Add these 4 steps into your under eye makeup routine to STOP your concealer from creasing ALL DAY!
We've all heard about the best products & techniques to use that are suppose to keep our concealer from creasing: beauty blenders, primers, moisturizers, finely milled setting powders, fingers for tools, setting sprays, etc but......how come it doesn't always work??........If your concealer still creases on you after trying everything and you've asked yourself this same question, then please keep reading. I've found a combination of products and techniques that has solved my personal concealer creasing issues forever!And hopefully these tips can help others out there who have the same struggle! :)
1. HYDRATE: Properly hydrated skin reduces the appearance of fine lines which is the first step to combating creasing concealers! Applying Un-Petroleum jelly at night on top of any eye cream will maximize the hydration of the skin by locking in your nightly moisturizer, leaving your skin highly moisturized in the morning. (Or try making your own moisturizer with ingredients for your specific needs)
Before makeup application: Apply your favorite moisturizer under the eye in the morning and wait a bit for it to dry to a slightly 'tacky' consistency, not completely dry -to the point where you feel you didn't get the benefit of the moisturizer- before applying primer which takes us to step #2.
(Side note: This product can also be used all over the face at night to lock in your nightly moisturizer.
If you have dry skin: wash your face once at night with a gentle cleanser. In the morning, use a gentle toner (without alcohol) to remove any residue of makeup (avoid eye area) before applying your daily moisturize.
2.USE 2 PRIMERS:
Use 2 Primers: 1st apply a primer with a 'creamy' consistency (helps makeup 'stick' to the skin). Once that has dried a bit, then apply a primer with a 'silky' consistency (helps makeup 'glide' on & not settle into fine lines)
CREAMY PRIMER: A great tip to ensure your under eye area stays hydrated all day is to add a drop of 'argon oil' to your creamy primer: To make sure products mix well together, you can make a small batch of this mixture for easy future use. (The Rimmel Fix & Perfect 001 is a great primer. It does have a pink tint to it which is undetectable once blended in and makeup applied over it. Of course you can choose to use your favorite creamy primer)
* Or you can condense this step by adding these 2 products into your morning moisturizer.
SILKY PRIMER: Now apply a very 'silky' primer under the eye area. I have found two that work best: One is a high end product: Too Faced Primed & Poreless. And the other is a much less expensive product but works just as well if the bottle is shaken before use to keep product from getting watery:
Hard Candy Sheer Envy Primer. Both products do a fantastic job of creating a smooth surface and filling in fine lines.
Now apply all your cream/liquid products under the eye:
Apply your favorite corrector/concealer/foundation by pressing/tapping the
product onto the skin which gives the most coverage and does not disturb/wipe away the primer & moisturizer underneath. Using a synthetic brush works best to lay down full coverage color. Layer small amounts of product at a time to get the best results. (Applying foundation over correctors/concealers and under the entire eye area is a personal preference & works fine with formulas that aren't too dry.) You can then use your finger or any of the brushes found in sigma's synthetic precision kit to blend product into the skin by using 'tapping' motions.To get the most coverage with the least amount of product: Decrease the amount of product applied under the eye by applying a small amount of corrector & concealer ONLY to areas of extreme discoloration and allow your skin toned powder to add extra coverage to the rest of the under eye area. The skin toned powder won't crease into fine lines because of the setting technique that is discussed in steps 3&4. Application tip: Before applying product to the skin, wipe off excess product on the back of your hand to make sure you don't apply too much product at once. Repeat until desired coverage is achieved. My personal favorite brush to use for this step is the: Base Shadow brush found in the 'eye starter set ' from Real Technique brushes.
3. CREATE A PROTECTIVE BARRIER BETWEEN YOUR CREAMY CONCEALER & COLORED POWDERS with finely milled translucent powders: Finely milled powders when applied with the correct tool & technique (which we will discuss in step#4) can set creamy concealers into the skin, 'locks in' the moisturizing products and gives the skin a smooth, dry surface, allowing the application of your skin toned and highlight powders to seamlessly apply color without sticking to the creamy concealer.
PRODUCT NOTE: After application, you may notice that your under eye area now has a white cast to it from the white/translucent powder but the white cast will instantly disappear once you apply other powders on top. (The Elf HD powder has a more noticeable white cast compared to other brands such as Tarte Smooth Operator, It Cosmetics Bye Bye Pores or Makeup Forever HD powder for examples)
4. USE THE PROPER TOOL & APPLICATION TECHNIQUE
SYNTHETIC FLAT CONCEALER/EYE SHADOW BRUSH : These brushes are easy to find and you may have a few in your makeup collection right now. ;)
Press the brush into the loose powder and tap off excess product. Then gently press the brush down under the eye area, holding it to the skin for a moment to allow the concealer & primer to set into the skin. The brush is small, so you will have to repeat this step several times until you've covered the entire under eye area. Make sure to get close to the lash line to prevent moisture from the eye from breaking down product throughout the day. A brush like this works best for application because there are no frayed out bristles to disturb the creamy concealer. (like that found on a fluffy eye shadow brush)
NOTE: If you feel that the brush removed some coverage of the concealer in the application process, experiment with the amount of concealer you apply. Concealers vary in texture and coverage but this technique works with many concealers from drug store to high end so have fun practicing & experimenting! :)
(Brushes below: Left: Elf studio concealer brush. Right: Urban Decay good karma shadow brush)
THE LAST STEP:
Apply your skin toned & brightening powders under the eye using your
favorite soft, fluffy eye shadow brush.
EXTRA TIP: If you have some favorite colored loose powders that seem to 'cake up' under they eye, try mixing it with a translucent finely milled powder to give it a very fine texture. My favorite powder to use this trick on is 'Well Rested' by Bare Minerals. This powder gives a great 'brightening' effect but is too thick to use under the eye. You can use any loose powders this way under the eye and/or all over your face! :)
For extra staying power: use the concealer brush to press your skin toned powder close to the lash line to ensure moisture won't break down product throughout the day.
And Voila! Your under eye makeup should stay on ALL DAY!
You'll notice that your makeup will look even better throughout the day as the products absorb into the skin. :)
THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME!
I hope some of these tips were helpful! I know that everyone's needs are different so I don't expect one way to work for everyone but I do wish everyone luck on their journey to creaseless concealer! :)
For those of you who don't have issues with concealer creasing, you are
very very lucky! (ha ha)
EXTRA TIPS:
*Spray your favorite setting spray all over your face to
set the powders and decrease the appearance of any 'powdery' finish.
This step is optional because your under eye makeup will still not
crease even if you don't use a setting spray. (Product examples: Skindinavia or Urban Decay All Night setting spray)
Use this same setting technique to set your foundation and prep the eye lid for eye shadow:
Eye shadows blend seamlessly over finely milled powders: After applying
your concealer and/or eye shadow primer to the lid, use the concealer
brush to press the finely milled powder all over the lid before applying
eye shadows.
To set foundation: Press
the finely loose milled powder over the foundation using a flat top kabuki brush before applying your skin toned powders. Once the foundation is 'set' you can use your favorite soft powder or kabuki brush to apply skin toned powders.
Apply a corrector color on top of ONLY the discolored area. Then apply a skin toned concealer on top of the correcting color and the entire under eye area where coverage is needed. Applying foundation under the eye area over the corrector is a personal preference and is usually ok as long as it's not too dry of a formula. *Apply your favorite bronzer around the perimeter of your face to really make the center of your face 'glow'!
-Concealers are skin toned that match your foundation and correctors are colors that correct discoloration. COLOR CORRECTING GUIDE: Yellow correctors neutralize red/purple. Peach correctors neutralize blue.
My personal favorite under eye products:
(There are many ways to apply concealer but sometimes seeing an example can give you ideas and can be helpful in figuring out what might work best for you)
(My skin tone is light to medium with a neutral under tone with redness in the inner corner of my
eyes, cheeks & chin.)
To correct the redness under my eyes: I apply a small mixture of two different tones of yellow to correct & brighten: (dark yellow=correct & light yellow=brightens)
1. Covergirl & Olay Simply ageless eye corrector in #230 (light yellow color=brightens)
2. Covergirl +Olay Simply Ageless Foundation in #230 (corrects) A full coverage foundation with a dark yellow under tone to correct redness. I use this product only to cover the red areas on my face
(I do not use this foundation on my entire face) and then I apply my skin toned foundation over it: liquid or powder foundation-whatever works for me that day depending on how much coverage I need. Neutralizing redness under your foundation can give a great 'brightening' effect to the skin.
*After using correctors on top of discoloration, the color you get is a neutralized color that does not resemble the color of skin so you have to re-create your skin tone by mixing colors correctly. (such as light yellow + a concealer &/or powder that is one shade darker than your skin tone=your actual skin tone) Or you can apply your foundation over the correcting colors & entire under eye area to warm up the 'neutralized' color.
Experiment to find what works best for you! :)
4.It Cosmetics Celebration Foundation in light medium or a much cheaper alternative: Elf Pressed Powder in 'Sand'
I apply this powder under my entire eye area after setting my concealer with the finely loose milled powder. These full coverage powders have a very smooth texture which helps to keep the product from settling into fine lines.
5.Brightening powder: Milani face powder in light/medium #02. This powder is a very light yellow color that is great for applying to the inner corner of the eyes and center of the face to boost the brightening effect.
6. Extra camouflage tip for fine lines: The eye
liner/eyeshadow you apply under your lash line can camouflage fine lines
even more when smudged/smoked out to a point that works for your eye
shape.
Have fun experimenting! :)
Other fun makeup sites to visit:
www.beautybroadcast.ning.com
www.makeuptalk.com
www.makeupalley.com
