The Cool New Way to Wear Winged Eyeliner

Kirsten Dunst gave lower-winged realness in Cannes. (Photo: Getty Images)

Of all the hot beauty ideas to emerge from the Cannes Film Festival this past week, one of our favorites involves a trendy new twist on a classic look: the lower-lash wing.

Kim Kardashian worked a smokey eye for the De Grisogono party in Cannes on May 17 (see photo below). But instead of a dark, top-lid cat eye, the reality star instead rocked a bold swipe of winged eyeliner off the edge of her lower lashes. Actress Kirsten Dunst (above) also used a similar liner trick on May 16, when she walked the Cannes red carpet with an oh-so-subtle flick of a wing floating off the corner of her lower lash line.

If you like the look of winged liner, but need to update that old standby, the reverse wing can be a new go-to trick. According to celebrity makeup Marni Burton, it’s actually way easier to perfect than a classic wing. “With a lower-lash wing, you can look directly into the mirror instead of having to work with a shut eye,” she tells Yahoo Beauty. “Plus, if you mess up your line, you can just smoke it out. It does not need to be precise like a cat eye you’d do with liquid liner, so the lower-lash wing is an easier DIY.”

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If you want Kardashian’s dramatic lower-lash wing, Burton says to use a jet-black eyeliner pencil along the lower water-line, like Kevyn Aucoin Precision Eye Definer ($32). “Take a small black eyeliner brush like CHANEL Pinceau Eyeliner Brush #13 ($28) and wet it a tiny bit, then draw cakey black eyeliner on the lower-lash line.” Try Laura Mercier Tightline Cake Eye Liner in “Black Ebony” ($25) for this look. “Make sure to follow the curved shape of your eye, and don’t draw a straight line,” Burton continues. Extend the line out as if you’re extending towards the end point of your eyebrow.”

When your wing is complete, feel free to use a chunky black eyeliner over your line for a deep, dark nighttime-perfect look. “Or you can just color in specific areas to enhance the line wherever you’d like,” Burton says. For a thick eyeliner to complete this look, use L'Oreal Voluminous Smoldering Eyeliner Black 645 ($7.99). If you want liner with a touch of sheen, try Diorshow Waterproof Pro Liner “Backstage Black 092 ($32). “Swipe fiber-film mascara for a glossy and extended lower lash look,” Burton says, suggesting Kevyn Aucoin Lengthening ‘The Essential’ Mascara ($32).

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If you like Dunst’s more precise reverse wing, start on your water-line with a white eyeliner like Sonia Kashuk Dramatically Brightening Kajal Gel Eyeliner in “White 02” ($8.99). “Use a pencil along the lower lashline, like CHANEL Stylo Yeux Waterproof Long-Lasting Eyeliner ($33),” Burton says. “Extend line directly straight towards the top of your ear. Repeat the stroke two times.”

To finish, take an eyeliner brush with nothing on it and simply “dust over your wing to smudge just a bit,” says Burton. When your wing is complete, use the pencil liner to line your eye as you normally would — in the exact shape of your eye. “You are creating two different lines,” Burton says.

To top off your lower-lash winged look, opt for softly flushed cheeks and a complementary lip color. “I like a dimensional blush, like BECCA Beach Tint Shimmer Souffle in Fig-Opal or Guava-Moonstone ($27), and a hydrating lip color similar to the cheek, but with a bit more punch,” says Burton. Try BY TERRY Hyaluronic Sheer in “Nude Pulp” or “Innocent Kiss” ($38). Lastly brush brows to groom and fill in with eye pencil, but don’t intensify. “It will take away from the eye look,” Burton says.

Now go have fun winging it.