With New York Fashion Week nearly upon us I felt it only appropriate to take a look back at NYFW Fall 2014 for some beauty inspiration.  Although there was an abundance of graphic eyeliner on the runway last year, I was especially fond of the hollow cat eye seen at Mara Hoffman.  Although it’s still very bold, I think it’s a lot more wearable than some of the looks seen at other shows.  Today I’m sharing how to create my take on the Mara Hoffman runway inspired graphic eyeliner.

What makes this look so wearable is that you can easily control the drama by drawing a shorter wing or drawing thinner lines.  You could even turn it up a notch by transforming your Mara Hoffman Fall 2014 cat eye into the Atelier Versace Spring 2015 cat eye, by extending the liner all the way through your crease.

Three Photos via Mara Hoffman NYFW Fall 2014

To create this look I started with a fresh, luminous face by mixing MAC Strobe Cream and Dior BB Creme SPF30 for my base then concealing blemishes with Kevyn Aucoin Skin Enhancer.  For my eyebrows I used the matte taupe powder from the Bobbi Brown Surf & Sand Palette to fill the inner corners, and Anastasia Beverly Hills Dip Brow Pomade in medium brown to shape and fill the outer corners.  Even though I wanted to keep it light I still applied some Too Faced Soleil Matte Bronzer on the hollows of my cheeks and MAC Prep + Prime Highlight Pen topped with NARS Albatross highlighting powder across the high points of my face for an even glow.  You can view more details on that highlighting technique here, and  also I decided to skip blush for this look.  The nude lip was created with MAC Lip Pencil in “Soar” topped with NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream in “Cairo.”

Let me know if you have questions about any of the steps I may have skipped detailing, such as the primer or type of brushes used, and I’ll get back to you in the comments section below.  You can really do the face however you like, although I recommend keeping it natural since the eyeliner is so strong as is.

To draw the hollow cat eye I used Laura Mercier Creme Eyeliner in black.  I like to use a lip brush for gel liner instead of an angled eyeliner brush, but thats just personal preference.  Using a scoop of the gel transferred to the back of my hand I drew and connected small segments to create an even lash line trace, all the while holding my eyelids taut.  Following the natural curvature of my lower lash line, I extended the liner into a wing.  Instead of tracing and filling a wispy triangle to create my usual cat eye, I angled the wing up-and-in towards my crease stopping about a third the way into my eye.  I began with a minimal amount of product and bolded the lines once I was comfortable with the shape I had created.

After setting the gel with some black eyeshadow, I applied Ardell Glamour Wispies false lashes with some extra individual lashes stacked on the outer corners to intensify the cat eye.  I finished the look with some mascara on both the top and the bottom lashes and a final spritz of setting spray.

What runway beauty looks inspire you?  Do you think this hollow cat eye is wearable?

xxLK