I would say 9 times out of ten, a woman over the age of 40 will sit in my chair and say something like “I don’t wear makeup under my eyes because it settles into my creases.”

I hear you. I see you. I’m going to guide you to having the skill to conquer this head on with confidence.

Concealer under the eyes can be the best thing ever but if done incorrectly, can quickly go awry and turn you off to using it altogether. There are usually a few reasons why you can see the makeup under your eyes:

You have not properly prepped the under eye area correctly before applying your concealer. The very thought of putting concealer on skin that hasn’t been prepped is enough to bring genuine feelings of anxiety to the surface for me. I know that by doing this, the result will be a dry, crepe-y mess under the eyes. I know it will result in an unhappy client. This is not ok. This is serious business. I have issues, I know. But I CARE. I care so much. Please listen to me. Prep. The. Skin.
You have put WAY TOO MUCH skincare under the eyes or the WRONG skincare (oil is not very compatible with concealers). There is a method to the madness. The secret is to apply your concealer to skin that has just enough of a slip to it without it being wet or so dry that the brush catches on the skin as you apply.
You’re using WAY TOO MUCH concealer. Many concealers are packed with more pigment than say, a foundation. Did you ever wonder why concealers usually come in smaller packaging? You only need to use a tiny bit (if it’s a good product).
You’re using the WRONG shade. This is where color theory comes in. THIS is an amazing article covering how to choose the correct concealer. I’m really glad someone else wrote it because it’s….A LOT.

Now you’re probably really excited to put these tips into action.

As for skincare and primer, I have a thing for Bobbi Brown’s hydrating eye cream because she’s a genius and puts primer right into the eye cream so you don’t have to fuss with two prep steps. I also have a big lady crush on Sonia Roselli’s Water Balm. It’s a moisturizer & a serum in one magnificent product and if you want to use something that blows your mind, this is a pretty good bet.

If you want something that will double beautifully as a night time eye cream, go for the Sanitas Peptiderm Eye Treatment… just use a tiny bit under makeup. As they say: a little goes a long way. If you use an eye cream that doesn’t have a primer, spray your concealer brush with a priming spray before you dip it into your concealer. This will set your makeup as you apply it.

Remember to apply your concealer in thin layers with a synthetic brush until you’ve achieved the coverage you want. You should not have to layer up more than once. If you’re finding that you are having to keep going in with more and more product, something is not quite right. See above and trouble shoot what the issue might be.

I have probably around 20 that I could name right now but I’ll keep it simple. Some of my favorite concealers are:

Dermablend Quick Fix Concealer

Cle De Peau

LimeLife by Alcone Complete Concealer

Finally, spray a small, fluffy brush with a setting spray and gently roll or pat the brush on top of your finished concealer. If you feel like you need a little bit of translucent powder under your eyes, use very little. I strongly recommend shying away from heavy, color rich powders if you are trying you achieve a youthful finish under the eyes.

If you have any questions or need some help choosing the perfect products for you, just get in touch or leave a comment below!

What is “skintuition”?

When a client asks me what my favorite brands are, I always go straight to skincare. Skin is the foundation (pun intended) of all things beauty when it comes to cosmetics. I have a few silly little things I like to say a lot while I’m chatting with a client. I say this often: “Your makeup will only look as good as your skin does.”

If we don’t learn the basics of good skincare, our look will suffer and more importantly, our confidence will too.

Imagine how amazing it would feel to have such beautiful, healthy skin that you don’t even feel the need to wear makeup? This is where my philosophy of teaching “skintuition” comes in.

It’s not complicated. In fact, it is the easiest way to care for your skin from a day to day basis and work towards a healthy, beautiful glow in a few short days.

Things to note:

Your skin is not the same every day and it does not have the same needs every day. Get into the habit of learning to take a few seconds every morning to determine what your body needs in order to achieve healthy looking skin for the day.
Your skincare routine is a morning and evening ritual of self care. Gone are the days of pumping St. Ives into the palm of your hand and quickly rubbing it on your face. The sooner you start caring better for your skin, the better. Your 50 year old self is already thanking you for realizing the importance of this.

How to learn “skintuition”?

When you get up in the morning and are going through your morning routine (brushing your hair, teeth, etc.), start taking a few seconds to look at your skin up close before you wash it. Does it feel tight and dry? Are your lips parched? If you take your index finger and gently push your cheek upwards, does your skin fold into tiny fine lines or does it stay plump? Do you have dark circles under your eyes or puffy under eyes? Are your pores congested with debris (black dots)? Are you extremely oily?
These are a lot of questions but you probably have a few directions your skin will go from one day to the next. My skin tends to be normal/dry to dehydrated and very dry to extremely dry and irritated (redness, dry patches and even swelling sometimes because I am very sensitive).
Next, once you start practicing taking the time to get to know your skin from day to day, start thinking about introducing what I like to call “grown up skincare” into your self care routine. Below I will list the type of products I recommend for every grown up and will list a few of my favorite products for each category.

Cleanser: For very dry skin, I recommend a cleansing milk . I LOVE the Quench Cleanse by LimeLife by Alcone. It removes makeup beautifully too which is a big PLUS in my book. Note: this doesn’t actually have milk in it. For normal skin, I recommend Sanitas Lemon Cream Cleanser. If you have Oily skin, I love Sanitas Purifying Clay Cleanser.
Exfoliant: I am a HUGE fan of chemical exfoliants and there is really just ONE that I recommend for everyone unless you are extremely sensitive. The Sanitas Brightening Peel Pads have transformed my skin and so many others that I have recommend this product to. They are a little pricier but I only recommend using them twice weekly unless you are very oily (in which case I recommend using them every other day). One pad is all you need per use and honestly, you could even cut them in half to get two uses per pad. If you are extremely sensitive to chemical exfoliants, I recommend trying the Sanitas Gentle Refining Mask.
Serum: for me? This is an evening step. I like to use my yummy active ingredients on my face while I’m fast asleep. Serums are the game changers in skincare. They target your specific goals. Want brighter, younger looking skin? Go for a vitamin C serum. Want to focus on reversing aging? Get a powerful anti-aging serum. Want to re-texturize your skin? Talk to your dermatologist about using a Retinol product. A good serum that will provide results is going to be an investment. There comes a time when that investment is totally worth it.
Moisturizer: I usually piggy back my moisturizer with my serum (similar active ingredients). I love a good antioxidant moisturizer that protects my skin from free radicals. I also really love this intensive Rose Revival cream. For oily to acne prone skin, I love Eminence Clear Skin Moisturizer.

I want to tell you about my favorite skincare product to use in another post because these are the best products to start with. I know that my recommendations are sometimes on the pricier side but please get in touch with me if you’d like to chat about what might work for you specifically to meet your skincare goals.

Remember, take the time for yourself every day. Your skin deserves that kind of care.

Oh. And…Drink LOTS of water. That is the first step to a youthful glow from the inside!