Smokey browns???

[User67]

I have a ton of gold, brown & bronze MAC shadows. But, I just feel like I am in kind of a make-up rut right now. I would like to create a darky smokey sexy eye with them, but every time I try it looks like mudd. What would you ladies to to create this look with brown & gold shades?

 

[user79]

I like using Bronze CCB lightly as a wash, and then putting the shadows on top. Usually I'll use a Paint, then a light wash of the Bronze CCB, then use something like woodwinked and Mulch or Antiqued, and maybe a bit of black eyeliner or Carbon to add smokeyness around the lashline.

 

[hunnybun]

i think your problem may be that you are blending too much. this can make browns look muddy.

a smokey gold/brown look that i like to do is:
UDPP (or your primer of choice) dazzleray pig all over the lid up to the brow bone for a light base of shimmer. all that glitters e/s on the inner lid. goldmine e/s on the middle of the lid. woodwinked e/s on the outer lid. chocolate brown pig or espresso e/s on the outer V and blend it into the crease. the trick is lightly softening the lines where the different shadows meet to create a gradual variant without making all the colors indistinguishable.

if you don't have these colors you can easily sub in any series of gold and brown shades and apply then gradually from light to darkest, saving the darkest shade to contour your outer V and crease for the smokey effect.

hope that helps!!

 

[thelilprincess]

couple years ago, when i told the MA i wanted smokey, she suggested Brule to highlight, Honesty on lid, and Smut to smoke. Smut is described as black, but it's more like brownish black to me.

and i agree, don't blend too much - it will mud up all the browns together. hth.

 

[me_jelly]

I agree with the above post that you may be overblending when doing smokeys involving browns (esp. darker richer browns).

It helps to have a light neutral base all over your lid (with shimmer, preferably, as I find that aids the blending process) - when you apply your darkest brown (or crease color), only pat/dab a little bit at a time (while depositing most of the color near the lash line) and then try blending using a blending brush (like 217) in small circles outwards, GENTLY. If you find the crease color to be not dark enough still, then add a little more. I remember when I started experimenting with smokey browns, I often put too much dark crease color on, then tried desparately to blend it to perfection, which always resulted in a bloody, muddy mess.

Also, do not overblend between each color on your eyes (i.e. between a lighter and darker color) - only blend using small vertical strokes between each color until the harsh lines are softened (so you get a slight gradient between the colors) - when you overblend between each color, the result is also a muddy mess lol.

One last thing is to try avoid bringing the darkest shades too much into lighter ones, this also causes the muddy look (so always gently blend the lighter shades into the darker ones, and not vice versa).

Good luck!