They say that your eyes are the windows to your soul. So clearly, they play a very important part in every woman’s beauty regime. But hands up if you’re guilty of abusing your poor eyes (whether it’s due to a lack of sleep, stress or improper makeup removal) like we are? The result can be, er, less than pretty sometimes (especially if cocktails were involved). So what can we do to combat our dull eyes, dark circles, and eye bags for the perfect set of peepers? Read on for some golden tips…
1. Raid your kitchen
Surprise! Bet you didn’t know that the contents of your pantry can be excellent ingredients for a DIY beauty treatment. We’ve all seen the funny photos, but cucumbers really do have skin-lightening agents and act as a great astringent. Simply place chilled cucumber slices over your eyes for 10 minutes to treat eye bags, dark circles, and soothe your skin. Another skincare trick worth trying is placing boiled green tea bags (after popping them in the fridge for 30 minutes) over your eyes. The caffeine shrinks blood vessels around the eyes, reduces puffiness, and lightens dark circles, while the tannins stimulate healthy blood circulation and tighten your skin. In Hindu medicine, practitioners believe that the eyes are ruled by ‘fire energy’, and that most eye problems are caused by an imbalance. To cool them, lie down for 15 minutes with cotton balls soaked in milk on your lids. And to soothe burning eyes and eyestrain, massage the scalp and feet with a teaspoon of oil. Ooh yes, we’re getting fancy with our facts now!
2. Conceal, conceal, conceal
A trusty concealer is every girl’s secret weapon against those dreaded dark eye circles and eyelid discolouration. But choosing the right shade is imperative. As a rule, your concealer shouldn’t be more than one or two shades lighter than your natural skin tone. Pick a colour-correcting concealer based on your needs, as there are different types of dark circles; brownish circles are caused by melanin pigmentation, bluish areas are caused by a lack of oxygen and reddish colours are caused by lots of oxygen. How to combat these? An ivory tone concealer works well to counteract deep purple tones and scarring; green neutralises redness; and a pink tone concealer is the best remedy for sallow skin. We recommend using a product like Shiseido Sheer Eye Zone Corrector, which contains exclusive light technology that activates a natural colour-cancellation effect on dark circles.
3. Shimmer on the outside, when you’re not feeling it on the inside
When we’re feeling super tired, we have an easy, yet effective make-up trick when it comes to achieving bigger, brighter eyes instantly. Simply pick out a shimmery eye shadow and place it strategically at the inner corners of the eyelid (shade it towards the centre and bring in another colour, if you’re feeling snazzy). What’s the secret? Particles in pearlescent eye shadows reflect the light and draw attention towards the peepers. Pick up a product like Shimmering Cream Eye Color by Shiseido Makeup, which has a variety of light, reflective colours that are both non-creasing and long-lasting.
4. Five-second eye hack
While applying make up, don’t forget this nifty extra step: line your lower lash line with white eyeliner. Not only will it make the whites of your eyes seem brighter, it’ll also create a soft and subtle doe-eye effect.
5. Say ‘see ya’ to zombie eyes
Guilty of overworking and straining your eyeballs everyday? Dry, bloodshot eyes aren’t quite the look we’re going for and let’s be real: they make you look older than you really are (Girls’. Worst. Nightmare). We know it’s not easy, but from time to time, switch off your computer, put your phone away, grab a cup of tea and take the strain off for a while. Follow the 20-20-20 rule if you can; after 20 minutes on the screen, look at something 20 meters away for 20 seconds. Applying moisturising eye drops also helps, particularly if you spend heaps of time in the air conditioning.
6. Lashes for days
It’s no secret: long, lush lashes are a great way to make those eyes really pop. Prep your lashes with a conditioning treatment like Shiseido Makeup Full Lash Serum (to repair damage and promote growth), before generously coating them with your favourite volumising mascara. For intense colour, volume and curl, we recommend the new Full Lash Volume Mascara by Shiseido Makeup; after all, bigger is always better!
7. Empower your skin by investing in a great eye cream
Make-up tricks and homemade remedies are easy solutions when you need achieve bigger, brighter eyes on the go. But when youth is no longer on your side (we’re sorry to reveal that the aging process really kicks in at 25 – gulp), it’s time to bring out the big guns and play the long game when it comes to skincare. Our secret weapon? An easy-to-use, age-defying eye serum like Shiseido’s new Ultimune Eye Power Infusing Eye Concentrate. Packed with powerful natural ingredients like White Birch Extract, Ectoin and a carefully-selected botanical cocktail (think wild thyme and perilla), this lighter-than-light serum boosts your skin’s ability to regenerate and strengthen itself in the long run. Impressive, eh? Ultimune Eye Power Infusing Eye Concentrate seriously enhances your skin’s immunity against ageing, sun exposure, stress, and other damaging effects (see more here). After four weeks of using Ultimune Eye Power Infusing Eye Concentrate, Shiseido reported that 99% of people felt its moisturising effect immediately, 98% felt that dryness was completely eliminated, 86% reported strong skin immunity and 85% experienced smoother skin around the eye.
Want to test this out for yourselves? YES? That’s why we’re giving away unlimited complimentary samples of the new Ultimune Eye Power Infusing Eye Concentrate to all! Simply hit the big button to redeem yours today*. In four weeks, you’ll forget what your fine lines, wrinkles and dark circles even looked like, you clever things.
*While stocks last