Ahhh black liquid eyeliner, how long we have tried to conquer you! It seems as though every makeup artist and blogger has their own method – holding the eyelid this way or that, drawing a guiding dot, cleaning up with a Q-tip – at times the lack of consensus has been so bemusing that we’ve just gone for plain old smudged pencil, and forgone the liquid eyeliner altogether. But as autumn arrives, we’re getting back in touch with our inner Anna Karina and wielding those liquid eyeliner wands once again because the formulas, and the tools, are vastly improving, which makes mastering the feline flick easier than ever.

Surratt Autographique Liner from Liberty

For the uninitiated, or unsteady handed, an eyeliner pen with almost a felt tip nib is the quickest way to conquer liquid eyeliner. The Surratt Autographique liner is a refillable eyeliner pen that contains the blackest of black cartridges, inspired by Japanese sumi ink, for the sharpest of flicks. Troy Surratt, the eponymous brand founder, claims Adele, the queen of the cat flick, helped him to develop it, which is all the convincing we need.

YSL Couture Eye Liner 

YSL Beauté, renowned for its mascaras, has just launched a new line of liquid eyeliners in eight shades for autumn. Unlike with a pen-style liner, the brush requires a little more dexterity but the black is a true black and this deeply pigmented liner glides on once you’ve found your groove.

Shiseido Inkstroke Eyeliner and Brush

There are few things as beautiful as calligraphy, the inspiration behind Shiseido’s new gel eyeliner launch for autumn. The smooth, thick, black ink creates the boldest of lines, especially when applied using the angled eyeliner brush that is made in Japan. Use the flat side of the brush to create the line, and flex upward to use the top for the flick.