Polished.: Dark Circles

Thursday, February 27, 2014

Dark Circles (dun dun dun...)

As an Italian woman, I feel that my dark circles are become more like black holes under my eyes. And worse--with age, I find them harder to cover up. If you read my recent beauty post, you know I have tried to tackle the root of the problem with Eye Hope in a Bottle by Philosophy (which is amazing by the way), but my results are not seen overnight.

See what I mean!?

So, I have been trying to find a concealer that can truly disguise my dark circles. I was in search of a miracle, honestly. I needed the thickest, most life changing concealer that could make my under eyes appear bright, light, and well rested. On this hunt, I have tried a variety of concealers, then even more highlighters trying to find a solution. Now, I know it isn't concealer, foundation, powder, or even highlighter I needed, it was RED LIP LINER!

That's right beauties, red lip liner. My favorite beauty consultant at my local Ulta store, John, taught me the trick--and I can't wait to share. John, if you are reading this, you are fabulous!!! This is a great tip that I just couldn't keep to my dark eyed self. Women, this is a must try!!! He explained that the dark circles are really a hue of blue, which can be a combination of your blood and really thin skin. The reason I could not find this amazing life-changing concealer to cover this up is because concealers are skin colored. Using the red lip liner and a concealer (exactly the color of your skin) you can apply the mixture to combat the blue hue. Voila you have a dark circle corrector!

Let's begin by when to use this little trick in your makeup routine. After my primer, and right before my full face foundation I use this mixture in a half moon shape under my eyes. {Note: this is unlike my concealer that I apply in a triangle shape down the base of my nose. Keep this just on the dark circle areas--for me, that also includes the inside of my eyes, as seen in the pictures}. Once this genius mixture is ready, I cover with foundation, then concealer and continue with my regular makeup routine.

Step 1: Choose a creamy red lip liner. I am using Too Faces Perfect Lip in Perfect Red. Simply because John recommended it because of its consistency.

Step 2: Add some concealer. This is a darker color than my other concealer to help balance my skin tone. I am using Amazing Concealer by Amazing Cosmetics in Ivory. My everyday concealer is Bare Minerals Light 2. Then, mix them together with a concealer brush. Mine is from Bare Minerals.

Step 4: Apply all over the dark circle areas in a half-moon shape. You can see how pink this looks! It has instantly taken away that blue black color.