Cold as ice: the best cool-toned eyeshadow palettes
Enter beauty nostalgia — the muted hues that ruled the 90s and 2000s are coming back in a big way.
Image credit: Instagram.com/gabbriette
There’ll always be a place for ‘clean girl beauty’, but is it on the decline? It did do great things for us! It made us think skin-first, it liberated us from super heavy coverage and extremely matte finishes, it encouraged us to enhance our own features rather than concealing or changing them, and it streamlined our routines. But swept up in the ‘your skin but better’ frenzy, we may have taken the minimalist approach a step or two further than we needed to.
Lately, we’ve seen a real effort to reintroduce a little boldness back into the beauty process by way of considered applications of colour, with cool-toned eyeshadows coming through as the perfect gateway to experimentation.
Instead of warm colours and neutrals that tend to blend into our complexions, there’s been a move towards contrast, depth and vibrancy thanks to a new wave of cool-toned eyeshadow palettes on offer. Drawing on nostalgia, the cool-toned shadows of today take all the best parts of the 90s and early 2000s eye looks (an unabashed use of colour, saturated applications, unique placements, frosty finishes) and pair with them with hybrid cream-powder formulations, intense colour pay-off, and comfortable, flexible and long-lasting wear. Look to the likes of Jenna Ortega, Gabbriette, and Amelia Gray as the new faces of the cool-toned approach to beauty, championing blues, teals, violets, mauves, silvers and carbon blacks in many of their looks.
And even if you're having a hard time letting go of the ‘clean girl’ approach, there’s definitely a middle ground — just look to the work of celebrity makeup artists like Nina Park, Emily Cheng and Yasmin Istanbouli, who contain their applications to greys, taupes and dusty roses and light washes of single colours across the lid to add subtle, sultry dimension.
Here, GLAMOUR leans on Australian makeup artist and master of colour, Sean Brady, to guide us through the world of cool-toned eyeshadows.
What is a cool-toned eyeshadow? How do you tell the difference between cool and warm toned eyeshadows?
For a simple explanation, Brady points to basic colour principles. “All colours work under an RGB scale, generally red and orange-toned browns are warm, leaning more red and yellow. And for cool, you are looking towards blue, whether that reads more grey, pink or mauve.” Following this simple rule is a great first step when trying to determine if a shadow is warm or cold.
Brady recommends breaking down the shade into its “core component colours” and it's level of saturation. “If the colour looks more vibrant, it will often be more warm-toned, and desaturated colours on a grey scale will be more cool. But there are exceptions, Brady says— pinks and plums that have a blue undertone are generally considered cool, while peaches and burgundies with yellow undertones are warmer.
Should I wear cool toned eyeshadows instead of warm toned eyeshadows?
Generally, no! Brady is of the belief that colour is always a personal choice, and that “one shouldn’t be decidedly worn over the other". Put simply, everyone should feel comfortable wearing both warm and cool-toned eyeshadows. Cool-toned palettes tend to align more with the evening, bringing with them an element of formality, as well as the cool girl connotations that come with these colourways.
Of course, there's also skin tone to consider. “If someone has a pinky undertone I will always go cool,” says Brady. “Olive can be tricky, because overtone comes into play with sun exposure more obviously than other skin.” Brady explains that in winter, he would work with cool-toned eyeshadows but “warm the whole face up for a more lively appearance.”
How do you apply cool-toned eyeshadows?
The only rule you really need to follow when it comes to applying cool-toned eyeshadows is to be considered with the amount you apply, using your skin tone as a guide. “Really warm skin tones can generally wear a lot more pigment so you don't have to be so light handed,” says Brady. On the other hand, if you yourself have a cool-toned complexion, “you need to be a little more strategic.”
What are the best cool-toned eyeshadows to buy?
Dior Diorshow 5 Couleurs Eye Palette in Pied-de-poule
Prada Beauty Dimensions Eyeshadow in Profusion
Estée Lauder The Essential Eyeshadow Quad in Prenup
M.A.C Connect In Colour Eyes x 6 Eye Shadow Palette in Rose Lens
Revlon Colorstay Day To Night Eyeshadow Quad in Stunning
Clinique All About Quad Eye Shadow in Going Steady
Dior Diorshow 5 Couleurs Eye Palette in Denim
Bobbi Brown Cool Nudes Eye Shadow Palette
YSL Beauty YSL Couture Mini Clutch in Green
