Keen to make the most of your peepers? Our ultimate guide to eye makeup looks for blue eyes will come in handy.
Blue eyes span a whole spectrum of shades, from icy pale blue right through to a very deep, bottom-of-the-ocean kind of blue, and we’re confident that you’ll find plenty of celebrity inspiration on this eyeshadow looks list to suit your specific colour.
You might want to complement your blue eyes with a matchy-matchy shadow, create a contrast with a hue on the opposite end of the colour spectrum or keep it simple with classics like a smoky eye or a cat eye eyeliner look. You don’t even have to go down the eyeshadow and eyeliner route if you don’t want to – sometimes with blue eyes, a quick slick of your best mascara is enough.
32 eye makeup looks for blue eyes to try for yourself
1. Shade shift
As we get older, the skin that sits on our brow bone can slacken, creating or amplifying hooded eyes and making our lids less visible in the process. To work around this, follow Helen Mirren’s lead by adding colour to the lower lash line, rather than the top. The pink shade perfectly ties together her outfit and lip colour too.
2. Red hot
Forget any negative connotations you have around red eyes making you look like you’ve either barely slept or been crying, the key to pulling off this shade is to make sure that it looks deliberate. Margot Robbie gets it spot-on here, with a shimmering pinky-red shadow to compliment her blue eyes.
3. Graphic liner
Not one for the faint-hearted, granted, but we love seeing people think outside the box when it comes to makeup. Olivia Wilde has well and truly ripped up the eyeliner rulebook here, framing her blue eyes with one sweep of graphic liner spanning her bottom lash line and a second line following the curve above the crease of her lid.
4. Electric blue
Instead of using your eyeliner to contrast with the colour of your eyes, why not match them with a shimmering blue hue like Christina Hendricks? Keeping the rest of her makeup simple allows all the focus to be on her eyes and signature red pout.
5. 90s grunge
Sienna Miller gives us a masterclass in how to make blonde hair and blue eyes feel less girly and more grungy with eyes lined in thick black kohl. Taking it right to the inner corners along the waterline adds real definition to the look.
6. Completely nude
Looking for low-maintenance eye makeup looks for blue eyes? Tilda Swinton is the perfect example, leaving her lids and lashes entirely bare so the focus is on the shade of her eyes and her impossibly flawless skin instead.
7. Bold liner
Zooey Deschanel’s blue eyes are really round, giving her a doe-eyed appearance. Only wearing eyeliner on her upper lash line (and combining this with lashings of mascara) helps to balance out the shape so they look wider.
8. Pretty pink
Sparkly pink eyeshadow frames Holly Willoughby’s blue eyes perfectly, with the contrast between the shades making them appear even brighter. Combining with black eyeliner helps to make her lashes look fuller too.
9. Monochrome magic
An eye makeup look for blue eyes that demands a second take, we love the level of detail on January Jone’s magpie-esque liner. Winged black eyeliner is interrupted by flashes of white for a striking finish.
10. Defined edges
They say that the eyes are the window to the soul, so it pays to frame them nicely. Angelina Jolie has kept things relatively simple here, teaming a pinky nude shadow with eyeliner along the full length of her top lash line and a third of the bottom one to really define and draw out the outer corners.
11. Silver smoke
Cameron Diaz’s eyes are such a pale shade of blue that it’s almost impossible to believe they’re real, and a slick of silver eyeshadow makes them look even sparklier. A fresh alternative to darker shadow shades of grey and black.
12. Glitter wing
If you want to try something a little different for a night out without stepping too far out of your comfort zone, take a leaf out of Emma Stone’s book and trace a second layer of glitter-packed silver eyeliner above your classic black. It'll add a touch of glamour without feeling too out there.
13. Full Cleopatra
Megan Fox’s blue eyes look especially sultry when they’ve been lined in this much metallic grey shadow and eyeliner. Maybe not one for every day, but one to consider trying for a special occasion.
14. Hot tropics
Orange sits on the opposite side of the colour wheel to blue, making it the perfect choice for creating a bold shade clash. Amanda Seyfried has chosen a lighter, more tropical orange hue for her upper lid, and a deeper, almost red shade for her lower one.
15. Bright eyed
Feel like darker shadow shades can make your eyes look tired? A bright champagne shade is the antidote and looks especially good with Claire Foy’s pale complexion. By not detracting with colourful shadow, blue eyes stand out even more.
16. Barely there
As the poster girl for the quiet luxury and stealth wealth trends, you can always expect Gwyneth Paltrow to look understated rather than too “done”. By shunning eyeshadow in favour of lashes loaded with mascara, her blue eyes and bronzed complexion steal the limelight.
17. Matchy matchy
If you’re in a hurry, you can use the same multi-tasking cream blush on your eyes, lips and cheeks. This girlie pink shade is gorgeous with Claire Dane’s blue eyes, for a synergistic, monochromatic makeup look.
18. Cool blue
Diane Kruger’s eyeshadow is such a spot-on match with her eye colour that we’re not convinced she hasn’t had it made specially. Teamed with pale skin and silver accessories, the metallic blue hue has a real ice queen feel.
19. Glimmering gold
Not everyone will agree, but in our opinion, gold definitely counts as a neutral that won’t steal focus from the rest of your makeup. How deep blue your eyes are will depend on the best gilded hue for you. If they’re pale like Rosie Huntington Whiteley’s, then a soft gold will be the most flattering.
20. Soft coral
Take your eye makeup looks for blue eyes inspiration from a tropical island, teaming your pool-blue peepers with sunset shades of orange and coral. We love how Blake Lively has extended her shadow out way beyond the crease, working upwards and outwards towards her brows.
21. Champagne sparkle
Glitter isn’t just for evening you know, and the lighter you go, the more daytime-appropriate it will feel. Kate Bosworth is flying the flag for low-maintenance eye looks here, and this is a doddle to replicate with a quick scribble of an eyeshadow crayon.
22. Winging it
Winged eyeliner will make round blue eyes like Katherine Jenkins's appear wider and more upturned. giving the entire eye area a lift. Create the look with eyeliner or with eyeshadow on a tapered flat brush.
23. Round about
If you want to go all out with your blue-eyed makeup look, make like Reese Witherspoon with a narrow liner looped around the entire eye and complemented by a little smoky brown shadow. Not going too heavy-handed with the kohl makes for a softer finish that allows the whites of her eyes to shine.
24. Peachy tones
At first glance, there’s not much to Cate Blanchett’s eyeshadow look, but when you look a little closer you’ll see that it’s a two-toned peachy affair, with a pinkier shade on top, and an orangier one on the bottom. Gorgeous.
25. Sharp and defined
An eye look that means business, black eyeliner along the waterline creates sharp points at either side of Charlize Theron’s eyes. An easy way to add an edge to an otherwise very feminine makeup look.
26. Neutral smoke
Smoky eyes are traditionally grey and black, but these darker shades aren’t always the most forgiving. We love how Amy Adams has coordinated her eyeshadow with the neutral brown and auburn tones of her hair in order to accentuate her blue eyes.
27. Double flicks
Not content with just one feline flick, Miranda Kerr has doubled up with an additional mini kick that sits just beneath the top one. A little detail, but one that feels fashion-forward.
28. Rose gold
Can’t choose between pink or gold eyeshadow? Wear both. Uma Thurman’s rose-gold eye look is lighter in the inner corners, getting gradually darker as it travels towards the outer crease. A pretty way to highlight light blue eyes.
29. Up and away
Not everyone has a steady enough hand for a reliable flick – ours always end up a bit lopsided and we can waste a good 20 minutes trying to get them to match. Lucky for us, Nicole Kidman is showcasing a workaround by using eyeshadow instead. There’s more margin for error, and the finish is less severe.
30. Annabelle Wallis
Annabelle Wallis’ taupe eyeshadow is almost exactly the same shade as her skin tone, making for a subtle finish that puts the focus on her eyes. Everyone’s skin tone is different, so shop around to find the right neutral to suit you.
31. Soft smoke
Smoky eyes can be sultry and intense, but Naomi Watts proves that they don’t have to be if you don’t want them to. Apply with a light touch and a fluffy brush rather than a heavy hand and a fine-nib brush for a gentler look.
32. Simple and sophisticated
Hooded eyes mean Laura Dern doesn’t have much real estate to play with on her lids, so she's focused instead on a quick slick of liner on both the upper and lower lash line, finished with a little highlighter in the inner corners. Simple yet effective.
