The Ultimate Guide to Complementary Eye Colors

Complementary eye shadow colors are the key to bringing out your eye color. Here is how it works.

Neutrals are always safe. They contain warm and cool tones and work with any skin, eye or hair color. Neutrals come in brown or grey, which is to say warm or cool.

Plum-brown = cool neutral
Orange-brown = warm neutral
Charcoal-grey = cool neutral

Blue Eyes: Orange is the complementary color to blue. Because orange contains yellow and red, shadows built on either of those make blue eyes read bluer. To make your eyes pop, use contrasting hues from the opposite side of the color wheel: browns, mauves and dark purples for your deeper shades, and orange, gold, peach and dusty rose for your lighter neutrals. Skin tone matters too, since the same shade reads differently on fair and deeper complexions. Use true orange sparingly.

Green Eyes: Red is complementary to green. Use brown-based reds, or red-orange, red-violet and violet. Coppers, rusts and purples are the most popular choices, and pure red is best avoided. Warm browns and tans work beautifully with green eyes for the same reason.

You know your eyes are green, but are they a deep emerald or more hazel with flecks of brown? Green eyes are rarely one color. Look closely and you will often find tan, gold or brown in there. Treat those flecks as your guide when choosing shadow shades.

Brown Eyes: Brown is neutral, so it can carry almost any color. Avoid combining grey and brown shadows, since warm and cool together tend to clash. Green and blue are the strongest choices.

If your brown eyes have golden flecks, try earthy clay tones like copper, taupe and rust. For a minimalist look, choose a red-brown eyeliner and blend it into a soft line. If your brown eyes have green flecks, purples and reds will make them pop.

To take it up a notch at night, line with a blue liner and try a plum or navy mascara. If your dark eyes are made darker by black specks, natural and earth tones complement them best: light pink, taupe and ivory shadows, with rich brown liners on the lids. For something bolder, try blue, copper and plum. The key is picking the right shade of each for your skin tone.

Whatever palette you land on, it works harder when your lashes and brows are doing their job. A lash lift, tint or brow shape frames the eye before you apply anything, and pairs beautifully with the shades above.