Beauty

How to cover dark circles

how to cover dark circles with concealer

how to cover dark circles with concealer

How to cover dark circles.

Early bird might get the worm, but it could also use some concealer. Dark under eye circles are not usually a problem for me, which is definitely something to be happy about. There are those days, however, when I’ve only had few hours of sleep and wake up in need of some help concealing the evidence of same.

I’ve tried a lot of different concealers over the years (and by a lot I really do mean A LOT) both high-end and more affordable ones. I’ve found two that work the best for me and my delicate, and slightly dry under eye skin.

1.  First thing that I do in order to cover those dark circles is use a brightening cream under my eyes. My favorite is still Origins GinZing Brightening Eye Cream. This product itself already does a good job at brightening the skin and making it look more “awake”.

2. Two of my favorite under eye concealers are MAC Pro Long Wear concealer in NC15 and NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer in Vanilla. Now, since dark circles usually have blue and/or gray tones, in order to conceal them you need to use a color that’s opposite to blue/gray (I’m referring to the color wheel here). The opposite for blue/gray is orange, but since my skin tone is so fair, a peachy-toned concealer does the trick for me. If your skin tone is deeper, I suggest you try a concealer that’s a few shades darker than your skin tone, so that it can actually cover those dark circles. For this, I like to use NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer in Vanilla, which is a shade that’s a bit darker than my skin tone. I usually like to use my ring finger to blend in the concealer, I find this to be the easiest and it also gives a most natural finish. Sometimes I also use a concealer brush, at this time my favorite is MAC’s 195 brush to blend the concealer in with my foundation.

3. Most of the time the combo of a brightening eye cream and a peachy-toned concealer will do the trick. In rare cases (think staying up all night) I do like to use a lighter concealer to brighten up the area that I’ve just concealed. For that, I absolutely love using MAC’s Pro Long Wear concealer in NC15. It’s absolutely great at brightening the skin, it doesn’t settle into lines and isn’t drying or irritating.

4. After all that heavy duty concealing and brightening, you need to set your concealer, otherwise it might melt off your face. I recently started using Laura Mercier’s Secret Brightening Translucent powder for that. A little bit goes a long way and it gets the job done; setting the concealer in place while also helping to brighten up the skin even more. I was a bit hesitant to try this powder, to be honest, mainly because I’ve tried Laura Mercier foundations and primers before and both gave me an allergic reaction. Thankfully, this brightening powder works like a charm for me.

how to cover dark circles on fair skin

These few products are my go-to essentials when it comes to covering dark circles, what are yours? Anything interesting I should try?

19 Comments

  • Reply
    NIna
    April 14, 2015 at 9:57 am

    Great post. Thanks for sharing . xx

    Nina
    http://www.ninasstyleblog.com

  • Reply
    Maddy Cane
    April 14, 2015 at 12:22 pm

    Great tips, I need to try out the Creamy Concealer!
    Maddy, xo // UNSTITCHEDD // Win a Luxury Beauty Item of your Choice

  • Reply
    Vanessa
    April 14, 2015 at 1:24 pm

    Wonderful products. ^^
    I use the same concealer from MAC and I love it.
    New post is online…

  • Reply
    Charline
    April 14, 2015 at 4:38 pm

    I’ve been meaning to buy the Laura Mercier Brightening powder. Do you think it’s a good all-over-the-face powder as well? Just asking your opinion before I make the plunge :d x
    Love, Charline | Charline Has a Blog

    • Reply
      Paula
      April 14, 2015 at 4:53 pm

      Yes! I do use it all over the face too! It works great, I also really like NARS Light Reflecting Powder for setting my makeup, it’s like a real-life Photoshop :)

  • Reply
    Rita Macedo
    April 14, 2015 at 4:51 pm

    My under eye area has been really try lately and I just can’t seem to find a solution! Maybe the Mac concealer would help me as it’s not drying! Xx

    riitamacedo.blogspot.pt

    • Reply
      Paula
      April 14, 2015 at 5:24 pm

      It’s not drying at all!

  • Reply
    Kate
    April 14, 2015 at 5:02 pm

    Your opening sentence made me laugh out loud! Some good tips here that I think I ought to try. Really like the sound of the Laura Mercier powder. x

    Kate Louise Blogs

    • Reply
      Paula
      April 14, 2015 at 5:25 pm

      :D Thanks Kate, that powder is pretty fab!

  • Reply
    Brenda BusyBee
    April 15, 2015 at 7:29 am

    Great product choices Paula – I am yet to try the NARS concealer. At the moment I am using Benefit Puff Off and Benefit It’s Potent Eye Cream followed by the Clarins Instant Concealer and that is working a treat :) x

    Brenda BusyBee | Makeup Revolution Highlighting Palettes Giveaway

    • Reply
      Paula
      April 16, 2015 at 12:15 pm

      Thanks Brenda! I’ve been eying the Clarins Instant Concealer for a while, so glad it works so nicely for you!

  • Reply
    Ellie
    April 16, 2015 at 8:56 am

    This is such a fab post lovely. I am constantly on the hunt for the perfect dark circle cover up… will have to try the Nars concealer :)

    Elle
    http://www.theellenextdoor.com
    xx

    • Reply
      Paula
      April 16, 2015 at 12:16 pm

      Thanks Ellie!

  • Reply
    Jasmine
    April 19, 2015 at 12:21 pm

    This is a great post :) I also love using a peachy corrector then a more skin-coloured tone on top. A yellow setting powder is also perfect and I agree, you have to start with a good eye cream! xx

    Magpie Jasmine | Zoeva Brush Set Giveaway

  • Reply
    Sara
    April 26, 2015 at 7:53 am

    I currently use Trish McEvoy’s eye lift and eye brightening concealers… but I definitely go between any products I can find when I start looking for something new to try… my mom used to call me rocky raccoon because she could always tell when I was exhausted due to my ridiculous eye circles. I also keep Mary Kay eye gel in the fridge for those mornings when I wake up with puffy eyes. It definitely helps get the puff out!

    • Reply
      Paula
      April 26, 2015 at 8:57 am

      Awww hahah your mom sounds fun! Few months a go I found those eye pads soaked with cucumber extract and I also keep those in the fridge and like to use them on those days when I have extremely dark circles.

  • Reply
    claire
    April 26, 2015 at 3:34 pm

    I’ve just started mixing both the Mac and Nars concealers as one is slightly too light and the other too dark and I’ve really been liking it, I also like to use the First Aid Beauty Eye Duty underneath as it makes my under eye area hydrated plus it provides a little extra cover, which I definitely need haha :)
    xxx Claire
    http://wwwclairabelle.blogspot.co.uk/

  • Reply
    MargaritaChi.co
    November 10, 2015 at 5:12 pm

    I have used these two products as well, and I can’t go past NARS’s concealer in vanilla. It seriously covers any blemish or undereye circle for me SO WELL.

    I will definitely look into a brightening powder for setting… at the moment I just use an hourglass powder or translucent powder, but I have heard that brightening powders are a great way to set undereye concealer! Thanks for your tips x

    MargaritaChi.co

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