Modern pinups have fully embraced the winged liner look, better known as the cat eye and for many, it is the signature of their make up look. During the 50’s, eyeliner wasn’t really worn as dramatically as it is today, in fact, it was mainly kept around for theatre, stage or film performances. But I know that personally, I love my eye liner an after many years, it’s no longer as intimidating as it once was. I often get asked how I learnt to apply eyeliner and how I apply it, although I’m still not ready to post a tutorial (I’m not a makeup artist and honestly don’t even know how to film something like that), I thought that today I would share my favourite eyeliners which I have been using for years. I go through quite a few liners in the span of a year and often cycle through a few brands, personally I prefer a felt tip liner as I feel I have more control but I do sometimes reach for my gel pot and brush. Please keep in mind that I personally love a dark and dramatic wing so if you are after a subtle liner look, my suggestions may not be the best fit for you.

Beauty Bakery Lollipop Liner
This liner is incredible if you really like a rich black liner look. This amazing vegan, black-owned female run business has some stunning products but hands down, their liner is my favourite. This formula glides on, stays on and does not budge throughout the day. I’ve never had it smear or crumble off which is always a plus and the liner tip is sharp which is perfect for getting a wing super sharp.
Ingredients: Aqua (Water), Styrene/Acrylates Copolymer, Propylene Glycol, 1,2 Hexaediol, Phenoxyethanol, Ethylhexylglycerine, CI 77491 & CI 77266.
3.5ml for $27
Find the liner here.

Creer Beauté Sailor Moon Eyeliner
Yes, I totally bought this liner for the packaging and even though I’ve used it up completely, I will continue to keep the liner just for the packaging. That aside, I was pleasantly surprised by just how good this liner was. I thought it would be more of a gimmick with the Sailor Moon packaging but found the formula rich, pigmented, smudge proof and it lasted all day. It wasn’t as black as I normally like my liner so I normally went over my wing twice (letting it dry between coats) but it was very sharp and super cute. I loved seeing it in my makeup bag. The main downside is that you don’t get a lot of formula for the price.
Ingredients: **I was unable to find an ingredients list**
0.4ml for $27
Note: Unfortunately I believe this eyeliner is no longer being sold.

Elf H2O Proof Eyeliner Pen
I bought this liner when I suddenly ran out the day before a trip and I just needed something to get me through for a week or so and I’m so glad I chose this dream of a liner. This waterproof liquid eyeliner pen easily creates thin or thick lines with intense color. The quick-dry smudge proof liquid eyeliner formula instantly enhances the lash line with long lasting color. The felt tip pen applies color smoothly without smudging, feathering, or running for complete precision. Not to mention, this liner is super budget friendly! I will certainly keep using this liner for years to come.
Ingredients: Water (Aqua), Styrene/Acrylates Copolymer, Butylene Glycol, Laureth-20, Acrylates Copolymer, Phenoxyethanol, 1,2-Hexanediol, Caprylyl Glycol, Ethylhexylglycerin, Tocopheryl Acetate (Ve), Ppg-2 Butyl Ether, Ppg-2 Methyl Ether, Propylene Glycol, Propylene Glycol Butyl Ether, Disodium Edta Dc Black 2 (Ci 77266)
$15
Find the liner here.

Kat Von D Tattoo Liner
I’ve been using this liner for years and I’m pretty sure it was my first felt tip liner when I graduated from gel pots way back when one winged liner would take me at least 25 minutes to apply. I am still using this liner years down the track and it’s almost a comfort liner at this point as I know it’ll get the job done. The liner is thick, richly pigmented and lasts all day. A few times it has bled into my eyeshadow (no idea why but sometimes it just does) and I do find that if I want to go over my wing and my liner is dry, it’ll take the liner off my skin. I’m wondering if this is because the tip of the liner dries out quickly and becomes clogged with dried liner.
Ingredients: Aqua/Water/Eau, Ammonium Styrene/Acrylates Copolymer, Butylene Glycol, Alcohol, Beheneth-30, Phenoxyethanol, Acrylates/Octylacrylamide Copolymer, Methylparaben, Polyglyceryl-3 Disiloxane Dimethicone, Propylparaben, Sodium Hydroxide, Disodium Edta, Black 2 (Ci 77266) (Nano).
0.55ml for $30
Find the liner here.

Colour Pop Bff Liquid Liner
If you can catch this product whilst it’s in stock, it certainly an item you must try. This ultra-fine brush tip liquid eyeliner delivers intense pigmentation and precision in one swipe. Its super long wearing formula doesn’t transfer or smudge, while its flexible tip creates the easiest, smoothest cat eye ever. The pigment is quite rich which means one swipe is enough but I do think the tip dries out a little quick. However, this liner is very budget friendly and a great liner to learn how to apply a winged liner with.
Ingredients: water, styrene/acrylate copolymer, butylene glycol, alcohol denat., acrylates/octylacrylamide copolymer, beheneth-30, phenoxyethanol, pentylene glycol, caprylyl glycol, 1,2-hexanediol, ethylhexylglycerin, sodium hydroxide, sodium dehydroacetate, disodium edta, xanthan gum, black 2 (ci 77266).
0.55ml for $8
Find the liner here.

Winged liner isn’t easy to learn; for me it was a commitment that I spent many months practicing. Several years ago when makeup looks were super trendy on Instagram way back before I even thought about being a pinup, I kept seeing all these amazing eyeliner looks. I kept thinking, “oh I wish I could do that” and then realised that I had never really tried. So off I tottled down to MAC and with the help of a superstar employee, I was equipped with a brush and gel pot. This amazing saleslady took the time to show me how to go about applying liner to my lid, taking her time to show me on one eye, and then letting me try on the other myself. I was super nervous and worried I would mess up and waste her time but she really encouraged me and helped me give it a go. From there, I practiced every night before I went into the shower because I knew it would look terrible and I was going to wash it off anyway. As I slowly got more confident, I started to wear it out of the house (looking back at photos I really should not have left the bathroom let alone my apartment) but it was all part of the journey. I remember thinking to myself that if I wanted to put on liner to go out, I had to allow an extra 30 minutes to get ready because it really took me ages to get the liner on.

Eventually, after a few months of this, I decided to try out a felt tip liner and I’ve never looked back. The practice I got from the gel liner made me more confident with the felt liner and since then, it’s only gotten easier and quicker to line my eye lids. Today, I still mess up every now and then. My biggest tip to learning liner is to not show fear, eye liner can smell fear! You want to go in, show it who is boss and just whack it on without over thinking. Like anything, practice makes perfect.

Note: This is not a sponsored post. All opinions and thoughts expressed are solely my own and not influenced in any way. There are no affiliate links and I do not benefit from any link clicks or purchases made.