Siren Eyes vs Doe Eyes vs Fox Eyes: Which Suits You?

All three looks are makeup techniques, not eye shapes, so anyone can wear any of them. The real difference is direction. Siren eyes pull the eye longer and slightly up, doe eyes open it up and down, and fox eyes lift the outer corner hard toward the temple.

Which one suits you depends mostly on your natural eye shape and how much lid space you have. This guide explains what each look is, how to do it step by step, how they compare side by side, and which one is easiest for hooded, almond, round, monolid, upturned and downturned eyes.

What are siren eyes, doe eyes and fox eyes?

Siren eyes, doe eyes and fox eyes are three eye makeup looks that change the apparent shape of your eyes in different directions: siren eyes elongate, doe eyes round out, and fox eyes lift.

• Siren eyes are a sultry, elongated look. The Zoe Report describes them as layered shadow and winged liner with sharp points in both the inner and outer corners, which gives the eye an upturned, almond shape.
• Doe eyes are a soft, wide-eyed look. Refinery29 sums it up as a short flicked wing, a white or cream waterline and fluttery lashes, so the eyes look brighter, larger and rounder rather than lifted.
• Fox eyes are a sharply lifted look. Tutorials combine shadow, liner and false lashes swept up toward the temple, plus a straighter, upward-angled brow tail, according to CNN Style.

If you are not sure of your own eye shape yet, start with the eye shape guide, because it changes how each look reads on you.

How do siren, doe and fox eyes compare?

The three looks differ in liner direction, where the darkest shadow sits, how lashes are placed and what happens in the inner corner.

	Siren eyes	Doe eyes	Fox eyes
Overall effect	Long, narrow, sultry	Round, open, soft	Lifted, sharp, stretched
Liner direction	Out along the lower lash line angle, slightly up	Short, horizontal flick or none	Steeply up toward the end of the brow
Darkest shadow	Outer third, top and bottom	Center of the lid and lower lash line	Outer corner, blended up toward the temple
Lashes	Longest on the outer corner	Longest in the center	Longest on the outer corner, often winged lashes
Inner corner	Sharp, dark point pulled down and in	Bright, highlighted, often a white or nude waterline	Extended down with liner or shadow
Brows	Defined, natural shape	Soft and fluffy	Tail drawn straighter and higher
Difficulty	Medium (two precise points)	Easy	Medium to hard (symmetry matters)

How do you do siren eyes?

Siren eyes are built from two sharp liner points, one in each corner, joined by a thin line and smudged shadow.

1. Prep the lid. Apply a primer and a light, matte neutral over the lid so the liner has a clean base.
2. Shade the outer third. Press a medium brown or taupe into the outer third of the upper lid and the outer half of the lower lash line, then blend it outward along the same angle as your lower lash line.
3. Draw the outer wing. Follow the angle of your lower lash line out past the eye, then connect the tip back to the upper lash line with a thin line. Keep it thin; siren liner is closer to a fine flick than a thick graphic wing.
4. Draw the inner point. This is the step that defines the look. The Zoe Report calls the sharp triangle of liner in the inner corner the most important part. Pull a small point down and in, past the corner, and connect it to the upper lash line.
5. Smudge the lower outer lash line with the same shadow so the wing looks soft, not stamped on.
6. Lashes: curl, then concentrate mascara or a half lash on the outer corners.

How do you do doe eyes?

Doe eyes add white space and height to the eye, so the work goes into the waterline and the center of the lash line.

1. Keep shadow light and soft. A satin or shimmer shade on the center of the lid catches light and makes the eye look rounder.
2. Brighten the lower waterline with a white, cream or nude pencil. Refinery29 lists this as one of the three marks of the look.
3. Line close to the lashes, thickest over the center of the eye, and finish with a very short flick that goes out rather than up.
4. Add a little shadow under the center of the lower lashes to make the eye look taller, keeping the outer corner clean.
5. Lashes: curl hard and focus mascara or individual lashes on the center, where the iris is. Some people add a few defined lower lashes.
6. Highlight the inner corner with a pale shimmer.

How do you do fox eyes?

Fox eyes lift everything toward the temple: shadow, liner, lashes and the brow tail.

1. Blend shadow up and out. Place a warm brown in the outer corner and blend it upward toward the tail of the brow, not along the crease.
2. Draw a lifted wing. Start the wing at the outer corner and angle it toward the end of your brow, steeper than a classic cat eye.
3. Extend the inner corner downward with liner or shadow so the eye looks long and slanted.
4. Lashes: use winged or “fox eye” style false lashes, or mascara pulled up and out on the outer third.
5. Brows: brush the brow up and draw the tail straighter and slightly higher with pencil or powder.

A word on context: CNN reported in 2020 that many Asian Americans criticized the trend, especially photos where people pulled their eyes up at the temples, because that gesture echoes a racist taunt. Doing the makeup is one thing; the pose is what most critics objected to.

Which look suits your eye shape?

Each look is easiest on eye shapes that already lean in its direction, but technique adjustments make all three wearable on any shape.

• Hooded eyes: A fold of skin covers part of the lid, so liner drawn with your eyes closed disappears or kinks when you open them. Siren and fox eyes both work if you draw the wing with your eyes open and looking straight ahead, and blend shadow above the natural crease. Doe eyes work well too: tightlining and a bright waterline add openness without needing lid space. See hooded eyes for the full technique.
• Almond eyes: Almost everything works. Siren eyes simply exaggerate the shape you already have, which is why almond eyes are the classic siren canvas.
• Round eyes: Doe eyes are effortless, since the look exaggerates roundness. If you want siren or fox eyes, take the outer liner and shadow further out than you think, and keep the center of the lid lighter.
• Monolids: Liner needs to be thicker to show when your eyes are open. Fox eyes suit monolids well because the lift is drawn on the skin above the lash line. For siren eyes, build a soft gradient up from the lash line instead of relying on a crease.
• Upturned eyes: Siren and fox eyes follow your natural lift, so keep them subtle or they can look exaggerated. Doe eyes balance the lift by adding height in the center.
• Downturned eyes: Siren and fox eyes are the most flattering here because they counter the downward angle. Keep the lower outer lash line light and lift the wing from the upper lash line. Doe eyes can emphasize the downturn, so skip heavy shadow under the outer corner.

For more on the last two, see upturned vs downturned eyes.

Where did the names siren eyes, doe eyes and fox eyes come from?

The three names spread as social media makeup trends: fox eyes in 2020, and siren eyes and doe eyes in 2022.

• Fox eyes: CNN Style reported in August 2020 that people on Instagram, TikTok and YouTube were copying the lifted eyes of celebrities such as Kendall Jenner, Bella Hadid and Megan Fox, and that the trend had begun earlier that year.
• Siren eyes: Refinery29 wrote in 2022 that the siren eye “rose to fame this past July,” while noting it had been a red carpet staple for years before it had a name. The Zoe Report covered the TikTok version that same July.
• Doe eyes: The phrase “doe-eyed” is far older than the trend, but the doe eye look was positioned in 2022 as the soft, innocent counterpart to siren eyes, which is why the two are so often compared.

The names describe a mood more than a fixed recipe, so you will see many variations under each tag.

Where does Beautify fit?

Beautify is an iPhone app that reads your eye shape from a single selfie, then gives you eye makeup tips for that shape, which is the first thing you need to choose between these looks. The same scan gives eight scores out of 100, including one for eyes, plus your face shape and skin type. The app also has ten step-by-step makeup tutorials, such as soft glam, and an AI beauty assistant you can ask, for example, how to adapt fox eyes for hooded lids. It does not do virtual try-on, so you cannot preview a look on your face. A free alternative works too: look straight into a mirror with your eyes relaxed, note where your crease and outer corners sit, and test one look on each eye.

What matters most?

Siren eyes elongate, doe eyes open up and round out, and fox eyes lift toward the temple. Pick the look whose direction you like, then adjust it for your eye shape: draw wings with your eyes open if you have hooded lids, take liner further out on round eyes, and lift from the upper lash line on downturned eyes. Browse the full set of makeup looks if you want to build a whole face around your eyes.