If you’ve been more exhausted than usual, the dark circles under your eyes just might be giving that away. While more sleep is your best bet, makeup can offer a temporary solution to covering up those eye bags.
A few makeup artists share their best secrets on how to conceal unruly dark circles.
Start with a color corrector
Your usual concealer isn’t going to cut it here. Celebrity makeup artist Mary Irwin recommends taking advantage of color correctors. She says, “Use a light peach for a light to medium skin tone and a dark peach to orange for dark skin tones. Once you’ve knocked out the dark circles, you can layer over with your regular color concealer.”
Use the triangle method
Yes, there is a wrong way to use concealer to hide dark circles. Makeup artist Katelyn McCullough of Elwynn and Cass advises doing your first coat in a triangle shape under your eyes down to the tops of your cheeks. She explains, “If you only put it over your dark circles, you will draw attention to the area and it can look worse.”
Set the concealer
You don’t want to apply too much makeup to your undereye area, but setting the concealer so it doesn’t budge after a few hours is always a good idea. Makeup and hair artist Eliza Desch says, “Set with a power that has hyaluronic acid in it (like By Terry) or some shimmer (like Laura Mercier Secret Brightening Powder).
Add highlighter
A little shimmer will brighten up your skin nicely. Sebastien Tardif, celebrity makeup artist and co-founder of Veil Cosmetics, says, “Use a color that is a full shade or two brighter than your skin tone (same family as your undertone i.e. neutral, gold, or pink). Use highlighter naturally to brighten up your features like cheekbones, smile lines, brow bones, and inner eye corners.”
Use eye drops
By brightening your actual eyes, you’re basically distracting away from your dark circles. Celebrity makeup artist Vincent Oquendo says, “I love to use Lumify eye drops when starting any makeup. Lumify significantly reduces redness to help eyes appear whiter, brighter, and more radiant.”
Adjust your lifestyle
Makeup is great for hiding dark circles, but if you want to actually prevent them, that requires a little more effort. Laurice Wardini, makeup artist and founder of Clothed Up, says, “The best way to get rid of undereye circles is lifestyle and diet changes. Cut back on salt, eat more greens and veggies, drink more water, get more sleep, etc.”
xx, The FabFitFun Team
Now that you’re armed with makeup artist-approved tips on concealing dark circles, check out these drugstore dupes to high-end concealers.
