Dos and Don'ts of Wearing Makeup With Glasses

Achieving a spot-on beauty look and statement makeup with glasses can be daunting and difficult, but it’s not impossible. It can even be a fun opportunity to experiment with different looks! Just think of the many makeup styles you can do to complement your specs, highlight your eye color, and bring out your personal style.

The key is in mastering the basics of eye makeup with glasses, and the rest is up to you. Keep reading for a helpful list of dos and don’ts to get you started.

Prepping your face is essential for makeup that lasts and holds. Start with a clean face using a gentle cleanser like POND'S Bright Miracle Ultimate Oil Control Facial Foam. It’s formulated to help eliminate dirt and other impurities on the skin and manage excess oil for a matte finish.

Follow with POND’S Vitamin Micellar Water Brightening Rose for good measure. Infused with a cocktail of five skin-nourishing essential vitamins (vitamins A, B3, B5, C, and E), it helps cleanse and tone the skin – so it’s primed and ready for makeup.

You likely know this already: Glasses draw more attention to your eyes. It’s enough reason to slay your gaze and master putting on eye makeup, yes? Keep it neutral and toned down or go bold and experiment with colors.

Neutral eye makeup is always a safe choice as it won’t clash with the color of your frames or eyes. Play up the glow and shimmer. Add glitter to the outer color of your eyes or draw kitten eyes with a metallic liner. Then, dab shimmer on the inner corners of your eyes.

On the other hand, you can opt for neutral-colored glasses frames, so you can play with different eye makeup colors. 

If your favorite pair of glasses has colored frames, just make sure to choose complementary colors for your eye makeup look. For example, you can stick to one key hue, like an emerald green shadow, a salmon pink shimmer, or a deep blue winged tip. Then, keep the rest of the colors toned down and subdued. Finally, make sure your brows are groomed and neat, too.

Blush application is just as important since your frames rest on your cheeks, drawing attention to this area. Apply blush right outside where your frames fall so your glasses don’t cover your blush.

For smaller framed glasses, pat your blush on the apples of your cheeks for a subtle glow. If your frames are larger, focus on the high points of your face for a sharper, more structured look, dusting off blush on your cheekbones to your temples.

Because you’ll likely be adjusting your specs, the key is to avoid letting your frames rub off your makeup. A pro tip? Use powder formulations instead of creams, and always, always set your makeup.

Spritz on a face mist and dab on setting powder to lessen transfer and ensure that your makeup holds. Then, allow your makeup to settle for a few minutes before putting on your glasses – patience is a virtue!

Apply setting powder again after you spritz on a face mist to make sure your glasses don’t slip down your nose while wearing makeup. Pat more setting powder on the sides of your nose where your glasses sit for good measure.

Your eyesight can make things more challenging for you, but some tools can help make the process easier for you. A magnifying mirror or one with adjustable, built-in LED lights, for example, can make you see better and apply makeup more precisely.

Even if you’re going for statement eyes, don’t leave out your lips. You can apply a tinted balm or a shiny gloss in nude to pink tones to complete the look.

On the other hand, you can opt for a minimal eye look and go for a bold, statement lip instead. Prime your brows, curl your lashes, and put on soft eyeshadow. Then, line your lips for definition and fill in with a rich, velvety lip color in a striking shade.

A thick base or a poorly set one can lead to makeup transfer, smudges, and marks that can ruin your look. Eek! Instead of piling on the foundation, go for a lightweight formula and just lightly dab onto your skin. You can also skip the foundation altogether and spot-conceal on necessary areas only.

Sure, enhancing your eyes is key, but overloaded lashes can also be a problem. Extra-long lashes can bump against your glasses (a real concern, TBH) and make your eyes itch. Too thick mascaras, on top of wearing glasses, can also feel too heavy and uncomfortable.

Instead, you can simply curl your lashes for a fresh look. Then, apply light mascara on both your upper and lower lashes for added definition.

After knowing the basic tips and tricks, turns out that putting on makeup with glasses isn’t all that challenging, huh? Makeup is supposed to be fun (and it is!), and wearing glasses shouldn’t be a hindrance to your style and self-expression, but an added accessory. *Wink wink*