3 Top tips for hiding those under eye bags!

I remember my very first wrinkle. It had the same impact as my first love. It hit me like a brick, then floored me for months..

I felt bereft. I was 21, I was too young to wrinkle - or to have a broken heart - what was going on? So I started a routine that stayed with me for life, the main thing being every night - without fail, regardless of my condition - too much wine and frivolity, my makeup came off. Ask anyone I still do it. My sister says often to me “Nobody loves a clever sh*t” it a term of endearment in the North East.

There are times in our lives when reality strikes, we are ALL going to age (if we are lucky) so why do we get so stressed when the inevitable happens. We wrinkle, things drop and that’s fine.

Looking back...

I remember a private makeup session with a huge celebrity (revealing her name would result in a visit from the naughty boys or expensive lawyer) I mention her because when I look at her now I know she suffers badly from puffy bags under her eyes but you wouldn’t guess it to look at her. Camouflage is a wonderful, like me, she was against surgery or fillers.

My celebrity secret fix it potion back in the day for a quick eye lift was haemorrhoid cream .. I know, it sounds disgusting now, I have to laugh, not at bum treatments but at the new miracle stuff that lifts the eye so miraculously was in my day used for something entirely different.

Come to think of it, on photoshoots and magazine covers I never did tell them what I was applying - the ones in the know just knew and that’s all I can say on the matter..

What this celebrity and many like her did was discover was how to disguise those under eye bags, that’s what I want you to do.

So how do we eliminate and illuminate our ever changing eyes?

Point 1 - Don't believe the hype

Late forties and early fifties typically our hormones diminish as does our facial structure. So, no matter how many work outs you do or ‘you are what you eat’ - the face ages.

No products can permanently lift, firm or eliminate lines and wrinkles. Sad but true. So don’t waste your money on that ‘miracle product’ its what you do on a daily basis that gets results, so it has to be quick and simple - or I know you won’t bother.. We are older and wiser, so instead of believing what the beauty companies SELL us we need to get the right things and see results. Demand more and not get sucked in by clever marketing that plays on our insecurities.

What we can do is use makeup to bring out the colour, shape and definition of our eyes, the beauty our face that radiates when we feel good and confident about ourselves. I'm going to teach you how to do that.

So, looking in that mirror, if all we focus on are the lines, bags and wrinkles we are going to feel bad about ourselves. Which in turn stops us bothering to try. I want you to look past that. She’s there! that young carefree girl that we never truly loose - we have just lost sight of her in the mayhem of life.

So let’s go get her. Let’s concentrate on livening up our face with clever techniques to lift and eliminate.

Get your eye care right.

Find a great eye cream - I love Guinot Longue Vie Yeux eye cream Longue Vie Yeux

*Key to everything you use on or around your delicate eye area - NEVER drag or pull the skin.

Make yourself DIY home made gentle eye mask;

*Grate some cucumber, *Mix with a dash of olive oil *Add egg white Gently paint it or pat it around your eyes - relax for 15 mins then rinse off, perfect!

+ it lasts in the fridge for two days

Point 2 - How to eliminate and illuminate using makeup

If you have dark circles under your eyes the worst thing you can do is use a thick chalky concealer. It will only make you look worse by emphasising wrinkles and bags.

Here are my top tips to handle dark circles.

1. Start by making sure your skin is moisturised with a gentle application of eye cream, don’t use too much - when is says ‘anti wrinkle’ lots of us think - OK ...let's pile it on, then the wrinkles will go - absolutely not, the ingredients will work to make your eyes puffy so 5 little dots on your socket line, then pat gently.

2. Draw with a stick concealer, over the lid - this acts as an eye shadow base but also disguises any purple/red tones on the lid.

3. Get and illuminator, either in a cream or pen and dot 5 dots on the under eye socket (don’t use it too high or pile it on!) then using your ring finger gently pat it to blend it - its essential that you don’t rub your eye, simply use the heat from your finger - gently pat pat and pat again until its totally blended.

*If you have particularly dark circles, like me, then try a green concealer. For Asian skin a peachy tone is best.

Hydra-Lift I-CorrectorMakeup This unique 2-in-1 eye treatment and concealer instantly refreshes and revitalises the whole eye area, hydrating delicate and dehydrated skin while reducing puffiness and erasing dark circles.

Find Out More

Point 3 - Less is more!

Makeup is miraculous, we all know that but only when used in the right way. As we age it's the old adage that “less is more". I've never quite understood the simplicity of that saying and sometimes find it a bit condescending - however with regard to our ever changing faces as a mature women it is the case that you conceal more by using less. Trust me on this one.

The best way to use makeup is to use less, add to it if necessary and always have a top up in your bag. We’ve all seen people who’ve used heavy sparkly concealer in a shade much lighter than their foundation, unfortunately this never works. Always make sure your concealer blends with the colour of your foundation. You need to work out what’s right for you. I am more than happy to help you find out the best products for your skin. Have a look at my online tutorials, we can work together and have fun at the same time jojewett.com

Don’t forget that the concealer your use for under eye shadows is entirely different from the one you use on spots and spider veins. That's a whole different matter I will cover separately so watch this blog space!

The Beautiful Truth - Make Up Made Easy!

So here we are, get that mirror ready!

Let’s look together, now embrace our bare face and those lines and bags. I remember that first wrinkle, the one made from the pain of a broken heart - (actually I can’t remember what he even looks like now!!!) - here I am with a face full of them. My children, my husband, my dogs and career all have there special place, on my face and I love that. My personal history is etched all over my face.

So, just get your kit together and never underestimate the magic that small dots of perfect products when used in the right place the right way can achieve. I adore the female ritual of putting makeup on, it can do far more for my face and my heart than any expensive dress. On those days when someone I love and trust tells me they think Im beautiful, I store that feeling and it warms my heart.

Some things definitely get better with age - WE DO x