How To: Under-Eye Concealing

I have always been really lucky in the dark circle department, until recently. All of a sudden, I woke up with a dark shadow underneath my eyes (dramatic, I know). This is when I started to drink even more water and green tea, uppered my fruit and veg intake as well as my sleeping hours, and came up with a (hopefully temporary) routine to create the illusion of bright eyes.

Now to most of you, this might sound a little bit obvious, but I thought I’d write a blogpost about it nonetheless.

A good prep is half the work done. For this, you’ll need a hydrating product with dark circle-ish benefits. Depuffing properties are also a plus! My product of choice is the Clinique Even Better Eyes (if you want to read more about my AM eyecare products of choice, click here). Not only does this help fade away those dark circles in the long term, it does also come out as a salmony colour that already conceals the darkness a little bit. It has a little metal applicator which makes it such a pleasure to apply and the product itself feels really hydrating but not too heavy under the eyes. A definite winner and staple in my morning skincare routine.

Next, on to the actual concealing. Depending on how bad your dark circles are, you may or may not need a full coverage concealer. If you don’t have much to hide, you can however also skip this step and go on to the next one. My concealer of choice is the MAC Studio Sculpt concealer, which is now unfortunately discontinued. I also really like the Estée Lauder Double Wear concealer as you might already now, but I thought I should switch things up a bit and opt for this. The Studio Sculpt concealer is a really nice creamy concealer which has a bit of a gel consistency when applied. It’s really full coverage and so easy to blend. I also found that it doesn’t crease under my eyes- win! I usually take a bit on my finger and tap it into the skin using my ringfinger. I really prefer blending in concealer using my fingers instead of a brush, as I find the finish so much more beautiful and I just think it’s much easier.

A little bit of highlighting is necessary fort hat bright eyed look we all desire. A liquid highlighting pen, my choice being the YSL Touche Eclat, is something you can just never go wrong with. Often mistaken for a concealer, this is just a highlighter with the lightest bit of coverage. Using a highlighter underneath your eyes will make you look so much more awake and healthy, and it also cancels out the darkness under your eyes even more. I usually sweep this underneath my eyes then pat in using my ringfinger, same old story really.

The final step is setting the concealer, to prevent it from creasing. My powder of choice is the Chanel Poudre Universelle Libre- a loose powder which comes in a giant tub. I don’t think I’ll ever finish this since it’s so big! I usually take my Real Techniques Contour Brush, swirl it around in the powder, tap of the excess (you don’t want to apply too much powder since it can accentuate fine lines and can make everything look cakey) and blend it in.

A couple of steps to perfectly concealed dark circles and you’re ready to go. This only takes around 2 minutes, and if your dark circles make you feel insecure, you’ll feel so much better for it. What’s your favourite concealer?