“Wow. You have really nice eyes! You must get that all the time!”

Well, thank you. Yes, yes I do.

Big round eyes always seem to get attention. A round pair of peepers have that cute and innocent heart-melting appeal.

When we think of round eyes, we can’t help but think of a baby face and a youthful look. While appearing young has its advantages, sometimes those of us with round eyes want to use eye makeup to create a more sophisticated and sultry appeal.

What Are Round Eyes?

Round eyes are circular-shaped eyes that are horizontal and symmetrical to each other. They will often appear big and profound, like protruding eyes. However, it is possible to have round and deep-set eyes that are sunken further back in the eye socket, with a prominent brow bone.

Round eyes share many of the same characteristics as almond eyes, but with round eyes, a lot of white, the sclera, shows around the iris, the colored part.

Those with round eyes have ‘babydoll’ type eyes that naturally appear wide and open like a porcelain doll. They often look good with very little eye makeup.

Hollywood twins Ashley and Mary Kate Olsen are famously known for their big round eyes.

The characteristics of round eyes are:

• Circular eye shape
• Prominent crease
• Visible sclera
• Appear wide and awake
• Horizontal corners

How to Tell if You Have Round Eyes

If you are not sure if you have round eyes by looking at them, the best way to check is by doing the ruler test. All you need is a foot-long ruler and a mounted wall mirror.

Follow these step-by-step instructions to determine if you have round eyes.

1. Stand in front of the mirror with your posture straight.
2. Do you have a crease? If not, you have monolid eyes.
3. Is your crease covered by excess skin? If yes, you have hooded eyes.
4. Grab the ruler and place it horizontally across the center of your eyeball.
5. If the outer corners of your eyes tilt up or down, you have upturned or downturned eyes.
6. If the outer corners of your eyes are horizontal, you have round or almond eyes.

Telling almond eyes from round eyes is the trickiest part. The chart below compares almond eyes vs. round eyes.

Round Eyes	Almond Eyes
Visible crease Horizontal corners Circular shape Appear wide and awake Visible white sclera around iris Shaped like a ping pong ball	Visible crease Horizontal corners Tapered shape Appear relaxed Little white sclera around the iris Shaped like an almond

Top Round Eyes Makeup Looks

Round eyes often look good with very little makeup to appear bright and cute. If you want a look with more drama and mystery, there are many ways to do exotic makeup and eyeshadow for round eyes. Check out the top six makeup and eyeliner looks for round eyes in 2023!

Winged

If you’re in doubt about round eye makeup, wing it! Winged eyeliner is one of the most popular glam makeup looks.

When doing winged eyeliner on round eyes, you will want to start at the center of your upper lash line and draw out. The intention is to elongate the eyes to appear more tapered.

Cat Eye

Here, kitty, this eyeliner style is an excellent trick for people with round eyes who want a more exotic look. Cat eye eyeliner is like winged eyeliner but with the wing extending into the bottom lash line. It is perfect for creating an almond eye shape or drawing in protruding eyes.

Expert makeup artists recommend using a matte black eyeliner pen for round cat eyes.

Follow these steps for cat eye eyeliner for round eyes:

1. Start in the Center of your upper lash line.
2. Draw a thick line extending out to your outer v.
3. Flick the line into an up-turned wing; the further you go, the more elongated your eye will look.
4. From the center of your lower lash line, do a tight line to your outer v.
5. Connect the two lines to create the cat eye shape.

Eyelash Extensions

When you have round or protruding eyes, you will want to stay away from curled eyelash extensions, as curling your lashes makes them appear more prominent and more awake. Instead, you will want full lashes with a relaxed curve.

Lash technicians recommend cat eyelashes for round lashes, as they create the illusion of a tapered eye shape. Cat eyelashes are a lash classic, starting with shorter lashes in the inner corner and getting longer as they reach the outer v.

When going for the best lashes for round eyes, ask for:

• Classic volume
• Cat eye shape
• B-curl

Waterline

Natural-looking eyeliner often works the best for round eyes when you don’t want to draw too much attention. Lightly penciling your eyes along your waterline and tight-lining your upper and lower lashlines defines round eyes without bold eyeliner.

Go for neutral eyeshadow shades like tan, amber, or golden brown if you want your eyes to appear more almond-shaped.

Smokey Eyes

Round eyes naturally give off the vibe of that youthful baby face look. Smokey eyes are the perfect way to add drama to round eyes for a sultry and sophisticated look.

With Smokey eyes, it’s all about the eyeshadow. You’ll want to start by applying a charcoal grey all over your eyelid, followed by thick eyeliner, and finish by blending in one or two other eye shadow colors to get the smoky effect.

Playful Pastels

Make those babydoll eyes even more playful with pastel eyeshadow. Pastel round eyes make your eyes look bigger and brighter.

If you love the look of round eyes, pale eyeshadow will accentuate the shape of circular eyes. Play with pale yellow, powder pink, lilac, and other colors on a pastel eyeshadow palate that accentuate your eye color.

Vintage Eyeliner

Taking it way back to the 60s, vintage eyeliner is a classic thick eyeliner trend. Also known as retro eyeliner, think of a winged eyeliner without a wing.

Vintage eyeliner involves a single flick up at the outer v-corner rather than an elongated line. Think Marilyn Monroe or a retro pinup girl’s eyeliner. Vintage eyeliner is perfect for round eyes when you want to keep the baby doll eye appeal.

White Eyeshadow

Show off your round eyes by making them look bigger. White eyeshadow is a guaranteed way to make round eyes pop; it’s okay to flaunt your most prominent facial feature!

Apply white eyeshadow and add a touch of eyeliner to your upper lash line to show your baby blues, greens, or browns!

Shimmery Shutters

Want round eyes that look glamorous for a night on the town? You can’t go wrong with shimmery eye makeup.

The key is to tight-line the round eye shape with black eyeliner, then allow the shimmery eyeshadow to take prominence. Shimmery eye makeup with eyeliner on your upper and lower lash lines will create a more almond shape while allowing the eyes to pop.

Eyeliner For Round Eyes – Top 6 Picks

So now, doll eyes, you’ve determined your eye shape is round. Regarding eyeliner for round eyes, specific products, and eyeliner types work better than others.

The four main types of eyeliner are:

1. Pencil
2. Liquid
3. Gel
4. Felt-tip

We’ve gathered our top six picks of eyeliner for round eyes in 2023.

Best Overall

Our top choice for eyeliner for round eyes has to go to Urban Decay 24/7 Glide On Eyeliner in Demolition. It is a sharpenable pencil eyeliner with a creamy texture for a smooth, glide-on application. It’s excellent for beginners who are new to eyeliner makeup, and makeup experts trust it. The color is highly-pigmented, wearable for up to 16 hours, and even contains vitamin E, jojoba oil & cottonseed to condition the lash lines.

The key product features are:

• Pencil eyeliner
• Creamy texture
• Smooth application
• Conditioning ingredients
• 16 hours of wear

Best Natural

If you want your eyeliner to look natural, go for a pencil eyeliner. Honeybee Gardens Effortless Eye Liner in Jet Set black is a matte-finish eyeliner pencil made from natural ingredients. It’s vegan and cruelty-free, so you’re guaranteed a non-toxic product. It glides on gently for a smooth application with natural-looking results. It’s excellent for applying tight-line eyeliner to round eyes.

The key product features are:

• Paraben-free
• Cruelty-free
• Bold color
• Long-lasting wear
• Safe for sensitive eyes

Best Liquid

Liquid eyeliner is great for creating winged eyeliner for round eyes that elongate the eye shape. Almay Intense Liquid Liner in Black Pearl is a highly-pigmented liquid eyeliner. Its flex-tip applicator is a pointed sponge, offering easy and precise application. The formula is water-resistant and long-lasting for up to 16 hours of wear without fading or smudging.

The key product features are:

• 16-hour wear
• Smudge-resistant
• Flex-tip applicator
• Hypoallergenic
• Ophthalmologist tested

Best Gel

Gel eyeliners are the best for creating multiple eyeliner looks, from precise waterline highlights to smudgy smokey eyes. Professional makeup artists love gel eyeliners for their versatility and highly-pigmented colors. Black Ink by Bobbi Brown in Black Mauve Shimmer Ink is a gel eyeliner with a metallic shimmer finish. It is water-resistant and smudge-proof for all-day wear.

The key product features are:

• Metallic shimmer finish
• Gel eyeliner
• Water-proof
• Highly-pigmented
• Compatible with any eyeliner brush

Best Felt-Tip Pen

If you want an ultra-fine eyeliner, Lancôme Paris Artliner is a precision felt-tip eyeliner. It is a rich, pigmented liquid formula that is smudge-proof and long-lasting. The fine-point tip is perfect for creating intricate details and tight-lining eyeliner. People with round eyes will love the smooth and precise application for a minimalist eyeliner look.

The key product features are:

• Felt-tip eyeliner
• Highly-pigmented
• Liquid formula
• Precise application
• Mineral-oil free

Best Waterproof

Don’t be scared to get wet and wild with this all-day waterproof eyeliner. Skone Cosmetics Insanely Intense Tattooed Eyeliner in Jet Black is a highly pigmented waterproof eyeliner. The felt tip pen tip offers the accurate application and glides on to create all your favorite eye makeup for round eyes. Its waterproof formula is effective for all-day wear, swimming at the beach, playing sports, or just for those with oily skin.

The key product features are:

• Waterproof eyeliner
• Felt-tip application
• Smudge and sweat-proof
• Highly pigmented
• Quick-drying

How to Apply Makeup for Round Eyes

When applying eye makeup for round eyes, you will need the beauty essentials:

1. Eyeshadow primer
2. Eyeliner (gel, liquid, felt-tip, or pencil)
3. Eyeshadow palette (at least three colors)
4. Thickening mascara
5. Makeup brush set

You will also want to be familiar with the parts of the eye for eye makeup. The chart below shows the features of the eye you need to know when applying makeup for round eyes.

Part of the Eye	Definition
Tear duct	Inside corner of the eye Corner closest to the nose
Outer V	Outer corner of the eye Opposite corner to the nose
Crease	Folded area of skin above the eyelid
Eyelid (upper)	Flap of skin above the upper lash line
Eyelid (lower)	Skin below the lower lash line
Brow bone	Bony ridge above the eye socket
Lashline (upper)	Line above eyelashes on the upper eyelid
Lashline (lower)	Line above eyelashes on the lower eyelid
Waterline	Inside of the lower lashline

For our example, we will walk you through how to apply winged eyeliner for round eyes!

Step #1

Start with a clean, make-up-free, and moisturized face.

Step #2

Apply a cream or liquid-based eyeshadow primer using a flat eyeshadow brush all over your upper eyelid.

Step #3

Apply the lightest shade of eyeshadow all over your upper eyelid, up to your brow bone, with a soft eyeshadow brush.

Step #4

Apply the medium shade of eyeshadow to your upper eyelid with a flat eyeshadow brush.

Step #5

Define your crease lightly using the darkest shade of eyeshadow in your palate, using a soft eyeshadow brush; then highlight your tear duct with the lightest shade of eyeshadow to open your eye.

Step #7

Starting at the center of your upper lash line, draw a liner with eyeliner out to your outer v. Elongate the wing shape, angled up. Repeat over the eyeliner to define the color.

Step #8

Using your eyeliner, draw a tight line beneath your waterline from the center to the outer v.

Step # 9

Add thickening mascara to your upper lashes. Brush in an outward direction away from your nose. Make the lashes longer towards the outer v.

Step #10

Go to your closet and pick out your favorite party dress cause you’re ready for a night out!

See Ya, Doll Eyes!

So babydoll, are you ready to get started? Applying eyeliner and eye makeup for round eyes is easy and fun. You can accentuate those doll eyes or transform them into a tapered shape for a sexy and sophisticated look.