How To Wear Silver Eyeshadow – Be Party Ready This New Year’s Eve!

If you have been reading my beauty articles weekly here on SAACA, you know that I am all about “stepping out of the box” and trying new ways of doing things with your makeup look! Throw out that little voice in your head that says, “Older women can’t wear that,” or “Play it safe.” Okay so maybe you like “safe” when it comes to makeup, and that is okay. But, I promise you, trying a  bold lip color or a new eye shadow shade (that isn’t BROWN) might actually surprise you and produce a little bit of joy in your getting-ready routine! So today, I will show you How To Wear Silver Eyeshadow. 

We are SO close to Christmas Eve, which can only mean, New Year’s Eve is also right around the corner.  And what better way to show your holiday spirit than by donning a METALLIC SILVER eyeshadow look?? My love for anything sparkly or metallic knows no bounds and shows no signs of slowing down even as I age. 

Luckily with today’s sophisticated makeup formulas, from both the prestige and the drugstore brands, they all make it possible to do shimmer and shine with grown-up glamour!

Got crow’s feet or wrinkly eyelids…who cares! Your eyes will look vibrant and alive in shades of silver!  Feel free to build them up for more brightness or keep them sheer and soft depending on your mood. Below are my two pictures of inspiration from celebs, actress Helen Mirren who is 78, and singer Rita Ora who is 33.

Today I’m going to show you the simple makeup tricks to pulling off a silver eyeshadow look and what other makeup to pair with it. 

TL;DR

  Jennifer shows us How To Wear Silver Eyeshadow

  Jennifer’s product recommendations are shoppable via text links and image widgets

How To Wear Silver Eyeshadow – Be Party Ready This New Year’s Eve! 

START WITH AN EYELID PRIMER

Nars Pro Prime Smudgeproof Eyeshadow Base, $26. You cannot do a shimmer/glitter/metallic eye look without priming your lids first! It’s a must. This one by Nars will guarantee your look will stay on your lid and not underneath your eyes as the day/night wears on. You will apply this over your entire bare eyelid with your finger or a concealer brush. 

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GRAB A SILVER EYESHADOW PALETTE

Colourpop Stone Cold Fox palette, $34. I am a huge huge fan of this palette that has 30 cool-toned + soft warm matte and metallic shades that you can take your look from everyday day neutral to ultra-dimensional glam! And the pigments are amazing and smooth for this price point. I cannot recommend this palette enough. And it has the BEST silver shade included! 

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START BUILDING YOUR EYE LOOK

BK Beauty Essential Eyeshadow brush set, $80. Now for the fun part – building your silver-eye look! Of course, you have to start with a good set of shadow brushes to create your look, and BK Beauty has the best and highest quality ones on the market right now, in my opinion. 

1. First, sweep a light ivory underneath the brow bone for lift. 

2. Second, add a neutral taupe or brown into the crease area only (where you can see the folds of the eye) to ground the eye.

3. Now, find the silver shade and press it in the area from your lash line right up to your crease – pack it on until you get the amount of shimmer and shine you like! 

4. Feel free to go back in with your taupe or brown to buff out the edges between the silver and neutrals for a soft effect.

5. For an extra pop of silver, I mixed my silver and bright white shimmer shadow together and popped it right around my tear duct area.

6. Just as in the Rita Ora look, she added a light swipe of warmer taupe shimmer just long the outer 3/4 ‘s of the lower lash line. This balances out the coolness of the silver.

Now you could stop here and just add mascara for a most subtle silver look. But of course, I’m going to go a bit further…

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ADD LINER

Buxom Powerline Liner “Throwing Shade,” $21. Instead of traditional eyeliner on the top, I use a small tipped eyeliner brush and dip into the dark espresso brown shade (matte) in the palette and brush along my upper lash line to deepen. Then I took a deep charcoal traditional eyeliner and rubbed it into my inner waterline on the bottom. You could also use a nude eyeliner here if your eyes are tiny and sunken in (this will open up smaller eyebeds).

 

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FINISHING TOUCHES

When creating a more statement eye such as this silver one, I think balance is key. Which means to keep the lips and cheeks softer and more subtle and to keep with a cooler pink-ish theme for both.

Blush: Patrick Ta Double Take Cream + Powder Blush, “She’s A Doll, “36.” Highlighter: Dior Backstage Glow Quad, $48. Lips: Sephora Collection Rouge Laquer Lipstick “Not your baby 15”, $14.

You also know how much I adore the Patrick Ta blushes because they offer cream and powder blush in the same palette and this “She’s A Doll” is just the most stunning pop of pink to add to the cheeks. 

I of course go a step further by adding a sweep of highlighter on top of my blush for more dimension and shine. I mean it is an NYE look – the more sparkle the better!

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Then the finished touch is the lips, and I have found that the affordable Sephora collection Rouge Laquer lipsticks have plenty of shine without having to add a gloss to them. They also feel incredibly hydrating on the lips which is a bonus during these dry winter months.  The pink I chose has a dash of warmth to it, making it the perfect shade of pink in my opinion that doesn’t come off frosty. 

I hope you enjoyed this post on How to Wear Silver Eyeshadow. So remember when trying out a look that has any glitter, shimmer or sparkle to it, don’t fall into the trap of that age-old saying that we should “play it safe.” I wholeheartedly disagree. There’s a confidence that comes with getting older and that you really shouldn’t give a you-know-what about what others think of you – especially what makeup you choose to wear on your face. It’s your face, and if silver, gold, or sparkle brings you great joy, don’t hide it, wear it! 

*The rest of my outfit details:  Similar winter white peacoats here and here. You’d be surprised how one goes with everything and what a statement jacket it is compared to all the black ones you see walking around! //  Winged earrings – the dupes and the real Mignonne Gavigan ones // Essie “Blanc” white nail polish   

This is my last post of 2023 and I couldn’t be more grateful for this opportunity to be a part of Beth’s community here on Style At A Certain Age. I hope all of you have enjoyed my beauty articles over the past year – I do love reading your comments and interacting with you here on this platform. Have a wonderful end of the year and I look forward to starting a fresh new year with every single one of you who enjoys the art of makeup!

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