The colour we usually select to outline our eyes is the same colour we fill out a form in or write a cheque (are they even still legal tender?). Black is safe. Black is reliable and black is well, a bit boring actually. Sorry.

The thing about being a progressive and bold beauty enquirer is that, sometimes, you just need to lock black away in a box and consider the rest of the colour spectrum. There's a whole other world of colour out there just waiting to be explored. Who knew?

During the spring 2014 shows, eye looks came in every hue imaginable. Just pick a pantone reference and there was a liner, shadow or mascara to match. The easiest way to nod to the trend is with a coloured liner. And when we say coloured we're not talking grey or navy, oh no, we're mean red, purple, teal green or turquoise.

At first it's nerve wracking, but once you get started a well-deployed stripe of coloured pencil can transform your face entirely. To ease yourself in gently, keep the rest of your make-up fresh and minimal. Choose your colour to complement, or clash, with your hair colour and just go wild. You never know, you might even give up your trusty black kohl for good. Wow. Did I really just say that?

Here's how the team got on in our quest to road test coloured liners.

Elin, junior fashion editor tried, Burberry Beauty Effortless Kohl in Oxblood, £18

'Coloured eyeliner always feels a bit ‘fun’ to me. I have indulged in the past – I remember an aqua blue eyeliner from Rimmel that was a particular favourite – and in the more recent past I’ve experimented with more grown-up colours like khaki and grey. But this was completely different. I love the texture of the pencil, and the shade kind of works – but it deserves to be worn in the sunshine, on a hot day, with no other make-up, scraped back hair and the most minimal of outfits, say a black cotton t-shirt, boyfriend jeans and pool slides. I’ll be packing mine on my next holiday.'

Joanna, beauty director tried, Illamasqua Colouring Pencil – Eye in Debonair, £14'

'I’m bad at wearing colour. So much so that my best friend, who’s getting married in Jamaica next month, insisted on going through my wardrobe piece by piece to make sure I wasn’t intending on packing a sea of navy and black (I sort of was). All this, despite the unrelenting red lip that follows me everywhere. Any bright colours beyond that make me feel slightly like Kathy Burke in Gimme Gimme Gimme. And then, Marc Jacobs happened. Last September, for his SS14 show, Jacobs relied on his long-time collaborator Francois Nars to inject a ravey – but not overtly happy – bit of fun into the make-up look, with an electric slash of turquoise across the water line. I quite surprised myself with how much I liked it. Probably because it’s more This is England than Gimme Gimme Gimme. Tends to migrate down the eye a bit as the day goes on though.'

Laura, staff writer tried, Lancome Artliner 24hr Precision eyeliner in Turquoise, £20

'While I’ve had my fair-share of eyeliner phases, from silver liquid used to draw stars along my eyebrows, Bjork style, to a smudge of moss-green kohl, I tend to stick with sharp black flick these days. With pale skin and blonde hair, bright colours really stand out, so it’s a nice way to create impact with very little makeup. I have greeney-blue eyes, so either of those shades are good for bringing out the colour and I’d usually stay in that spectrum when deviating from black so this emerald Lancôme shade is great. It’s bright but deep and jewel-like, so it still feels grown up. You need a thick high-colour formula to pull this off, translucent wouldn’t work, and this one really delivers.'

Alice, beauty intern tried, Eyeko Skinny Liquid Liner in Purple, £12

'I tend not to do much when it comes to coloured eye make-up. I don’t wear any colour on my eyes in fact. Black mascara and a bit of black liner is as far as it goes. Eyeko’s purple liner was something I would have LOVED at school when I was first learning the ropes and applying far too much colour to my face all at once. But, having said that, I actually kind of liked it. It wasn’t too purple and I guess now’s a good a time as any to get familiar with colour for the spring trends. One thing I really, really loved was how easily it went on. It’s like a felt tip for your face (and it was also pretty hard to get off!).'