The Savvy Girls Guide To Purple Shaded Eyes

I noticed the gorgeous Katerina Graham wearing bright purple eyeshadow at the Teen Choice Awards earlier this month. It's a very bold look, definitely not one for shrinking violets. But Kat carried it off beautifully. The striking violet colour complimented her green eyes. She wisely kept the rest of her make-up very subtle, with dusky rose blush and nude lips.

Recreating this look can be quite tricky; you don't want people to stare at you and wonder if you've done your makeup in the dark. 

Choose a matt eye shadow for daywear and a shimmery one for night time. Try a pale lavender to start, if you like the effect, you can experiment with darker shades like plum or mauve. 

Here are some tips on how to keep it classy and pull it off as well as Kat.

Get The Look

1. Use an eye primer or concealer to hide any dark circles under the eyes & brighten up lids.

2. Sweep a light lilac shade over your entire lid, stopping just under the brow bone.

3. Layer with a darker shade of purple, starting at the outer corner of your eye, blending inwards to the middle.

4. Add a shimmer or highlighter to the inner corners of your eyelid. Gold or silver works well. 

5. For more definition, line eyes with a dark grey or black eye pencil.

6. To get Kat's complete look, use a purple eye pencil or the same shade of purple eye shadow to line your bottom eyelids. Alternatively, you can use a silver-grey liner. 

7. Finish off with a good coating of black mascara. 

8. Keep the rest of your make-up toned down with lightly blushed cheeks and clear lipgloss.

Nice To Try

Top Row
Kanebo Eyeshadow palette ES04. Four blendable shades including a shimmery aubergine and soft pink highlighter.
Stila eyeshadow duo in Orchid. Two complementary shades of purple.
Yves Saint Laurent Ombres 5 Lumiéres in Lilac Sky. Five harmonious colours in brighter and lighter highly pigmented purple shades.
Middle Row
Make Up Forever eyeshadow in Deep Plum. A matt texture with a satin finish and a hint of shimmer.
Maybelline Expertwear eyeshadow quad in Amethyst Smokes. A crease proof quad that instructs you where to place each colour.
The Body Shop Baked to Last eyeshadow in Amethyst. An iridescent indigo eyeshadow duo.
Last Row 
Dior 5 Colour Eyeshadow in Petal Shine. Pastel shades for a more subtle look.
Clinique Colour Surge eyeshadow quad in Plum Seduction. Pretty purple powder shadows that can be used separately or all together.
Lancomé Colour Design 5 Shadow & Liner Palette in Mauve Cherie. Long wearing shades to create a seamless, smokey look.

These eyeshadow palettes are available in department stores like Edgars or Stuttafords, and at Sephora, SAKS and Harrods overseas.


Celebrity Inspired Looks

These looks show that purple shaded eyes suit all skin tones, hair and eye colours. Notice that the rest of their make up is left soft and natural, with a dash of pale pink lip gloss.

Top Row
Rachel McAdams' orchid shaded eyelids work wonderfully with her blonde hair and blue-green eyes.
Redhead Emma Stone wears a shimmery lilac highlighter that extends up unto her eyebrows.
Keri Hilson's hazel eyes are brightened by a vivid violet colour.
Scarlett Johansson combined pink and purple to create a pretty and eye catching look.

Bottom Row
Emily Browning wears a smokey aubergine look that accentuates her green eyes.
Katy Perry, who is always one for the bold and unusual, mixed bright violet and lime.
Model Frida Gustavsson shows off dramatic purple smeared eyes at Jason Wu's Spring 2011 fashion show.
Eva Longoria bats her false lashes under a richly pigmented violet shade.


This is not a look for everyday, but instead for an occasion where you would really like to stand out. It's also projects a youthful, playful image. I have yet to find the courage to wear it out in society. What are your thoughts on this beauty trend? 

A Romantic Makeup Collection by Chanel

Les Aquarelles de Chanel
Makeup Collection

Chanel's new makeup collection is an ode to vintage romanticism; doe-eyed beauties fluttering their delicate lashes, with flushed cheeks and rose-tinted lips. During Paris Couture Fashion Week, Chanel awed audiences, not only with their delightful dresses, but also by the ballerina-inspired makeup worn by the models. 

Inspired by a 1920's watercolour painting of Coco Chanel, Les Aquarelles de Chanel reveals a softer, feminine side to makeup. Created by Chanel's makeup genius, Peter Phillips, this beautiful collection features 6 limited edition pieces. 

The Look
Eyelids shimmer with an iridescent tinge of ivory, gold and grey. Cheeks are abloom with misty pink blush, blended to create a natural rosy flush. Lips are tinted in pastel pink. I love the addition and precision of the black winged eyeliner, which perfectly balances out the soft opalescent shades. The final look is dreamy and striking at the same time. If I were to have a signature makeup look, this would be it.

Top Row

Le Vernis. A sugary pink nail varnish that duly corresponds with this feminine look. The formula is strengthening and nourishing, giving you colour that is resistant to chipping.

Ombrés Tissées. The star of the collection is this scintillating eye shadow palette in a woven tweed design. With luminous shades of pink and beige that beautifully reflect off the light, it bestows a youthful glow upon eyes and cheeks.

Stylo Yeux Waterproof. Add drama to eyes with a soft-textured, silicone-enhanced and smudgeproof pencil that is easy to manoeuvre, creating smooth lines. It comes with a built-in sharpener.

Bottom Row

Jouse Contraste. A silky powered blush for natural looking cheeks, providing seamless colour that can built up to achieve the rosy hue thats right for you. There are two shades available, Rose Pétale and Pink Cloud.

Rouge Coco Shine. The Hydrating Sheer Lipshine glides on easily, and has a lightweight, moisturizing formula. Royallieu is a cherub pink lip-tint with a hint of shimmer.

Ombrés Essentielle Gris Exquis. A dove grey eye shadow that defines eyes and adds an air of mystery to your romantic look.

If I had these few products in my makeup box, I wouldn't really need much else. You can create a versatile day-to-night look that is timeless, understated and enhances your natural beauty. The products range from about R203 to R503 ($28.50 to $75), and can be purchased from the Chanel website.

The Savvy Girls Guide to a Smokey Eye

How to create the Perfect Smokey Eye

The smokey eye is a timeless and glamourous look, seen on runways, models, celebrities, in magazines...and now on you. If you've always loved this smouldering makeup look, but didn't know how to achieve it, this guideline is especially for you. My friend Shakira is a talented Johannesburg-trained, Cape Town-based makeup artist. She shares her steps on how to create the perfect smokey eye.

Step 1: Choosing a base that will keep eyeshadow flawless is very important. Apply foundation around your entire eye area. Then apply concealer one shade lighter than your skin tone. The ideal consistency for this is a cream concealer. Set with loose powder - which will also help catch all the shadow that falls underneath your eyes. Alternatively, you can use an eye primer - MAC 'paint' is a great one.

Step 2: Starting with the eye shadow - choose a highlighter in either a matte finish for the day or shimmery finish for a night time look. A white, cream or pearl coloured highlighter is ideal. Wipe the highlighter over the entire eyelid, up to the brow bone.

Step 3: Use a darker colour and line your eyes with an eyeshadow brush. You're not restricted to just black, you can choose any dark colour you like - blue, purple, green, brown or grey (as pictured above). Use the same colour to line the bottom part of your eyelids, just under the lash line. Then use a cotton bud to softly smudge the top and bottom of your eye line.

Step 4: You will need an even darker colour shadow to create a full smokey effect (such as the black one pictured above). Softly pat the eye shadow with a brush over your eyelids, making sure to stop before the crease. 

Step 5: Remember that the key to a perfect smokey eye is to blend. Take a flat shadow brush and blend. You don't want to see any definite lines.

Step 6: Take your shadow brush and dip it into the darker coloured shadow. Close your eyes, put the brush tip into the crease, then open your eyes (with brush still in place) and sweep it from half way to the end of the crease.

Step 7: Use the highlighter again, and brush on to the brow bone, following the eye brow shape.

Step 8: You can now choose to be more dramatic by taking a black liquid liner and lining your top lashes. For extra 'Oh la la' use an eye pencil to line the bottom eye lid. You can stick to black or a dark colour you prefer. Make sure you wipe away any excess powder that's underneath your eyes.

Step 9: Mascara, Mascara and Mascara...layers of it. You can use a lash curler to curl your lashes upwards first, for that Va va voom appeal. 

Step 10: With a brow brush, comb your brows neatly into place. You can even colour them in with black or dark brown shadow. Set with brow gel.

Remember to keep lips natural. When applying strong makeup, keep the focus on either lips or eyes - never both.


Here are some celebrity smokey eye looks to inspire you. As you can see, this style of eye makeup suits any hair colour, eye colour and skin tone.

From the Top: 

Keira Knightly lined her bottom lash line with pencil and used a dark brown eye shadow. 

Dianna Argon bats her eyelids under smokey eye shadow. 

Jennifer Lopez used a charcoal and steel eye shadow blend, which works superbly with her dark lined eyes. 

Camilla Belle used a soft brown shadow underneath her bottom lashes. 

Mila Kunis wears a sultry smokey eye better than most, darkly rimmed with black eye pencil.

Taylor Swift uses dramatic black liner and silver highlighter to bring out her blue eyes. 

Kim Kardashian amps up the volume with curly fake lashes. 

Notice how all these smokey stars kept the rest of their makeup simple with pale rosy blusher and nude glossy lips.

Try out these 10 easy-to-follow steps to crease your own irresistible smokey eye. Good Luck!