We've always been intrigued with eye make-up.
We've seen a lot of changes over the years.

• Mascara as a cake with a straight brush that resembled a little tooth brush whose bristles were out of proportion.
  
• Heavy eye brow pencils that resembled china marking pencils.
  
• Or we scraped some of that mascara cake and rubbed it onto eyebrows.
  
• Eye shadows that were cremes in tubes as well as the perpetual cake styles that we use today.
  (poor applicators though)
• All of the crazy colors that resembled bruises -- except that bruises don't collect in the cracks/lines of eye lids!
• The crazy colors applied to mascaras as well as eye shadow.
  

Since we were teens, we've known instinctively that the eye area was delicate skin and we tried to apply the tools of our trade with the least amount of damage.
Personally, I was never impressed with water-proof mascara.
I know it was a real pain to have tears mess up the mascara, but I didn't ever like to have to apply REAL pressure to get the mascara off.
That element of mascara influences my decision today to avoid it as much as possible.
I have enough trouble with the lines and sags around my eyes without yanking and stretching on them trying to clean up mascara that has migrated from my lashes to the skin under my eyes.
Plus, as I age, I produce fewer and shorter eye lashes.
Not the sort of thing that really looks sharp with mascara.
But, vain old woman that I am, I wanted to dramatize my eyes somehow.
I've continued to use eye shadow (which they tell us should be matte, not iridescent) and eye brow pencils.
Recently, I observed a model on a TV commercial who is probably in her seventies.
She wore no mascara, but had a fine line of eyeliner on her upper eyelid.
No smoky eyes, but just that fine line.
It really did emphasize her eyes.
Then, one of the younger women in my family introduced me to the soft eyeliner pencils that don't abuse tender, maturing skin or risk blindness from pressing too hard, then slipping to poke my eye!Much better than a poke in the eye, I can fix a fine subtle line that dramatizes my eyes, keeps the mascara flakes out of my eyes and the smears from under my eyes and generally makes me happy! My new matte eye shadows (I've always felt I was getting more for my money to buy frost eye shadow) go on gently with a fresh view, but not a fright show.
The eyebrow pencil is softer and the eye liner is really soft, yet both let me apply with feathery touches for a mildly dramatic beauty.
A successful beauty move that works well for professional 'every day' and makes me feel beautiful which is what the parade is all about! In a completely off aside about the soft eye liners.
I got one for the costume make-up for the gentleman who wore our community's Easter Bunny suit a few days ago.
Boy, were the other committee members surprised to see my new toy! I mentioned using eye liner and immediately they were all advising him how to wet the tip and draw on whiskers.
Nope, ladies.
This just draws on nicely and washes off even nicer!