Style

The One Product You Need To Create Easy Galaxy Makeup

by Kim Carpluk

Galaxy makeup has made its rounds about the interwebs for quite some time now — and for good reason. These star-studded looks are simply out of this world. It seems complicated, but it doesn't have to be. With the help of Pat McGrath Labs Dark Star 006 kit, creating a galaxy eye no longer takes a million light years.

Galaxy has been the reigning theme for social media DIY these days. There are galaxy nails, galaxy cakes, galaxy slime, and even galaxy pizza. But nothing is really more magical than the galaxy makeup trend. Beauty gurus have been creating constellations of glitter and swirls of iridescent pastel clouds on their cheeks and eyes for a couple years now. Though the results are simply breathtaking, the process is extremely time consuming. Layering numerous loose glitters, creams, and shadows from multiple palettes can get messy and confusing. But leave it to the mother of all makeup artists herself, Pat McGrath, to create the kit to make the galaxy eye simply effortless.

McGrath's Dark Star 006 set, like all of her previous releases, comes with all of the products necessary to create this celestial confection — and luckily, it's still available on Sephora. The kit includes a blending brush, Black SmudgeLiner eye kohl, Dark Matter pigment, UltraViolet Blue or UltraSuede Brown pigment (depending on the kit you choose), Mercury (pewter) pigment, Astral White pigment, and Cyber Eye Gloss. Yes, it's $130, which is a bit cost prohibitive — but when you consider the amount of products you're getting and the number of looks you could potentially create, it's a bargain.

Pat McGrath Dark Star 006 in Ultraviolet Blue, $130, Sephora

I purchased the UltraViolet Blue kit, which truly is perfect for the galaxy eye look. The UltraSuede Brown is beautiful is well, but not quite as intergalactic.

For my look, I used all of the products except for the Mercury pigment.

Layering these textures takes two minutes, but magically creates the perfect multidimensional galaxy eye.

So grab your Dark Star set and prepare for liftoff. Here's how to get started:

1. Build Your Base

Whenever I create any quick smoky eye, I always build my base with an eyeliner or chubby shadow pencil first. The liner or cream shadow will not only help you to build saturation more quickly, it will also act like double-sided sticky tape to keep your smoky look in place throughout the day (or night. Live your dreams).

For this look, I used the Black SmudgeLiner eye kohl pencil to build my base. I sketched a generous layer from my lashline to slightly below my crease before quickly smudging out any harsh lines or edges while the product was still emollient. Don't worry about being too perfect. When it comes to smoky eyes, being a little grungy is best.

I took a fluffy eyeshadow brush loaded with the Dark Matter pigment and buffed out the crease so the y eye had more of a gradient and less of a definitive shape. With fluff, we buff, so don't forget to us little circular motions when blending in the crease, starting at the outer corner and working your way inward.

As you blend out your crease, make sure to look straight ahead in the mirror from time to time. This will insure that the smoky placement is flattering to your eye shape and not turning you in to a panda.

Smudge the same pencil/chubby liner into your lower lashline and blend it out with the black pigment or eyeshadow. Start at the outer corner and work your way inward.

2. Layer Texture

To create an intergalactic look, it's best to layer different textures. This gives the eye a multi-dimensional finish that mimics the look of stars in the sky. To start, I applied the UltraViolet Blue pigment to the center of my eye using my finger. For smoky eyes, fingers can build saturation and texture faster than brushes can.

If you lose the eye's dimension at any point (or if you get too excited with the sparkle and the eye starts to look flat), you can always bring a bit of your black chubby pencil back to the inner and outer corners of the eye.

What gave the look its true starry finish was Pat McGrath's Astral White Pigment. This powder is truly out of this world. I've never seen anything like it. In the pan, it just looks white, but...

It applies as the most beautiful, iridescent cool shade that shifts from aqua to blue to violet depending on the light. It's the raddest shadow transformer I've ever found. But a warning to the wise, a little goes a long way. Just tap a little to the center of the eye. Because it reflects so much light, if you tap it all over the eye, the eye plane may appear flat and 2D.

If you want to be super extra, you can layer a gloss on top. The gloss makes the shimmer ridiculously sparkly and truly creates a whole galaxy on your lid. However, gloss will never have longevity, so if you plan on going out and living your best life, you may want to skip this step. But if you're in it for the best selfie of all time, welcome to it.

I used the Cyber Gloss from the Dark Star 006 kit, which is just stupidly beautiful. Just like the Astral White pigment, it's iridescent, reflecting pink and blue, depending on the light. If just turned up the volume of my lid from a sensible five to a deafening 10.

Buzz Lightyear who? I'm the one who's slaying to infinity and beyond.

3. Finishing Touches

If you feel your lashes are getting a little lost among the stars, smudge a bit more of the black liner or chubby pencil into the lashline before coating your lashes with mascara and applying falsies, assuming that's your thing.

This intergalactic eye is truly out of this world. It's constantly shifting under the light, sometimes appearing blue, violet, aqua, and teal.

I feel like there's a whole solar system residing on my lids and I couldn't be more thrilled.

Galaxy eyes look complicated, but they don't have to be. As long as you're layering textures, you can recreate this look faster than the speed of light.