Kate Beckinsale demonstrates the perfect smoky eye trick: Blending

The smoky eye has been the go-to makeup routine for a night on the town for many women, and while it looks amazing when done correctly, slip-ups can have a raccoon-like effect.

Glamour.com recently spotted Kate Beckinsale, pictured here, out at a Hollywood event showcasing the perfect smoky eye, and what was her key? Blending.

Beckinsale accented her eyes with a gray shade around her lashes, to soften the black eyeliner. She then blended in a light brown or taupe color that extended toward her eyebrows.

A cotton swab may be one of the better and cheaper options for blending your eye makeup together, but of course a small makeup brush works too.

When blending, it is always important to make sure that the color you're using to blend isn't darker than your base color. It's supposed to be an accent, not the main color. Another tip is to make sure that the color isn't too light, to avoid a contrasting appearance.

Also, black on black is never a good idea, unless you want to end up looking like a certain woodland creature.