Does black eyeliner on the waterline make your eyes look smaller?

According to Viktoria @vioda.makeup, Slightly, because filling the lower rim removes the pale strip that reads as extra white. It also makes the eye look deeper and far more defined. Stop the line two thirds of the way in and add inner-corner shimmer plus curled lashes, and you keep the definition without the eye reading closed.

How do I stop waterline eyeliner from smudging?

According to Viktoria @vioda.makeup, Blot the waterline with a tissue before you apply — pencil on a wet rim is the main cause — use a waterproof gel formula, then press matte dark shadow over the line to set it. Blotting again under the lower lashes five minutes later removes anything that was going to migrate.

What is the best eyeliner for the waterline?

According to Viktoria @vioda.makeup, A waterproof gel or kohl pencil. Standard pencils skate over a damp rim and transfer within the hour. Warming the tip on the back of your hand for a second helps it glide instead of dragging.

Beginner10 minVideo tutorial

Black Waterline Makeup Tutorial

By Viktoria @vioda.makeup · Published August 31, 2026 · Updated August 31, 2026

The standard advice is that black on the waterline makes eyes look smaller, so everyone reaches for nude instead. It's half true: filling the lower rim does visually close the eye a little, because you're removing the pale strip that reads as extra white. The half nobody mentions is that it also makes the eye look denser, deeper, and considerably more defined — which is the entire point of using it. The fix isn't to avoid black, it's to open the eye somewhere else at the same time.

Watch the tutorial

Black waterline is NOT your enemy 🖤✨ Learn how to use it to your advantage 🥰

Short · 1:22 · Viktoria @vioda.makeup

Black on the waterline doesn't have to shrink your eyes — how to place it, what to balance it with, and how to stop it smudging by lunchtime.

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Step-by-step

1
Dry the waterline first
Step 1 of 7
Roll a folded tissue along the lower rim to blot it. The waterline is wet by definition, and pencil applied onto moisture is what slides into the lower lashes within an hour. This one step does more for longevity than the formula does.
2
Use a waterproof gel or kohl
Step 2 of 7
A waterproof gel pencil grips the damp rim where a standard pencil skates over it. Warm the tip briefly against the back of your hand so it glides rather than drags.
3
Pull the lid down gently and line
Step 3 of 7
Look up into a mirror, pull the lower lid down just enough to expose the rim, and draw along it in short strokes from outer to inner. Don't stretch the skin — a stretched waterline springs back and takes the line out of position.
Tip: Stop about two thirds of the way in. Carrying black all the way to the tear duct is what actually shrinks the eye.
4
Set it with dark shadow
Step 4 of 7
Press a matte black or deep brown shadow over the line with a small brush, working it into the lash roots. Powder over pencil is the difference between a waterline that lasts two hours and one that lasts eight.
5
Open the eye back up elsewhere
Step 5 of 7
This is the step that makes black waterline work. Light shimmer in the inner corner, a lifted highlight under the brow bone, and well-curled upper lashes give back the openness the rim took away — so you keep the depth without the eye reading closed.
6
Smudge the outer third
Step 6 of 7
Soften the outer end of the line upward into the lower lash line with a smudge brush, so it fades rather than stopping at a hard edge. A hard stop is what makes lower liner look drawn on.
7
Blot once, five minutes later
Step 7 of 7Almost done!
Press a clean tissue lightly under the lower lashes after a few minutes. Any product that was going to migrate has done so by then, and lifting it now prevents the shadow that otherwise appears under the eye by mid-afternoon.

Pro tips

Two thirds in, not all the way. The inner third of the waterline left bare keeps the eye open while the outer two thirds do the defining.
Deep brown, plum or navy on the waterline give most of the definition of black with less closing effect — worth trying if black feels too heavy on your eye shape.
If it always migrates, the problem is almost never the pencil. It's an unblotted rim, or skipping the powder in step 4.

Skin type notes

Watery eyes should stick to waterproof formulas and expect to reapply once; setting powder over the line matters more here than anywhere. Small or hooded eyes benefit most from stopping two thirds in and leaning hard on step 5. Sensitive eyes should keep the pencil to the outer rim only and avoid the tear duct entirely.

Intermediate