The combination of glitter and bright blue eyeshadow is usually a risky one, reserved for Halloween and ’80s-themed parties where a member of your squad is dressing one of the girls from GLOW, or a character from Jem and the Holograms.
At the GLSEN Respect Awards in Los Angeles over the weekend, Kerry Washington made the pairing totally modern by giving it a graphic twist. Instead of piling both the glitter and color onto her lids, Washington’s makeup artist Carola Gonzalez concentrated both into a thick, precise cat-eye, then balanced the hue with clean skin and a glossy lip.
Jason LaVeris/Getty Images
Eager to go for a similar look?
1. Arm yourself with a blue eyeliner pencil, along with cream shadow and glitter in coordinating azure tones—the cream shadow in particular is key, as it gives the glitter a place to adhere.
2. Begin with your eye area before even blending on foundation
3. Then apply a thick sweep of liner, winging it out at the end to a sharp point. You can use a small eyeliner brush to taper it if your first attempt isn’t quite pointed enough.
Frazer Harrison/Getty Images
4. Curl your lashes as you normally would, then apply a layer of the cream shadow all over your lid.
5. Use a blending brush to diffuse the color into your crease slightly, and with a flat shadow brush
6. Press the glitter directly over the top. Avoid using sweeping motions, as this makes the glitter more prone to falling out on your face.
7. Finish with mascara and liner, then apply foundation and concealer as usual, effectively cleaning up any shadow or glitter that didn’t quite stick.
This article originally appeared on InsStyle.