The you-know-what continues to rear its ugly head, impacting everything from travel plans and social commitments to mental health and overall lifestyles, with erratic sleep schedules an unfortunate byproduct. Both anxiety and insomnia are on the rise, so you’re probably grappling with the likes of puffiness, eye bags, crow’s feet, and dark circles more than ever before. And the fact that wearing a face mask keeps your eyes front and center? Not helping. With that in mind, we tapped three different experts to address the three Cs – care, cure, and conceal – of the delicate eye area, answering some of the most frequently asked questions along the way.

Care

Dr. Shadan Naji, Dermatologist at Dr Kayle Aesthetic Clinic

At what age should we start paying attention to the eye area, and how?

The area around the eyes is the first to start showing signs of ageing and tiredness. In general, we should pay attention to the area as soon as possible, but certainly start with an anti-ageing cream once you hit the age of 25.

Asian women tend to struggle more with dark circles due to genetics and higher melanin levels. Any tips to prevent them?

There are two tips that I always share with my patients to help with this issue. Firstly, use a brightening cream or a serum that contains vitamin C. Secondly, avoid the use of irritative eye makeup remover and heavy mascara as both might create an irritation that can lead to more discolouration in the area.

Some still say that special eye cream isn’t needed, while others say it’s a skincare must-have. How do you feel?

It’s a must to have a specific cream for the undereye area as you cannot use your normal skincare products. This is because the eye contour area is more sensitive and delicate than other parts of the face, so while you want to deliver the same ingredients you’d use elsewhere, you need them in doses that are gentle enough to not trigger any irritation. Remember, the thin skin around the eyes absorbs better than the thicker skin on other areas of the face, so eye creams are formulated with some of the same active ingredients as moisturisers, but using lower doses or less potency.

Puffiness and eye bags are common complaints. What tips can you share to prevent the two?

Use a small jade roller every night to apply the eye cream and gently massage it into the area around the eyes. This issue can also be helped by dietary choices, such as avoiding excess salt and alcohol.

Jade Stone Facial Roller, lookfantastic.ae

Increased screen time since the onset of the pandemic has worsened our skin, so it’s likely the same for the undereye area. What can we do to offset some of the damage?

Use a specific eye cream twice daily, but supplement this with in-clinic treatments. Rejuvenation treatments such as PRP and mesotherapy are always a smart investment as they will dramatically improve the appearance of the area and, as an added bonus, lessen your need for a concealer.

Cure

Edwige Gandin, Beautician at Pastels Salon

Dark circles aside, the Hydradermie Eye Lift at Pastels tackles crow’s feet. What can you tell us about this commonly occurring issue?

Crow’s feet wrinkles tend to initially appear in the mid to late 30s. Depending on the condition of the skin and general care, though, they can even reveal themselves in the mid 20s. There are some measures, however, that you can take to avoid them taking hold too soon. These include getting adequate sleep, elevating the head during sleep, and applying cold compresses. You should also minimise sun exposure and try one of the following: cucumber slices, tea bags, vitamin C, and retinoid creams.

What key tools and products are used as part of the treatment?

The Hydradermie Eye Lift is a unique 35-minute treatment that rejuvenates the eye area, targeting signs of ageing and tiredness around the eye area and tackling fine lines, wrinkles, puffiness, and dark circles. It uses a combination of machine technology and a specially designed hands-on massage together with a Guinot skin repair eye mask to aid maximum effectiveness, making for a relaxing and results-driven treatment. 

The treatment uses Guinot’s patented drainage method to remove toxins from the muscle and brighten the skin, as well as its ionisation technology to help the skin absorb the active ingredients deep into the epidermal layer. It is based on the belief that positive ions tend to oxidise by pollution and the sun, which will hasten the ageing process, especially the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. Therefore, the ‘double-ionisation’ effect refers to the rebalancing of the positive and negative ions when two handheld rollers are used, with a gel serum applied on the eye contour region. The relaxing massage softens the facial features and rejuvenates the skin.

Who do you think would benefit most from the Hydradermie Eye Lift?

Anyone who wants to reduce dark circles, puffiness, fine lines, and wrinkles and ensure their eye contour region looks brighter and younger.

What can one do to maintain its results for as long as possible?

The best results will be achieved when you commit to having the treatment twice a week for a month, and then use an eye serum day and night. My current favourite is the Nimue Eye Serum.

Eye Serum, esseandco.com

Conceal

Fizah Pasha, Founder of Brulée Beauty

Let’s start with an age-old question. Concealer or foundation first, and why?

I always like to start with foundation first – that way, it’s easier to conceal the parts that need a little bit of extra love.

Brulée Beauty’s concealers cater specifically to women with golden-yellow undertones. What tips can you share to make the most of them?

As a result of higher melanin levels, we tend to be darker underneath our eyes as well. Brulée Beauty concealers were formulated to be full coverage, which is why they have a higher content of pigments. I also made sure they dry matte so they stay on longer and cover dark circles better. For both these reasons, you need to have a well-moisturised undereye area to tackle the concealers from getting cakey. I also recommend a light dusting of powder to make the concealer last longer.

Even with a detailed shade guide in place, it’s common to order a shade that’s not quite right, especially when shopping online. What advice would you give to avoid this issue?

Well, because Brulée Beauty concealers are formed with a built-in colour corrector, I suggest always going one shade lighter than your usual concealer. We also offer personalised services whereby you can get in touch and speak to us about getting shade-matched. We’re also working on something exciting that we are about to launch soon to tackle this issue.

As a makeup artist with over a decade of experience, what is your concealer philosophy?

I personally like to build up coverage – I start with a smaller amount and build up to how much is needed. Less is always more when it comes to applying makeup, in my opinion.

What mistakes are we making when it comes to concealer?

We usually don’t apply concealers that are true to our undertones – that makes our undereye area look grey. We also like to highlight using concealers, which gives an unnatural look, especially in photos. Concealers are meant to conceal the darkness underneath your eye, not make that area look so light that it stands out from the rest of your face.