Inge van Lotringen Better… Not Younger: Quick-fix products that will depuff and brighten ageing eyes…
- In the process of ageing, the thin skin around the eyes suffers first
- READ MORE: The beauty gadgets I just can’t live without
Embrace and delight in the process of visible ageing — no, I don’t. I think it’s rubbish to look increasingly tired and ragged when it’s not how I feel.
Looking and feeling well is a joy and a pleasure, and how we get there is our own choice.
But I don’t want to spend loads of money, or advise anyone else to, on stuff that will not make a difference. Sometimes, ‘cheating’ is a lot more effective than falling for empty promises.
Of course, in the process of ageing, the skin around the eyes is up to ten times thinner than the skin on the rest of the face, so it gets clobbered first.
Sagging, etched-in lines, discolouration, hollowed-out and puffed-up bits will show here before they do anywhere else.
Beauty expert Inge van Lotringen believes that looking and feeling well is a joy and a pleasure, and how we get there is our own choice
Problem is, no eye cream is going to reverse that process once it’s set in. You can keep it at bay and slow it down, but ageing eye skin is too delicate for any topicals to actually ‘lift’ it, smooth deep wrinkles and eradicate dark circles.
Luckily, quick-fix products that tackle these issues quite successfully, albeit temporarily, are increasingly readily available.
These are the products I use to ‘retouch’ my bleary eyes while I pluck up the courage to have a surgical eyelift (because I’m sure I will)…
For eye bags
Bloated under-eyes are largely a case of slack microcirculation and lymph drainage. Anything cool will help de-bloat.
The swipe-on Embryolisse Radiant Eye Express Cooling and Refreshing Stick (£17.25, escentual.com), chills eye bags without (puff-inducing) irritants such as alcohol.
One step up, there’s Mantle The Eye De-Puffer (£50, hellomantle.co.uk), a light serum with circulation-boosting caffeine and vitamin C and a subtle sheeny tint to settle bleariness fast.
Most impressive of all, It Cosmetics Bye Bye Under Eye Bags Rapid Bag Reducer (£33, boots.com), is just that thanks to polymers that form an invisible film that tightens and smoothes skin, but leaves it flexible.
For crepiness
Under-eye crepiness in particular is (temporarily) wiped out with Peter Thomas Roth Instant FirmX Temporary Eye Tightener (£32, cultbeauty.co.uk).
Really quite powerful, it smoothes crows’ feet and has peptides, vitamin A and anti-inflammatories to boost collagen.
If you feel dehydration is to blame for crinkly eyes, under-eye patches can give a plumping boost.
My favourites are Voya Renewal Eyes Seaweed Eye Masks (£32, voya.ie). Literally just dehydrated seaweed leaves, you soak them in water before sticking them under your eyes. Seaweed is renowned for its quenching, collagen-boosting properties.
To soften lines long-term, look at retinoids. They must be carefully formulated so as not to cause inflammation. Try Medik8 Crystal Retinal Eye 3 (£42, medik8.com).
For dark circles
Caused by pigmentation or dilated blood vessels, dark circles are a nightmare to minimise.
Eye surgeon-devised Dr Sabrina Perfect 360 Dark Circle Corrector System (£150, drsabrina.com), is probably your best-formulated two-step chance to see long-term brightening, with an illuminating serum and SPF50 cream, but you can get instant satisfaction from temporary fixes.
Gatineau Miracle Eye Contour Cream (£34, sephora.co.uk), hydrates and protects and adjusts to skin tone to blur lines and cover discolouration.
Ciaté Extraordinary Brightening Undereye Perfector (£32, ciatelondon.com), in three shades, strengthens delicate skin with seed oils and vitamins while blitzing dark circles with peachy, illuminating coverage.
For sagging lids
Forget ‘lifting’ eye creams, except for Instant FirmX (see Crepiness) which, applied to your top lids, will pull them up for several hours.
Or get to work with the new Foreo Bear 2 Eyes & Lips (£189, foreo.com) which, while pricey, if used consistently will mildly reshape eye contours using microcurrents.
For your kids
The best thing to keep all of the above at arm’s length is to use SPF formulated for the eye area from a young age. Add Ultrasun SPF30 Eye Protection (£20, ultrasun.co.uk), to your daily routine and theirs.
RACE YOU TO IT!
Menopause skincare isn’t a necessity: plenty of existing products help keep skin calm and replenished.
But if you don’t know what to buy, Superdrug’s new B. Menopause range makes it easy: with collagen- boosters and hydrators, these creams will help skin stay plumper for £8.49 or less each.
MY ICON OF THE WEEK
Amal Clooney
Human rights lawyer Amal Clooney wore 1960s-inspired Charlotte Tilbury make-up to accept an award in Venice
Accepting an award in Venice, human rights lawyer Amal Clooney wore 1960s-inspired Charlotte Tilbury make-up — Matte Beauty Blush Wand in Pillow Talk, £30, Hypnotising Pop Shots eyeshadow in Pillow Talk Diamonds, £25 and Hot Lips 2 lipstick in Dancefloor Princess, £29.
Her accessory? One hot husband.
LIGHT WEIGHT ‘CLOUD CREAMS’
(£45, balanceme.com)
Feels fresh, smells soothing, has peptides to lastingly plump.
(£53, spacenk.com)
Deeply irrigates skin and boosts resilience with sustainably grown plant extracts.
(£80, cremedelamer.co.uk)
The iconic seaweed broth-packed unguent as a cooling cream gel.
(£20, lumigloskin.co.uk)
A silky waterburst that smells of sweeties.
(£125, uk.ishga.com)
The Outer Hebrides in an organic, aroma-therapeutic gel-cream.
COSMETIC CRAVING
La Collection Privée Christian Dior Dioriviera EdP, £245 (dior.com) costs a fortune, but sometimes that’s what it takes not to smell like everyone else.
There’s Dior’s signature avalanche of flowers in full bloom, but underneath is the scent of sitting in the shade of an old fig tree. Resiny, spicy and sweet but not overly so.
It’s cool, confident and calming, like a woman in charge of her destiny.
The figgy dry-down lasts for ever, floating about your person like a veil.
A small spritz suffices, making it better value than it seems.
Source: Read Full Article