The Waterproof Eyeliners that Really do Last All Day

Because I really dislike that moment when I catch sight of myself somewhere and realise that the eyeliner I so carefully applied earlier that day has wandered off somewhere I’ve been giving eye liners the test to see which really do have staying power.

Top of the list has to be Estee Lauder’s Double Wear Waterproof Eye Liner – I particularly like this because you’ll never need to sharpen it, you just twist to push it up and it has a smudger on the other end.  Be aware that once applied you’ll have a very short amount of time to get the smoky effect you want because this baby seriously stays all day.

In the US they have more colours – I hope they’ll launch in the UK soon.  In the meantime you can buy black, espresso, plum and graphite.  Look out for amethyst, Blackened Emerald and Teal Night.

Another self sharpening waterproof eye liner pencil is by Hourglass.  This is excellent if you like a thinner line, and also the fact that it comes in a lovely deep blue, which is a softer option to black, as well as black and dark brown.  You can smudge this one as well and it’s very reasonably priced compared to other similar eye liners.

I discovered Marc Jacobs Highliner Waterproof Gel Eye Pencils on a recent visit to Paris when there weren’t a lot of stockists in the UK.  Now you can find them at a few including John Lewis and it’s well worth looking at because these long lasting pencils are not over priced, they’re self sharpening and they’re available in 25 colours.  Start to collect now….

The colour of each pencil is clearly shown on the barrel and well displayed on the website so it’s easy to choose the colours you want.

These colours are dense and long lasting, you have just a few seconds to smudge as you want with a smudging brush or cotton bud. 

Another favourite is Stila’s Smudge Stick.  Again this is self sharpening and it’s available in quite a few colours.  I particularly like Black Amethyst and Purple Tang, deep shades with a hint of colour.  Lower priced than the others here these last a long while after application.

Another long lasting eye pencil is Guerlain’s The Eye Pencil – this comes in five luscious colours including Katy Navy, Deep Purple and Khaki Driver as well as black, comes with a sharpener and a smudger on the end.  It’s also long lasting and water resistant.  One to definitely consider

Finally Bobbi Brown’s Perfectly Defined Gel Eyeliner is an award winning favourite with great staying power and lots of colours to choose from.  As usual you can’t go wrong with Bobbi Brown.  Try Sapphire for a gorgeous deep blue, or Chocolate Truffle if you’re looking for a neutral.