Carole Middleton’s makeup trick to ‘enhance’ her eyes and add ‘depth’ to her lashes is so easy to replicate

Carole Middleton’s makeup trick helps to “enhance” her eyes and add “depth” to her lashes and it’s unbelievably easy to replicate.

Though she isn’t a member of the Royal Family herself, the Princess of Wales’s mother has always favoured a pared-back approach to makeup that’s long been the go-to for Kate and Queen Camilla. Carole tends to go for a fresh-faced look with a rosy-pink lip colour, however like many of the royal women, she’s also not afraid to go slightly bolder on her eyes. 

She’s often showcased how the best eyeliners can add dimension and impact to even the most subtle of makeup looks and especially likes wearing it in her waterline. This is something that not everyone will be in the habit of doing, but we’re feeling especially inspired by Carole’s use of this simple technique.

Over the years waterline eyeliner is something that the Princess of Wales’s mother has consistently incorporated into her looks. Her choice has certainly won the approval of Woman&Home’s Digital Beauty Editor, Aleesha Badkar, who believes it gives Carole’s eyes “impact” and enhances her eye shape.

“Wearing eyeliner in her waterline adds impact to Carole’s makeup look,” Aleesha explained. “It helps to enhance the shape of her eyes and wearing eyeliner in this way is especially helpful in giving a more flattering almond-shaped appearance to the eye.” 

Shop Eyeliner Essentials

Not only that, but Aleesha believes that Carole Middleton’s makeup trick also creates the appearance of fuller-looking lashes. This is something that certainly shines through when Carole is pictured wearing eyeliner at special events, including at Wimbledon in 2022. 

Here she went for a slightly bolder eye look in general and the blended waterline eyeliner helped to create this, whilst Carole kept her base makeup and lip colour even more neutral to balance it. She’s previously worn eyeliner like this to Wimbledon in the past and each time ensured that it remained day-time appropriate by keeping the rest of her makeup more subtle.

Carole has also shown that she’s not one to limit wearing black eyeliner in her waterline only for certain events or times of year. She’s been seen with a slightly softer eyeliner look at Ascot in 2022 and then during the winter in 2021 when she attended the Princess of Wales’s Together at Christmas carol concert with beautifully outlined eyes. On all of these occasions Carole’s eyeliner drew our gaze to her eyes and gave them fabulous definition. 

This makeup preference is also something that’s very popular with the royals as Queen Letizia of Spain’s eyeliner is regularly applied to her waterline too. Speaking previously with womanandhome.com about Her Majesty’s looks, Sarah Amelia Fogg, Celebrity Makeup Artist and Founder of Brows by Sarah explained that eyeliner on the waterline “softens” the lash line.

“When applied correctly, eyeliner on your waterline enhances the eyes and adds depth making your lashes look and appear fuller. It also softens the lash line which avoids your best mascara looking too harsh compared to the rest of your makeup,” she said. "To replicate the look, I would recommend opting for a high-quality waterproof eyeliner pencil in a shade that compliments your eye colour and makeup style.”

Although Carole and Queen Letizia both tend to wear black eyeliner, you could also try a light brown pencil if you want to add definition in a more understated way. Whichever colour you choose, applying eyeliner to your waterline is a lovely way to enhance your eyes and Carole has proved it looks beautiful all year round.

Aleesha Badkar

Aleesha is Digital Beauty Editor at woman&home, where she gets to share her expertise into all the best techniques, sharpest tools and newest products - with a particular savvy in skincare and fragrance. With years of beauty product testing experience, she always knows what to recommend.