How to Get Bigger Eyes

Co-authored by Shipra Taneja

Last Updated: July 2, 2022 References

The doe-eyed look has long been desirable. With a few simple tips and tricks, you can make your eyes look bigger and more dramatic.

Method 1

Method 1 of 3:

Maximizing Your Eye Size Naturally

1
Get enough sleep. If you're prone to staying up late at night, you'll know the reddened, dry look of eyes that comes with sleep deprivation. Getting enough sleep is mandatory if you want to maximize the size of your eyes. Eyes need at least five hours per night to properly regenerate.^{[1]
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Research source} Of course, you'll need at least seven to ensure you're generally feeling your best each day.
2
Drink water. Puffy eyes are well-known to result from dehydration. Keeping up with your body's need for water will keep the puffiness at bay. Eight glasses of water is often cited as the goal amount per day.^{[2]
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Research source} If you have trouble working water consumption into your current day schedule, try bringing a refillable bottle of water around with you. Drink some of it whenever you think of it. Keeping hydrated has a long list of benefits. Not only will you look more awake, you'll feel more awake.

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3
Moisturize your face. While moisturizing the area around the eyes is going to improve the look of your eyes the most, the fact remains you should be giving your face a full-blown moisture treatment. This will make you look more vibrant, which in turn will have a beneficial effect on the way your eyes are perceived. Treat your face with a facial moisturizer, and buy an eye moisturizer for the area around your eyes. Eye moisturizers are designed to be very mild, which is perfect for such a sensitive area.^{[3]
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- You can use your regular moisturizer around your eyes, but you may notice an improvement if you buy a specific eye moisturizer for the job. Eye moisturizers are especially helpful if you are prone to wrinkles around the eyes.^{[4]
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4
Massage your eyes. Gently massaging your area around your eyes helps encourage blood flow, improving the look of your eyes and reducing dark eye circles. Slowly massage around the eye, rubbing in small circles. If you want to make it a regular habit however, you should purchase a vibrating eye roller.^{[5]
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Research source} They are relatively inexpensive, limit the transmission of oils between hand and face, and are specifically designed to promote blood flow around the eyes.
- If you massage with your hands, make sure you have no excess oils in or on your fingers. Otherwise, the exchange of oil may result in skin irritation.
- You can enhance your eyes by taking care of the delicate under-eye skin. It can give you a brighter and more youthful appearance.^{[6]
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- Keeping an eye cream in the refrigerator and using it is helpful.^{[7]
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- Also, using an ice roller around your eyes can make a lot of difference.^{[8]
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5
Exercise your eyes. If you want to improve the look of any body part, the best way to do so is to exercise it. Though not increasing the actual size of your eyes per se, making sure your eyes are as strong as possible is important and shouldn't be overlooked.^{[9]
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- Alternate quickly between near and far sight. Purposefully switching between the two quickly will force your eyes to speed up the time they take to adapt.
- Directional eye exercises will improve mobility and reaction time. Try moving your eyes in different directions. Keep your head locked in one place, then look up, down, left and right. Try moving your eyes as far in each direction as you can. This will maximize the effectiveness of the exercise.
6
Adjust your eyes to dim light. It's a well-known fact that your pupils will adjust according to the amount of light in your line of vision. Being somewhere darker or dimly lit will force your pupils to enlarge so they can trap more light. Going somewhere dark will naturally increase your pupil size as a result, which in turn may increase the apparent size of your eyes. Keep in mind the opposite is true for bright lights, so it's best to avert your gaze from any particular brightness if you want to keep your pupils in check.
- Some research has suggested that your pupils will contract and dilate when you even think of a different light setting. If you're in a bind where you have no control over the light setting, imagine yourself in a dimly lit space and check to see if it has any effect on your eyes.^{[10]
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Use an eye mask. Putting on an eye mask for ten minutes will reduce inflammation around your eyes. Done regularly, the skin around your eyes will be softer, and your eyes will find it easier to shine.^{[11]
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Research source} If you don't have an eye mask at hand, rubbing ice cubes around your eyes will have much of the same effect.

Method 2

Method 2 of 3:

Using Eye Makeup

1
Use an eyeshadow. Eyeshadow is an effective way of attracting attention to your eyes and giving them a look of greater volume. Eyeshadows are good to apply first, as they give the other makeup (like mascara and eyeliner) a coloured foundation.^{[12]
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Research source} The colour and tone of eyeshadow you choose should be determined by the colour of your eyes. What works for one colour might not work for another.
- Brown eyes are very versatile, and can make just about any colour work. Purple is a great shade for brown eyes.
- Blue eyes look best with earthier tones like brown or muted grey.
- Green eyes favour moderate and warm colours. A mild purple or golden brown work very well.
- The colour of your eyeshadow need not match up with your natural eye colour, but if you do, it will make your natural eye colour pop out.
2
Use a nude or white eyeliner. Nude eyeliner is a safe but effective way to brighten the look of your eyes.^{[13]
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Research source} In turn, this will make you look more awake. Because nude eyeliner is barely perceivable, it's incredibly versatile and fits just about any situation. If you're looking for a more significant change to the size of your eyes however, you can try a white liner.
- Adding some dark shadow underneath your eye, and then applying the nude or white liner in your lower waterline creates the appearance of bigger eyes.
3
Give your eyes a cat eye tail. A smouldering cat eye look is a common and effective way of increasing eye size. Using liquid eyeliner, draw the line outwards from the outer end of your eye, ending it with a pointed tip.^{[14]
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Research source} Because a cat's eye look is so common and relatively simple, there are lots of different ways you could go about it.
- Don't forget to create a base first. Use the lightest coloured eyeshadow that matches your skin tone. This will emphasize the effect of the eyeliner, particularly if you're using a dark-coloured eyeliner like brown or black.^{[15]
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Apply false eyelashes.^{[16]
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Research source} If you're trying to attract the most attention to your eyes, false eyelashes are great. They open up your eyes and give them a greater frame than you would muster with natural lashes. Apply some glue to the back line of the lashes, and place it snugly behind your natural lashes. Though it may not target the eyes directly, false eyelashes give the look of opening up your eyes.
5
Smudge a white shimmer around your eyes.^{[17]
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Research source} Like a focused white eyeliner, a white shimmer will give your eyes a look of alertness. Draw white eyeliner around your eyes and gently smudge it until you have the look of a graceful cloud around your eyes. Make sure the liner is evenly spread, fading out by the point it reaches your eyebrows.
- A white shimmer is typically reserved for more glamorous occasions, but if you're daring you might try working it into a casual look.
- Getting a good shimmer may take a few times if you're not used to it. If it's not something you've tried before, the interesting new looks you get from it will be worth the challenge.
- Other tinted highlighters can also be used in the inner corners of the eyes to make them pop and appear larger.

Method 3

Method 3 of 3:

Framing Your Eyes

1
Curl your eyelashes. Even if your eyelashes are naturally curled, you should go about curling them regularly. Eyelashes are the natural frame of your eyes, and curling them will attract more attention to that part of your face. Curled lashes will also increase the wideness of your eyes. Using an eyelash curler, start at the base of your lashes and hold the curler for three seconds. Don't curl for any longer than that, as you'll risk hurting your lashes.
2
Wear circle contact lenses. Circle contacts function like regular contacts, but they intentionally cover part of the whites as well increasing the apparent size of your irises. This results in a doe-like appearance comparable with Japanese anime.^{[18]
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Research source} Although circle contacts are popular predominantly in East Asia, you can order them online. They cost between $20-30 a pair, and can be purchased in prescription brands as well. LensCircle is one place to purchase them.^{[19]
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- Circle contact lenses have been associated with risks and significant injuries, including blindness. They're also currently unapproved by the FDA. There hasn't been a significant amount of empirical research on the subject however, and the perceived risks may simply be fear mongering, but the potential issues should be kept in mind if you decide to look into them.^{[20]
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Lose the glasses. Thick prescription glasses have an effect of visibly shrinking eyes through the lens. If you wear a heavy prescription, simply taking off your glasses will make a huge difference. Contacts are barely noticeable by contrast, and are relatively easy to adjust to. If you have the money for it, laser eye surgery can correct your vision issue permanently. A smaller set of lenses will also help to reduce the issue.^{[21]
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Community Q&A

Question

How can I reduce dark circles?

Community Answer

Try to get enough sleep. Cucumber helps as it cools your eyes, reduces redness and reduces puffiness. Instead of looking at a screen before bed, read a book, as looking at bright lights before bed increases dark circles.
Question

I want my eyes to be bigger without makeup. What I can do naturally?

Community Answer

Leave cold spoons in the freezer overnight, then apply them to your eyes when you wake up. It reduces puffiness, which exposes your eyes more.
Question

I am Asian, how can I make my eyes bigger?

Jen Hallman

Community Answer

In addition to the tips in this article, you can use makeup in other ways to make your eyes appear bigger. You can line the upper water line of your eye in waterproof black and the lower inside water line in a waterproof flesh tone (Ulta has some inexpensive options with the NYX brand concealer stick). Use bold mascara on top lashes only (try Benefit They're Real or Bad Gal Lashes from Sephora). Line the inner corners of your eyes with a champagne frosty highlighter color.

Warnings

Don't get too hung up on the size of your eyes. More size doesn't necessarily mean more beauty. As with your other features, you want to make sure your eyes compliment the rest of your face.

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Larger eyes have a higher risk of myopia (short-sightedness.) While seen as a sign of beauty, larger eyes have a higher risk of vision problems. If you have smaller-set eyes and wish they were bigger, keep the risks of bigger eyes in mind.

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