The Little White Pencil

I decided to blog about this because to me, using a white pencil has made a tremendous difference.

I've been a fan of the light-colored (mostly light cream) eye pencil (inliner) for as long as I can remember, simply because penciling my waterline with black doesn't suit my eye shape and it makes my eyes look smaller; I also get that yesterday's makeup look and a completely tired face.

While I was looking for some tricks on YouTube I came across a video of a lady who explained that a white pencil can be successfully used as a 'highlighter', if you're on the run or don't own one. Boy was she right.

Apart from opening the eyes, making them look bigger and the entire face, more awake, using a white pencil is a life savior if you apply it exactly where you need it. How it's done- or at least, how I do it:

First off, you need a good quality pencil. I have always assumed that, since I am only going to use it on my waterline, I can use any type of pencil I want; wrong. If it's too creamy, like the one that I used (from Avon), it will leave small residues around your lash roots and appear like you're trying too much, the white will be too white. If it's too hard, it will do a great job when used on the eyes but will fail at anything else, being too hard to get properly blended in.

I am currently using L'Oreal's white eyeliner, just a 'regular' one, and I am pretty happy with it. It's pigmented, not too soft but not hard either, a little goes a long and it isn't expensive at all compared to higher-end brands.

I basically like to use it on my smile lines, in the angles of my mouth. That area used to be a huge stress for me because no matter what I did, the foundation and powder would accumulate in the small expression lines and age my face quite a lot. I constantly had to fidget with a mirror and touch my face every hour; it had become a sort of bad habit for me and using a cream highlighter didn't help at all.

Ever since I tried the trick, as suggested by the YT lady, things have definitely changed. The pencil seals the 'lines', creating an optical illusion (white reflects light) of fullness; no more foundation caking in! Yay!

Other than this, I like to use the white pencil on my inner eye angles, to bleach out any discoloration (dark/purple circles...) if I won't insist with the concealer (it's never a good idea). The pencils blends in beautifully and leaves a sort of halo on the skin; my personal opinion is that it truly washes away any fatigue and creates beautiful, rested eyes.

You can also use it underneath your lower lash line, for a more awaken effect, or on your dark circle line, to set the concealer/highlighter and create that optical illusion. I guess it's okay to use it on lines in general, cause ladies, it DOES work.

 Just remember not to overdo it, a white cast doesn't look good on anyone, and just gently pat it on until it blends in perfectly with your skin. Voila!