How To Sharpen An Eyeliner Pencil: 11 Steps (with Pictures) - WikiHow

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Terms of Use wikiHow is where trusted research and expert knowledge come together. Learn why people trust wikiHow How to Sharpen an Eyeliner Pencil PDF download Download Article Explore this Article parts 1 Freezing Your Eyeliner and Cleaning Your Sharpener 2 Sharpening Your Eyeliner 3 Testing Your Eyeliner Other Sections Video Expert Q&A Tips and Warnings Related Articles References Article Summary Co-authored by Erica Coates

Last Updated: February 8, 2025 Approved

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This article was co-authored by Erica Coates. Erica Coates is a Professional Makeup Artist and the Owner of Erica Nicole Beauty based in the Washington D.C. metro area. With more than 14 years of experience, she specializes in creating and personalizing makeup looks and skin prep for makeup. Erica received her cosmetology training from the Bennett Career Institute. wikiHow marks an article as reader-approved once it receives enough positive feedback. In this case, 100% of readers who voted found the article helpful, earning it our reader-approved status. This article has been viewed 236,972 times.

Dull eyeliner can give you smudgy, inexact lines when you apply it. Sharpening your eyeliner pencil regularly will help you get the best use out of your makeup.

Steps

Part 1 Part 1 of 3:

Freezing Your Eyeliner and Cleaning Your Sharpener

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  1. Step 1 Put your eyeliner in the freezer for five minutes. 1 Put your eyeliner in the freezer for five minutes. Putting your eyeliner in the freezer before you sharpen it will prevent it from crumbling when you try to sharpen it. It should come out of the freezer harder than it was before. If you have a thicker eyeliner pencil, you may need to leave it in for a longer period of time (ten or fifteen minutes, or however long it takes to harden).
  2. Watermark wikiHow to Sharpen an Eyeliner Pencil 2 Dip a cotton swab in rubbing alcohol. The alcohol is a disinfectant that will kill bacteria that live in your eyeliner pencil sharpener. These bacteria can be harmful to your eyes, so it is good to sanitize your sharpener before and after you use it.[1] Open the eyeliner pencil sharpener. Advertisement
  3. Watermark wikiHow to Sharpen an Eyeliner Pencil 3 Clean the sharpener. Stick the wet swab inside the sharpener. Gently swab. Using a new swab, clean the blades inside the compartment of the sharpener.[2]
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Part 2 Part 2 of 3:

Sharpening Your Eyeliner

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  1. Watermark wikiHow to Sharpen an Eyeliner Pencil 1 Take eyeliner out of the freezer. It should feel harder than when you put it in. If it still feels soft or crumbly, put it back in the freezer for another five minutes.
  2. Watermark wikiHow to Sharpen an Eyeliner Pencil 2 Insert eyeliner into the sharpener.[3] Put it all the way into the sharpener, but do not force it. [4] Do not press extremely hard or force the pencil in. The pencil should slide easily into the hole.
  3. Watermark wikiHow to Sharpen an Eyeliner Pencil 3 Sharpen the eyeliner. Turn the pencil in the sharpener a couple times (at least one full rotation). Sharpen your eyeliner over a trash can so that the shavings fall into the trash can.
  4. Watermark wikiHow to Sharpen an Eyeliner Pencil 4 Pull the eyeliner out of the eyeliner sharpener. If you are happy with the sharpness of the tip, stop sharpening. If it still looks dull, keep sharpening. Repeat this process until you are satisfied with the sharpness of the pencil.
    • Eyeliner pencils do not need to be extremely sharp. They are, after all, going to be touching your skin!
  5. Step 5 Improvise if you don't have a sharpener. 5 Improvise if you don't have a sharpener. In a pinch, you can also sharpen eyeliner with a knife, such as an X-acto knife or a pen knife. Hold the pencil in your non-dominant hand, and the knife in your dominant hand. Point the pencil downward. Hold the knife perpendicular to the pencil, with the tip an inch or so from the point of the pencil. With the thumb of your non-dominant hand, push the knife to the end of the pencil (to the tip). The shavings should come off in thin strips. Repeat this process all the way around the circumference of the pencil. Repeat until sharp.[5]
    • While you can improvise and even use a regular pencil sharpener, it definitely won't give the desired effect.[6]
    6. Advertisement
Part 3 Part 3 of 3:

Testing Your Eyeliner

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  1. Watermark wikiHow to Sharpen an Eyeliner Pencil 1 Test eyeliner on the back of your hand. Draw a small line of eyeliner on the back of your hand. Make sure that you are happy with the line it makes. If it’s too thick, sharpen your pencil more. If it’s too thin, draw on your hand or a on piece of paper until the tip becomes more blunt. You should have a small but rounded tip.[7]
  2. Watermark wikiHow to Sharpen an Eyeliner Pencil 2 Sharpen again, if necessary. Sharpen in smaller increments to get just the right tip. Make sure that there are no sharp edges on the tip. It will be touching your eye. When you are finished, try testing the eyeliner on the back of your hand again, and then on your eye.
  3. Watermark wikiHow to Sharpen an Eyeliner Pencil 3 Sterilize sharpener again. Open the sharpener. Throw away the shavings into a garbage can. Dip a cotton swab in rubbing alcohol, and, again, clean the blades and the inner compartment of the eyeliner sharpener. Put the sharpener back together.[8]
    4. Advertisement

Video

Expert Q&A

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  • Question What can I use to sharpen my eyeliner? Erica Coates Erica Coates Professional Makeup Artist Erica Coates is a Professional Makeup Artist and the Owner of Erica Nicole Beauty based in the Washington D.C. metro area. With more than 14 years of experience, she specializes in creating and personalizing makeup looks and skin prep for makeup. Erica received her cosmetology training from the Bennett Career Institute. Erica Coates Erica Coates Professional Makeup Artist Expert Answer I definitely recommend a sharpener geared towards eyeliners, specifically — the kind that has two holes. These are great because they give the sharpest effect with the pencils. Thanks! We're glad this was helpful. Thank you for your feedback. If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow Yes No Not Helpful 4 Helpful 6
  • Question How do you sharpen a gel eyeliner pencil? I tried a sharpener, and it tore my gel up. Gwack Gwack Community Answer Roll the eyeliner up a little bit, and rub the sides in a circle around on your hand so that the tip of it will get sharper. The heat from your hand will sharpen the pencil. Thanks! We're glad this was helpful. Thank you for your feedback. If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow Yes No Not Helpful 20 Helpful 22
  • Question How can I check if the eyeliner pencil is a quality one? Community Answer Community Answer Search it up online and see if it has good reviews. Thanks! We're glad this was helpful. Thank you for your feedback. If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow Yes No Not Helpful 5 Helpful 13
See more answers Ask a Question 200 characters left Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered. Submit Advertisement

Tips

  • Only use a sharpener that is specifically made for eyeliner pencils.[9] Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0
  • Testing the eyeliner out on your hand also warms it up, making it easier to apply to your eyes.[10] Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0
Submit a Tip All tip submissions are carefully reviewed before being published Name Please provide your name and last initial Submit Thanks for submitting a tip for review! Advertisement

Warnings

  • Be careful when cleaning the sharpener. The blades that sharpen pencils are really sharp. Thanks Helpful 7 Not Helpful 8
  • Be careful when testing out the eyeliner. A freshly sharpened eyeliner pencil can also be sharp. Thanks Helpful 5 Not Helpful 12
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References

  1. ↑ http://www.beautylish.com/a/vxqps/how-to-clean-makeup-pencil-sharpener
  2. ↑ http://www.beautylish.com/a/vxqps/how-to-clean-makeup-pencil-sharpener
  3. ↑ Erica Coates. Professional Makeup Artist. Expert Interview
  4. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2EtIjAiIklA
  5. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IGtdKZfCQac
  6. ↑ Erica Coates. Professional Makeup Artist. Expert Interview
  7. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BXG-T-g3cm4
  8. ↑ http://www.beautylish.com/a/vxqps/how-to-clean-makeup-pencil-sharpener
  9. ↑ Erica Coates. Professional Makeup Artist. Expert Interview
More References (1)
  1. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BXG-T-g3cm4

About This Article

Erica Coates Co-authored by: Erica Coates Professional Makeup Artist This article was co-authored by Erica Coates. Erica Coates is a Professional Makeup Artist and the Owner of Erica Nicole Beauty based in the Washington D.C. metro area. With more than 14 years of experience, she specializes in creating and personalizing makeup looks and skin prep for makeup. Erica received her cosmetology training from the Bennett Career Institute. This article has been viewed 236,972 times. 7 votes - 100% Co-authors: 20 Updated: February 8, 2025 Views: 236,972 Categories: Care of Makeup | Eyeliner Article SummaryX

Before sharpening your eyeliner pencil, place it in the freezer for 10 minutes so it doesn't crumble when you sharpen it. Then, hold your eyeliner pencil in your non-dominant hand, and hold a sharp knife in the other. Place the blade of the knife about 1 inch from the tip of your eyeliner pencil and carefully run it down to the tip. Rotate your eyeliner pencil and repeat until you've gone all the way around the pencil. To learn how to sharpen your eyeliner pencil with a sharpener, read on! Did this summary help you?YesNo

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Reader Success Stories

  • Anonymous

    Anonymous

    Apr 14, 2023

    "I have used eyeliners for 60 years. I always had problems sharpening the pencil. It would crumble or break. This..." more
More reader stories Hide reader stories Share your story

Did this article help you?

Yes No Advertisement Cookies make wikiHow better. By continuing to use our site, you agree to our cookie policy. Erica Coates Co-authored by: Erica Coates Professional Makeup Artist Co-authors: 20 Updated: February 8, 2025 Views: 236,972 100% of readers found this article helpful. 7 votes - 100% Click a star to add your vote Anonymous

Anonymous

Apr 14, 2023

"I have used eyeliners for 60 years. I always had problems sharpening the pencil. It would crumble or break. This..." more Anonymous

Anonymous

Mar 1, 2017

"I wouldn't have thought to stick the pencil in the freezer on my own. " Veronica DuPonte

Veronica DuPonte

Jan 24, 2018

"Never sharpened eyeliner before; this had good tips!" Rated this article: Sina Young

Sina Young

Aug 17, 2017

"It helps because now my eyebrows can be on fleek." Rated this article: Jennifer A'Harrah

Jennifer A'Harrah

Jun 17, 2022

"Very helpful. Thank you!" Share yours! More success stories Hide success stories

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