Beauty: Make the most of your eyes this spring with perfecting concealers
Laura Mercier Secret Camouflage Concealer: The yellower shade neutralises redness and shadows, while the flesh-toned shade works like a brightening foundation, evening everything out
Eyes are the focus of most spring makeup trends and look brighter with a little concealer above your mask any time of year. For me, the defining trait of truly great concealer is invisibility. All of my picks below have added skincare benefits, excellent coverage and — most importantly — a shade to match your complexion.
I am often asked about sun protection that will not irritate sensitive eyes. Assuming your SPF is alcohol and perfume-free (both these ingredients are irritants), this problem is usually caused by UVA-filtering chemicals that absorb and dissipate radiation. The stinging will not cause permanent harm but the discomfort is unnecessary. The trouble is that the natural, non-irritating equivalents of these UVA ingredients tend to leave a little white residue on the skin, so if you do choose them the most flattering buys come with a residue-concealing tint. Those who wear a little makeup every day might try an SPF- enhanced concealer such as MAC’s instead. It is waterproof and contains moisturising ingredients like Vitamin E. The sun protection is stronger than that of many SPF eye creams. Best of all, this concealer comes in a choice of 23 shades.
Laura Mercier’s Secret Camouflage is 25 this year. Like all the cult products to survive the 90s (NARS Orgasm Blush, Maybelline Great Lash Mascara, Elizabeth Arden 8-Hour Cream), it is still hard to top, so Laura Mercier simply made it more practical. Between finger swipes and brushes, cream palettes get messy quickly but this new swipe-on stick duo means you don’t even have to touch the camouflage. What’s kept the two-tone concealer so popular? The yellower shade neutralises redness and shadows while the flesh-toned shade works like a brightening foundation, evening everything out. Previously, the latter was so rich that makeup artists like Lisa Eldridge — who still uses it — said on her channel that she did not recommend applying it under the eyes, but the new stick formula is lighter and more emollient with restorative antioxidants such as lotus flower and murumuru seed butter in the mix that may improve the area over time.
'Un' Cover Up is a supermodel and organic beauty favourite created by makeup artist Rose-Marie Swift. Organic coconut, jojoba and cocoa seed oils give it a creamy texture.
RMS uses auto-adjusting minerals to camouflage imperfections with colour pigment rather than thicken the formula. It can be buffed on for a sheer look or pressed into skin for fuller coverage without creasing or settling in pores. I especially like that Rose-Marie includes three options for very fair skin.
Chemical engineer, Jenny Frankel, created Nudestix for herself and her teenaged daughters.
The products are almost effortless, you can apply most of them with your fingers and the ones that need a brush come with brush heads built into the packaging. I rate this cream concealer highly, it is perfume and alcohol-free and blends with some light tapping. If you have under-eye bags as well as dark circles, you won’t want to highlight the former with illuminating ingredients. Nudefix is great camouflage in this regard, as it emulates bare rather than luminous skin.
Trinny Woodall, she of the slightly bossy BBC makeover programme, has a makeup line designed to be your best friend. It doesn’t follow trends, the products are both age and complexion inclusive and every shade has a woman’s name. This concealer is subtly radiant and very rich. It can be used all over the face, so you can hide spots and rosacea as well as under the eyes. I was a little wary of the 'Foundation-Concealer' in the product name as many makeup artists have told me that foundation under the eyes just looks overdone. I can safely say this works either way, it isn’t patchy and includes collagen-supporting physalis angulata known to help restore collagen.
This is my favourite supermarket buy for under-eyes, perfect for those who are sick of screens and still getting out for food shopping. The formula is creamy and distributed evenly through a click-pen. It contains moisturisers Vitamin E and glycerin, blends easily and provides both good coverage for dark circles and a pretty satin finish. Both make you look more awake and it doesn’t crease in fine lines around the eyes.
