The bags under my eyes are prada is no longer a funny meme if your age exceeds 21, and life gets real and tough (it is unfair, we know, this is why caffeinated concealer exists in the first place).
Under eye circles can come in a pack of rainbow colours, depending on your skin tone and texture, and tend to add a weary look to a joyful glow we all about to kill to achieve. Even if your sleep schedule is on fleek, screen time painstakingly righteous, more often than not, you reach for an eye patch in the freezer anyways (ice works too). With that said, below we have gathered some intel that will serve you more than a customary advice on sleep (please do get some).
Pick a bummer: allergies, kidneys or liver
Before you even consider splurging on retinoids (the new hype, supposedly cures all), check in with your body.
Puffy, dark under eye circles can often indicate an allergy (allergic shiners), which never come to a party alone: welcome sneezing, coughing and a runny nose. Change of the season, dust, mold, fungus and pet dander is often a trigger. Some allergies bloom later in life then others so make sure you do not mistake your seasonal, allergic congestion with a flu (this is when you take an antihistamine or make a call to your GP if you are still in panic).
Organs like kidneys and liver help your body eliminate toxins and often act as a filter. If one or the other has trouble doing just that, you will receive a message via reflection in the mirror. Regular blood tests, paying attention to your diet and detoxing these organs will make a drastic difference to your overall skin health (also good news: preventative measures are always cheaper than any medical bill).
If your under eye circles are really bothersome to look at (for you and you only), we beg you not to look for health issues in your search box. Often, it is just a lack of sleep. Make yourself a nice cup of detoxing, herbal tea (dandelion and milk thistle is the jam) and hit the pillow.
The Colour Palette
If you get dark (grey) circles due to thin skin, some products can combat the issue by helping to narrow the blood vessels in the area. Look for creams with ‘vasoconstriction’ abilities or ingredients like Hesperidin Methyl Chalcone (helps to shrink small blood vessels), Chrysin (anti inflammatory) or Retinyl Palmitate (form of vitamin A, causes skin glow). If these are too hard to imagine remembering when you are browsing the eye cream aisle, keep it simple: cucumber, green tea and aloe vera extracts, caffeine and vitamin c never fails. The blue rings request hyaluronic or retinoic acid. For dark circles any colour due to pigmentation it is either light or laser therapy (the price many often pay for not using sunscreen in time).
In the affordable price range take a look at Ren Clean Skincare Vita Mineral Eye Gel with plant extracts or Kate Somerville goat milk depuffing eye balm with manuka honey. We are looking forward to trying Malin+Goetz eye gel, but our dream splurge would definitely be 111skin rose gold illuminating eye mask.
The Next Level
Sometimes after carefully examining our health, genetics lottery and our skincare/make up bags we do not find solutions even then. This is when heavy artillery can come into our aids if we are willing to take that path: the fillers. As we age the hollow under eye space can become even deeper and dermatologists can fill it for you in no time with what is known as ‘tear trough filler’ and a needle. The effect will last from 9 months to a year on average. Usually a numbing cream is used, but it is painful for many nevertheless. The needle is injected just below the eye circle (closer to the cheekbone, below the muscle, steered clear from the veiny area) and carefully navigated to fill out the area. If you are going with this option make sure the professional you are working with is a certified dermatologist and has your matching aesthetic in beauty. You can look up the hyaluronic acid dermal fillers your dermatologist uses before committing (Restylane, Juvederm or Belotero for example). Bruising and swelling after the procedure often occurs.
When Everything Else Fails
We throw in an intenso mascara mini into our totes (clutch, backpack, luggage, pick your own) and take a selfie with no filter. Life is real, has puffy dark circles and moody pictures in it.
by Masha Nova