Meet the Product That Will Save Your Eye Makeup Every Time

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I'm on a constant quest for eye makeup that never smears. I settled my eyeliner game years ago, when I needed it to last through hours-long surf sessions. But I never realized my overall eye makeup game was lacking until I tried theBalm's Put A Lid On It eyelid primer ($18). Before, I used whatever skin primer I happened to have in my kit —usually one from Laura Mercier or Smashbox— before a quick layer of Laura Mercier's Metallic Créme Eye Colour.

After years of that routine, I grabbed theBalm's eyelid primer from my makeup stash on a whim. The texture was different my skin primers, so I knew it would either work really well or not at all. By the end of a long night out, the little yellow tube had won me over. My eyelid makeup had never stuck so well. It even kept my eyeliner from creasing, (an inevitable regardless of my smudge-proof routine).

Then the true test: the shower. With my former eyelid products, a good face wash would wipe away most makeup. But with theBalm's eyelid primer, I actually worked hard with eye makeup remover, (I often use baby oil) to take off all the product—a good sign if you need your eye makeup to last, but a bad sign if you're lazy with cleaning your face before bed.

Now I know what my eyelids were missing for all these years. In the past, I fell victim to the creased eye shadows and the melted colors that follow a day in the sun or a big night out. But, with a quick swipe of this stuff, I can trust that my eyes look properly dressed all day—and all night—from here on out.