The Best Pencil Eyeliners: The Search Is Over

Looking for the very best kohl pencil eyeliner? Look no further, beauty friends – we’ve road tested (pretty much) every kohl liner on the market, and we’ve gather the cream of the pencil eyeliner crop to bring you a guide to flawless fuss-free liner.

And just to give you an extra beauty treat, we’ve included some pencil liner hacks, for your make-up pleasure. You’re welcome.

So what should you look out for when finding the best pencil eyeliner? The first thing to consider is ease of application and ergonomic design of the kohl liner itself. Does it fit nicely in the hand and rest comfortably as you draw your line? Does the pencil give a good colour pay-off on your lid with one application? This is key – you want to avoid dragging a pencil over the delicate skin on your eyelids over and over to achieve the perfect eyeliner, so choosing a soft, easy-to-apply kohl eyeliner pencil is important.

Kohl pencil eyeliners that you sharpen tend to give you a slightly more precise application than wind-up, or self-sharpening pencils, since you can control exactly how sharp a point you want the tip to have. But bear in mind you will need to keep a sharpener to hand – or things can get very smudgy.

Speaking of smudging, if you like a soft, smoky eye, choosing a softer pencil eyeliner is a good idea – you’ll be able to use a fingertip, cotton bud or applicator brush to soften your line and blend with shadow colour to create a sultry smoke.

Finally, when looking for the best pencil eyeliner, you’ll want to think about how long you want your liner to last. A lot of beauty buffs love a pencil liner because it’s easier to remove than many liquid liners, meaning you can easily correct mistakes, make touch-ups and change your look easily. But if you want long-lasting results, keep an eye out for waterproof formulas.

Shop our pick of the best kohl pencil eyeliners, now:

Now you’ve got the best tools in your arsenal (or, you know, pencil eyeliner in your make-up bag,) let us give you a helping hand to perfect your liner application, with five hacks to flawless eyeliner…

Perfect flick

If you like a rock a feline eyeliner flick with your pencil liner, always start with the flicks, then draw in the lash-line to join up after. The flick is the hardest part to perfect, so if you start with this, any adjustments won’t mean starting from scratch.

Longer Life

Make your pencil eyeliner last for longer by taking a super-fine liner brush and adding a sweep of matching eyeshadow (be that black, brown, or whatever colour liner you’ve chosen) over the top of your pencil line. The powder will set your kohl liner in place in the same way a dusting of face powder will keep your makeup put for longer.

Liquid Liner

If you’re more of a liquid liner kind of girl, you should still make sure you’ve got one of the best pencil eyeliners (from our pick, above) in your kit, and use it to make a guide line for your liquid liner. Mistakes in pencil are much easier to touch-up.

Create Curve

You can use your pencil eyeliner to create a more curved effect to your lid. Draw a kohl line along the lash line, blending between lashes where possible, and then slightly exaggerate the curve in the centre of the eye, to build the line into a wider curve.

Soft and Smooth

If your liner is a little dry and scratchy, try warming the nib a little before application for an easier job. You can do this by simply rubbing the pencil eyeliner’s nib between your fingertips or draw the liner onto the back of your hand before applying to your eyelid.

READ MORE: The Best Felt Tip Eyeliners That Are Perfect for Professionals And Beginners Alike