I Tried Two TikTok Eyeliner Trends—This One Looked Best
August 15, 2022 by Marissa Matozzo
The ‘siren eye’ vs. ‘doe eye’ debate is all the rage on BeautyTok lately, the fan-dubbed section of TikTok videos that centers around makeup trends and DIY instructions. As a winged eyeliner fan since the days of Alexa Chung’s eyeliner tutorials and other cat-eye tips from 2014 Tumblr, I had to take a stab at both.
After a week of practicing the two very different, ultra-trendy styles, I found both to have redeeming aesthetic qualities, but one was much more suited for everyday wear than the other. Before sharing my results, however, here’s a little refresher on the latest makeup debate that is heating up TikTok and other social media sites.
While older Gen-Z members and millennials may recall a winged eyeliner popularity resurgence in the past decade or so (remember it in twee and soft grunge?), its relevance has now taken two notable forms. The ‘doe eye’ eyeliner, often created with the help of light eyeshadow, a small liquid wing and voluminous lashes, aims to open the eye more (like the OG Tumblr wings once did).
The ‘siren eye’ look, on the other hand, seems to be more inspired by Alexa Demie‘s Euphoria looks— complete with thicker, longer lines (that don’t just jut out from the end of one’s eye, but also include one at the inner corner as well). While this look is also made with sky-high lashes, it also features much darker eyeshadow and a more blended wing overall.
As Donya Momenian of Teen Vogue explains, “Siren eyes feature a sharp wing that extends farther out both ways, with the inner corners of the eyes being accentuated with an equally sharp point and oftentimes, a darkly-lined waterline. Doe eyes, on the other hand, are highlighted by a white-lined waterline and a short, upwards wing that stops before reaching the inner corners of the eyes.” With that said, I prepared to do both looks with the help of a TikTok search, as the phrases ‘siren eye’ and ‘doe eye’ currently boast millions of views on the app: