By Diana Nguyen Jul 08, 2015 12:46 AMTags
Ariana Grande, Grammy AwardsSteve Granitz/WireImage

Getting the cat-eye look is easy, right? Just flick your wrist and a perfect wing worthy of Zooey Deschanel or Ariana Grande magically appears? Easier said than done.

We can watch as many YouTube makeup tutorials as we want, but at the end of the day, that supposedly smooth line looks more like an EKG graph. Save yourself the Q-tips and stress spent striving for beauty perfection. Cat-eye clean-up is done and done with some strategic planning and a few easy tips.

Start with the wings: For perfectly symmetrical cat-eyes à la Taylor Swift, consider drawing the wings before you line the upper lash line. If you mess up, redo just the wing rather than the whole eye. Time-saver!

Use concealer: So you've just finished drawing both cat-eyes. Awesome…except one side looks like it has a broken wing. Don't fret—using a small brush, apply concealer to smooth or clean up any wonky lines. Using a white eyeliner pencil or highlighter stick can have the same effect.

Michael Stewart/GC Images

Smudge it out: OK, so the wings look even enough, but the application on the lash line has gone a bit awry. Apply a light-colored eyeshadow across the line to disguise any imperfection. This will also help set the liner.

One cotton-tip required: If the cat-eye balance is still out of reach, use one (yes, just one!) cotton-tip and swipe away (in one fluid motion) the messy areas with makeup remover, like Farmaesthetics Eye Makeup Remover & Treatment Oil, which will easily lift up product and help soothe the skin at the same time.