Eyeshadow Colors for Your Eye Color, and Where Each Shade Goes

How to use the eyeshadow colors for your eye color finder

Choose your eye color first. If your eyes change with the light, pick the color they look most often in daylight. Then choose your undertone, the occasion and the finish you like. The result shows a diagram of one eye with each zone filled in, a list of the five shades and what each zone does, and the wider family of shades that suit your eye color, with the color wheel reason for each.

The lid and outer corner shades come from your eye color and the occasion. The brow bone, inner corner and crease shades follow your undertone, so they blend into your skin rather than sitting on top of it.

How the color wheel picks eyeshadow colors for your eye color

Makeup guides use the painter’s color wheel, where red sits opposite green, orange opposite blue and purple opposite yellow. Colors that sit opposite each other make each other look more intense, which is why a copper shadow makes blue eyes look bluer. Colors that sit next to each other look calm and harmonious, which is why a bronze shadow on hazel eyes looks soft and warm rather than striking.

Neither is right or wrong. Opposite shades are the choice when you want your eye color to be the first thing people notice. Neighboring shades and neutrals are the choice for everyday makeup and for looks that need to sit quietly with the rest of the face.

Eyeshadow for green eyes

Green sits opposite red on the painter’s wheel, so red-leaning shades make green eyes stand out. For every day, a mauve pink on the lid with mahogany in the outer corner is soft enough to wear anywhere. For a wedding, plum in the outer corner adds contrast that holds up in photos while the lid stays soft. For an evening, burgundy and eggplant make green eyes look their most vivid. Rust and copper work too, especially on warm undertones, while very green shadows tend to compete with the eye rather than flatter it.

A charcoal, plum or bronze liner frames green eyes more softly than black. If your green eyes have a lot of gold around the pupil, the hazel advice below may suit you better.

Eyeshadow for hazel eyes

Hazel eyes mix green and gold, often with brown, and they shift with what you wear. That makes them flexible. Plums and eggplant bring out the green flecks, because purple sits across the wheel from the gold and yellow tones in the eye. Warm browns, bronze, copper and soft gold bring out the gold, because they sit next to it. The wedding look in the finder uses both: a gold lid and a plum outer corner, so neither side of hazel eyes gets lost in photos.

Look at your eyes in daylight before you choose. If they read mostly green, lean on the plum family. If they read mostly golden brown, lean on bronze and copper.

Eyeshadow for gray eyes

Gray eyes have very little color of their own, so they pick up what is around them. Steely shades such as silver, mink gray and charcoal make them look clear and striking. Icy blue reflects into gray eyes and makes them look bluer, and champagne makes them look brighter and softer. A soft brown in the outer corner adds definition without the harshness of black.

Because gray eyes borrow color so easily, clothing matters more than usual. A blue dress or a blue-toned shadow pulls them toward blue, while warm browns and golds can make them look green-gray. If you like that shift, use it: pick the version of the look that pulls your eyes in the direction you prefer, and keep the liner soft so the color stays the focus.

Brown eyes and blue eyes

Brown and blue are the two most common eye colors, so each has its own detailed guide with everyday, wedding and evening looks. In short, brown eyes can wear almost any shade, and cool plums, navy and green make them look richer, while bronzy gold brings out their warmth. Blue eyes look brightest with warm, orange-based shades such as copper, terracotta, bronze and gold, and a brown or bronze liner rather than black.

Where each eyeshadow shade goes

Every look in the finder uses five zones. A pale, mostly matte shade just under the brow lifts the area. A little light or shimmery shadow at the inner corner opens the eye. The main shade goes across the moving lid. A soft transition shade in the crease adds depth and blends the lid into the outer corner. The deepest shade goes in a soft V or C at the outer corner, blended in toward the crease.

Hooded eyes need one adjustment. The natural crease is often hidden when the eye is open, so place the crease shade a little higher, then open your eyes and check that you can still see it. Blend more than you think you need, so there are no hard edges between zones.

Eyeshadow for weddings and photos

Bridal eye makeup needs to look soft in person and still show in pictures. Keep the crease and outer corner matte and well blended, and use shimmer only in the center of the lid and the inner corner, where light hits naturally. Very frosty shadows and loose glitter can look patchy or reflective in flash photos, so test any shine at your trial.

A primer or a thin layer of concealer on the lid helps eyeshadow last through a long day, especially in Florida humidity. Choose shades you can wear for eight hours or more, and check them in a photo taken with the flash on before the wedding.