We are in the second half of the year, which means we are about to be hit with a number of events such as weddings, festive occasions, music festivals, concerts, and more. This is the time for you to reinvent yourself and try on new looks that would otherwise seem too dramatic any other time of the year. No shimmery eyes, glittery lids, blindly blushed cheeks are too extra, everything is high stake, and so has to be your makeup.
But this time, we all have our signature lip combo that we pull out of the closet when that extra dose of pizzazz is needed, but our eyes are where we can get crazy year after year. After all, when swirling around the Garba floor with your crush and stealing glances from your beloved, one from across the room at a wedding celebration has more to do with the eyes than it has to do with words. Let the eyes do the talking this festive season with these crazy yet effortless, high-drama yet not over-the-top eye makeup looks recommended by Nykaa beauty editors.
1. Sunset Soirée
This makeup look is perfect for a music festival or a Haldi/Sangeet night. It has all the vibrant colours you need to match the colourful vibe of the evening, and with just a few colours and a steady hand, you can do it too. Here’s the step-by-step guide on how to do it.
Step 1: Apply some eye primer to your lids so the pigment sticks thoroughly.
Step 2: Take some pink eyeshadow and apply it under your brows, right above your lashes, and with an eyeshadow brush, smoosh some under your lower lashline.
Step 3: Now, take a Q-tip and dip it in micellar water, gently removing the pigment from the lids to create a negative space as shown in the picture.
Step 4: Take a thin brush and some yellow eyeshadow, starting from the inner corner of your eye.
Step 5: Create a snake-eye with a felt-tip eyeliner and add some high-volume mascara as finishing touches.
2. Life Of A Showgirl
Tell me you’re a Swiftie without telling me you are a Swiftie, because this eyeshadow is based on the colour-scheme of Tay-Tay’s new album – Life of a Showgirl (2025), which will do the job. The perfect symphony of teal and burnt orange is exactly what you need to show you’re the IT girl in any room. Add some glitter to it, the show is yours, baby.
Step 1: Create a proper base with any primer. If you have deep-set eyes or pigmentation on and around the lids, use a concealer for an even base.
Step 2: Take powder blue, teal, or fairy blue eyeshadow and start applying it on the inner corner of your eyes.
Step 3: Then take some shimmery orange shadow and cover three-fourths of the eyelids with it.
Step 4: Take a thick brush and gently blend the two colours without smudging them.
Step 5: Draw some fake freckles with a brown eyeliner on the top of the bridge of the nose, and apply some mascara to your lashes.
3. Asymmetric Graphic Lines
If you have steady hands and are a professional at drawing thin lines over your eyelids, it’s time you take it up a notch with asymmetrical eyeliner. The colour is already different here, so you have to be even with your drawing. This look is perfect for a low-key house party, Halloween night, or even a girl’s night out.
Step 1: Take a black eyeliner, draw a line that stretches inner corner to the outer corner of your eye on one eye, repeat the same with white eyeliner on the other eye.
Step 2: Use a white eyeliner to draw a thin line on top of your lids, close to the eyebrows, without touching them. Repeat this step on the other eye using black eyeliner.
Step 3: Apply false eyelashesto the outer corner of your lids for an extra flare.
Step 4: Add some mascara to your lashes for extra volume.
4. The Festive Sparkle
This is ideal for a daytime event such as pool parties and brunches, but also for nighttime events such as concerts and raves. The yellow eyeliner on top of the subtle eyeshadow is the perfect way to pay homage to the butter yellow trend that lives rent-free in every beauty girlie’s makeup moodboard. Add a little touch of pink hues, and you will have yourself a no-effort effort look.
Step 1: Apply a dash of shimmery yellow eyeshadow on your lids, keeping it close to your lash line and not all over your lids.
Step 2: Take a liquid yellow eyeliner and create the graphic lines as seen in the reference. If you can draw it directly onto your eyes, try making them on a piece of plastic, imprinting them on your lids, and then drawing over it. Now that you have a trace to follow.
Step 3: Take a glitter pink eyeshadow pen and dab a bit on the upper-inner corner of the eyes and some on the highpoints of your cheeks.
Step 4: Finish the look with some lengthening mascara.
5. Even When The Sun Don’t Shine
This has to be the most low-effort, high-result makeup look to try this festive season. Why should only your outfit radiate like the sun when your eyelids can too? With just two lines spread across the eye can create a memorable look that is perfect for vibrant festive occasions.
Step 1: Make sure to use some concealer around the eyes, because these are light colours that will not show up if you have an uneven base.
Step 2: Apply some nude eyeshadow to blur out the lines and fill in any fine lines or wrinkles, so the only lines that shine are the ones you draw.
Step 3: Draw around 8-10 vertical lines on your eyelids first with yellow eyeliner, then with orange eyeliner, adjacent to it.
Step 4: Add some clear mascara to your lashes for volume, curl, and length without the pigment.
6. For The Matcha Latte Girlies
After the colour pink, it’s matcha that’s causing a global shortage, and that’s because all the cottage core girlies have decided to unanimously like something that causes a seismic shift in the world economy. And what better way to decorate your eyes than with a matcha latte palette that’s soft, sober, and the right amount of cheeky.
Step 1: Start with a light coloured eyeshadow base for the green to pop up.
Step 2: Take some matcha green eye shadow with a matte base and generously apply it on your prepped lids.
Step 3: Wipe off any excess pigment for sharper edges with a Q-tip soaked in micellar water.
Step 4: Finish the look with a white liner on the borders, including your tightline for that edgy look.
Step 5: Take some clear mascara to complete the look.
7. Glitter Bomb
It’s giving post-Piñata burst on your eyes. It’s giving glitter bomb. If you are not great at symmetric lines and want to try your hand at something freehand, then this glitter bomb look is the best thing to try. You can’t go wrong with randomly placed dots, and the best part? Every version looks pretty on its own.
Step 1: Start with a hydrating primer to ensure all the glitter sticks to your lids, and none of it rolls down into your eyes.
Step 2: Take a light blue-based glitter eyeshadow.
Step 3: Take liquid blue eyeliner and the back of a thin brush, and make dots over the glitter. Use different brush bottoms for differently-sized dots.
Step 4: Spritz some eye-friendly setting spray to keep the glitter particles intact.
Step 5: Apply some non-clunky lengthening mascara.
8. Sabrina Barbie
This could be the easiest eyeshadow that’s a no-brainer, bullet-proof, and always on-point. For this flawless look, all you need is pink shimmery eyeshadow, some black mascara, and a strong base.
Step 1: Apply a thin layer of a light eyeshadow to create an even base for the pink to really pop.
Step 2: Take a thick brush and dab the pink eyeshadow on your eyelids.
Step 3: Take a Q-tip that’s soaked in micellar water and for a sharp border on the top.
Step 4: Take some volumising mascara and add some thickness to your lashes.
9. South Asian Baddie
If you have pigmentation around your eyes, this eye makeup is the best. The colour is already there, all you have to do is apply concealer under your eyes and create the perfect wing. All you need is black kohl that’s smudged at the right places with a winged eyeliner and a shimmery inner eye.
Step 1: Apply concealer to the places you don’t want a light base.
Step 2: Take some brown or burnt orange eyeshadow and apply it to your lids except the inner corner of your eyes.
Step 3: Take some black eyeshadow and smudge some on the line over the lashes and under your waterline.
Step 4: Apply some light orange eyeliner on your tightline for that foxy eye look.
Step 5: Make some tribal dots near your eyes with a black eyeliner and some yellow shimmer on the inner corner of the eyes.
10. Ethereal Halo
Just like Beyoncé’s Halo, the halo in eyeshadows aren’t going anywhere. Recreate this look for any festive occasion or a musical night for that extra layer of theatrics wherever you go. Bring the right blending tools to the table, and you will have yourself a perfect look that’s good for days to come.
Step 1: Prime and prep your eyes and apply some light pink eyeshadow to the outer and inner parts of the eyelids.
Step 2: Apply some yellow gold shimmer towards the centre and some on the inner corner. You can also apply some under the brows.
Step 3: Add a pair of flasies for that oomph and pizzazz.
Step 4: Create a smudged long wing with a kajal pencil that almost touches the tip of your brows.
Step 5: Add some mascara to finish the look.
Parting Thoughts
Eye makeup can look daunting, but with the right tools, perfect colours and shimmers, and some micellar water to fix the damage, you too can ace the ideal festive look. From weddings to festive occasions, from concerts to gatherings, one of these 10 eye looks can do the job for you. So the next time you are worried about your basic outfit, just elevate it with the right eye makeup.
FAQs
-
Can I use setting spray on my eyelids?
Yes, you can use setting spray around your eyes, just make sure your eyes are tightly shut so none of the products enter the inside of your eyes. You can also use a primer and a concealer to lock all the products you apply as a gripping base.
-
How to create a smoky eye?
If you are looking to create the perfect smoky eye, as a beginner, you can smudge a few colours, starting from the inner corner of your eyes to the outer. Then use a brush to blend and create the perfect radiant look. A pro tip is to keep a Q-tip and micellar water handy to make your cut crease sharp. You can also use a kajal to extend the eyeshadow into a wing, and use your finger to extend the tip.
-
What eye makeup is best for the festive season?
Shimmery metallics, bright colours, and warm hues are the best for the festive season eye makeup.
