Neutrals All the Way

“I like nude everything! It’s nice to put a pop of color, but a neutral eye and gorgeous contoured matte color for the face is just stunning,” says makeup artist Jeannia Robinette. To recreate this neutral, monochromatic look, try using shades close to your skin tone and using the same product across your lids, cheeks, and lips.

Purple Monochrome

“To make brown eyes stand out, it’s ideal to use colors opposite to brown, such as deep blue and purple,” says makeup artist Claudia Betancur. Purple shades complement brown eyes really well, as they highlight the richness of your irises. Create the monochrome look by applying a plum to purple shade all around your eyes.

Neon Lights

An easy way to introduce neon colors into your makeup look is to try adding it as a colored liquid liner. Consider using this look for a festival or party, or a day when you feel like being extra glam.

Bold Blue

Bold, electric shades and brown eyes are a real winning combination. “All colors look good on brown eyes, but I love wine, green, and blue as they create a lovely contrast, making the eyes appear more vibrant,” says Betancur. Keep the rest of the makeup look simple and apply the shadow across your full eyelid as well as the lower lash line. Blend, blend, and blend a bit more for a seamless finish.

Extra-Nude Lips

Sometimes, “nude” lipsticks can be too light for your skin tone. Make the look work for you by using a darker lip liner and using the lighter lipstick in the center of the lips only. Top off with a lip gloss and you’re good to go.

Warm Tones

Add summer warmth to your skin by applying a lightly shaded bronzer across the highest points of your face. Use a similar shade on your eyes to add a radiant shadow, then complete the look with mascara and a warm nude lipstick.

“For light skin, cappuccino browns offer a natural look suitable for both day and night,” notes Betancur of Selena Gomez’s warm look.

Fresh Freckles

Freckles have a way of adding fresh-faced allure to any look. If you already have freckles, embrace them by taking a lightweight approach to your makeup that celebrates your unique features rather than concealing them.

And if you don’t have natural freckles? Simply use an eyebrow pencil to draw them on over your foundation. Freckled beauties who prefer a full-coverage base can also take this approach to redraw their natural spots.

Full-Face Glow

Embrace a dramatic glow with red lipstick, warm eyeshadow, and the perfect highlighter. Take the glow from your cheekbones all the way through the brow bone for a fully sun-kissed look.

Mellow Yellow

Bright yellow eyeshadow is a stunning makeup look that really pops with brown eyes. Keep the rest of your look relatively minimal to make your sunny color choice stand out.

Floating Eyeliner

Make classic eyeliner more interesting by embracing a modern silhouette. Try black around the outer crease like Zendaya, then add rosy tones to the rest of your face for a fresh, romantic look.

Smoke It Out

Sultry and dark, a smoky eye is great for added drama on a night out. Smudge out the bottom lash line and extend the shadow beyond the eyelid to the outer edge, creating a soft wing. You can go as subtle or bold as you like; the smoky chocolate tones here really help to show off your brown eyes. Defined brows and nude lips complete the look.

Minty Fresh

Light, pale shadows create an amazing contrast with brown eyes. Combined with fluttery lashes, a mint shade feels both nostalgic and modern.

Just Peachy

Peach complements every skin tone and eye color, including brown eyes. Embrace a monochrome look by choosing similar shades for eyeshadow, blush, and lipstick.

Pops of Sparkle

A darker eye color allows for lots of play time when it comes to your eyeshadow. Recreate this look by applying a shimmering light pink shadow all over your top eyelids, a touch of neon liner in the same hue, and your favorite mascara. Keep the rest of your look simple and glowing, and you’re sure to turn heads all night.

Barbie Babe

“For olive skin, playing with pink or peach tones helps balance the green undertones and adds vibrancy,” says Betancur. Nicki Minaj has mastered this color combo perfectly. Her brown-eyed Barbie makeup look balances simplicity and glamour using pink shadow and blush, dramatic false lashes, and nude, glossy lips.

Tightline Backline

Bring the drama by applying black liner all around your eyes. Feel free to extend into a wing or add lipstick as you wish, or keep it simple for a Parisian feel.

Colored Mascara

Colored mascara certainly draws attention to your beautiful brown eyes. Combine this deep blue with a little bit of gold shimmer and no one will be able to look away. For an added punch, pair with eyeliner in the same hue.

Citrus Infusion

A punchy shade of lipstick can brighten any makeup look for brown eyes, especially in a warm orange tone.

A Classic Staple

Classic black liner, mascara, and red lipstick never get old. We love how they bring out the rich drama in brown eyes.

Dewy Radiance

Nothing says post-vacation glow like this look. Try using a dewy primer under your foundation, then add a few drops of liquid highlighter on top. This is a surefire way to get that holiday radiance, even if you spent the weekend on your couch.

Fluffy Brows

Natural brows are something to embrace, and using a clear brow gel (or wax) is a great way to enhance them. Fluff your eyebrows out with a spoolie brush, then apply a bit of added color with a tinted gel formula if you like the fuller look.

Monochrome Madness

When monochromatic makeup looks made their debut on the runway, we fell in love immediately. A few years later, we’re still seeing monochrome styles in every color.

Graphic Eyeliner

A little liner is all you need—skip eyeshadow to keep this look clean, sharp, and minimal. The glittery finish of this liquid liner is optional, though we heavily advise taking the plunge.

The Power of Bronzer

An allover sunkissed look pairs well with brown eyes because of the way it warms the skin. Brush the same shade across your entire face, then finish with subtle eyeshadow, blush, and lipstick for a cohesive, glowing finish.

’90s Inspo

The ’90s were great for makeup, giving us brown lipstick, shaped brows, and funky eyeliner technique. All three were practically made for brown eyes.

Barely There Makeup

Let your brown eyes steal the show with this subtle makeup look. Creating it on yourself is all about sticking to the basics to enhance your natural features, giving you that “no-makeup makeup” glow.

Popsicle Pout

Nothing says summer like a lightly stained lip that you can practically mistake for a bit of leftover popsicle. Flushed cheeks and precise liner add to the effortlessly chic look that you can repeat all year long.

Bold Lower Liner

If color makes you nervous, try using it on your lower lash line for a subtle pop. This gives you the illusion of a colored shadow without committing to a full eye look—and the unique color placement really stands out against brown eyes.

Moody Mauves

For an understated color with major impact, try a soft purple or mauve. Pair with light pink blush and glossed lips for an easy look that will certainly turn heads. Lizzo amps up the combo with a glittery finish and spikes of plum shades throughout.

Glistening Gold

Play up the gold or hazel hues in your brown eyes with golden highlight and shimmering eyeshadow. While the composition pairs beautifully with a nude, bronze, or brown lip, we especially love it with this moody pout.

Sunset Bronze

Achieving a natural, nude look is simpler than you think. Warm eyeshadow tones and an all-over glow are a foolproof way to make your brown eyes pop at golden hour.

Betancur recommends bronzer to achieve the look. “This will help you get a natural caramel shade on your eyes. Since it’s a powder, it’s easier to blend. You can also apply it to your cheeks, chin, and hairline for a sun-kissed look,” she says.

Mermaid Dreams

Mix blue-green with a shimmery pink for a mermaid gradient that really shines against brown eyes. Finish things off with classic eyeliner and wispy lashes for a modern finish you can wear anywhere.

Celestial Silver

Sometimes, a futuristic contrast is just what you need to keep things interesting. Find a silver shadow as bright as your eyes are rich, create a unique bottom wing with a matching liner, and finish with lashes to the heavens for a truly magical look.

Flushed

Rosy tones appear warmer against big brown eyes, and we’re definitely not complaining. Choose a shade of blush that works well with your skin tone, and apply generously for a flushed glow.

Shades of Bronze

Bronze shades can bring out the warmth in your skin and work well for a variety of seasons. If you happen to have red hair like FKA Twigs here, cherry and bronze makeup can add life to a look and draw attention to brown eyes.

Pastel Perfection

Creating a watercolor eyeshadow moment adds a dose of joy to any look, and you can choose between traditional placement and more abstract strokes of color, as seen here. Not into pastels? Betancur says that for deep skin, “dark blue works well as it complements the beautiful skin tone.”

Ultra Glossy

If there’s one thing that lip gloss will always do, it’s add volume. Clear gloss will allow for your natural lip color to show through, enhancing your complexion and eyes even more.

High Fidelity Glaze

We love a glossy pout, but its ascension from the lips to the eyelids is truly resplendent. For this ultra-rich look, you can use an eye glaze (or, in a pinch, your favorite lip gloss).

Matte Glam

It’s difficult to talk about a glaze without mentioning Hailey Bieber, but this is one look sans dewy sheen. If subtle glam is your thing, she’s got you covered. Use shades similar to your skin tone that add just enough contrast to be noticed.

White Hot Liner

Say hello to white eyeliner, a trend from the early ‘60s that’s made its way back once more. This trick makes eyes appear bigger and brighter while still pulling the entire look together. Gently apply the eye pencil outside your lower lash line for an abstract look like Willow Smith.

Burgundy Beauty

“You can do anything with brown eyes, but I love to do really rich gorgeous colors like navy or burgundy,” says Robinette. “I play around a lot with deeper colors, they really make your eyes pop.” This deep berry wine lip and matching eye shadow combo is chef’s kiss.

Touch of Eyeliner

Anne Hathaway’s beautiful brown eyes are the star of this super subtle look. Her lips and cheeks are gently flushed with the same natural pinky-peach color as her eyes. A heavy eyeliner is the only dramatic aspect of a very simple look.

Caramel Craze

“I like the makeup palettes that are matte, caramels, taupes, espressos, with those warmer browns that make it pop,” says Robinette of a caramel look. Gemstones along the wing line and inner corner of the eye as well as a highlight on the apples of the cheeks complete this look.

Lilac Reveries

Brown eyes pop when framed with pastels, but lilac is a true leader if you have any green you want to showcase. Green and gold-flecked brown eyes or hazel eyes will look alight when paired with this shade.

Jaded Corners

If a full wash of vibrant color isn’t quite your style, dip a toe into the trend with just a pop of your favorite hue in the inner corners. This otherwise monochromatic look comes to life courtesy of those jade tear ducts.

Bright Eyes

No brightening eyedrops needed here. Refresh tired eyes and make those brown irises pop with a swipe of white or flesh-toned eyeliner along the inside of the waterline. For added sparkle, play with ultra-fine metallic finishes that subtly glisten.

Soft White

Metallic silvers and neon-like white-hot looks are great for making a bold statement, but this delicate look is absolutely ethereal. Matte white shadow contrasts beautifully against deep eyes and olive complexions, while that just-bitten deep berry lip brings depth to the overall composition.

Emerald Cut Crease

Greens work overtime on brown eyes, naturally complementing them while also setting those irises aflame. This baby cut crease in metallic green does all the work, despite the presence of that feline eyeliner.