Simple Care for Youthful Eyes

Uncategorized

Simple Care for Youthful Eyes

*Disclosure: As a licensed master esthetician, I only recommend products I would use on my clients in my esthetics practice. All opinions expressed here are mine. This post may contain affiliate links that at no additional cost to you, I may earn a small commission. 

Did you know, the skin around your eyes is more delicate and thinner than the skin anywhere else on your face or body?  And, you may never have thought about it but your eyes work hard during the day, so this thin skin gets a lot of exercise. Yes, I’m serious!

You blink 15- 20 times each minute, or 28, 800 times every single day. Then add in squinting, smiling, frowning, crying… you get my point. These factors alone can lead to signs of aging. But we can’t stop there. Plus, consider the impact of genetics, ultraviolet (UV) rays, and environmental stressors such as pollution and allergies, even lifestyle choices, including which products we use.

Each of these elements by itself can speed up the aging process of the skin around your eyes. Together, they are a recipe for everything we want to avoid in our faces:

  • dark circles

  • fine lines

  • puffiness 

  • loose skin and eye bags

  • crepey fine lines

  • dull, lifeless tone

Thus, caring for the skin around your eyes is crucial for maintaining youthful, radiant beauty. I mean, the eyes are the windows to our souls. Don’t we want the window frames to be as beautiful as the picture they are bordering? I know I do.

No matter your age, it’s never too late, or too soon, to love on your eye area by giving it the care and attention it deserves.

So, How Do I Care for My Eye Area?

Our eyes give the world insight into our story. So, we must decide what kind of story we want to share. Are we willing to let our eyes betray a tired life of neglect? Or do we want the world to look at our eyes and see beauty, self-love, and a welcoming invitation to know the amazing person in front of them?

Let’s start with the basics. Girl, if you do nothing else to care for your eye area, at least gently cleanse your eyelids, lashes, and under-eye area each evening, followed by an appropriate moisturizer. These two steps combined take less than five minutes, so we really have no excuse to be lazy about it.

Going to bed with your eye makeup (any makeup!) on is a huge self-care no-no! Sleeping in our makeup disrupts the healing and rejuvenating capabilities our skin is supposed to accomplish each night. Worse, mascara and eyeliner can get under the eyelid and become embedded in the lid.

Don’t believe me? Google it! Better yet, here is an article: Years of Embedded Mascara Found Under Woman’s Eyelid. I bet you won’t sleep in mascara again!

How to Remove Your Makeup

  • Soak a cotton pad with an eye makeup remover, such as micellar water.

  • Press the pad gently to your closed eye.

  • Hold the pad on your eye for at least 30 seconds (magnetic liner requires longer).

  • Gently wipe the cotton pad to the outside of your eye, around and under to the inner corner.

  • DO NOT RUB!

  • Repeat step four 2-3 times until makeup is gone from the eye.

  • Use cosmetic tips to remove any remaining mascara by gently rolling the tip down the lashes.

As for moisturizing, do I really need to tell you why this step is so important? We know we need to maintain optimal hydration and oil level in our skin. Moisturizing daily with the right ingredients helps plump our skin and reduce the appearance of fine lines. Some ingredients do even more to help maintain a youthful appearance to our eyes; I will go into that later.

The skin around our eyes lacks oil glands, so this area needs extra help. For starters, I do not recommend using the same moisturizer you use for your face on your eyes, much like I don’t recommend hand lotion on your face. Different skin has different needs.

Wait; you just thought, “I do use my hand lotion on my face just fine.”

Okay, you may be right, but it isn’t giving you optimal benefits for the delicate thin skin around your eyes. Further, many hand lotions contain ingredients, including fragrance, known to be sensitizing to our skin. So, consider switching to a moisturizer made for your eye area. Look for a product containing actives for the eyes while omitting irritating ingredients.

When you apply your products

  • Dispense a small amount of your product onto your ring finger. Products in airless containers are best.

  • Gently stipple your moisturizer around your eyes. Begin at the lower outer corner, under the eye, and around the inner corner to the eyelid.

  • Avoid rubbing the product into the skin. Simply dab it in a little and let it absorb on its own.

Which Ingredients Work? For What Purpose?

To find the right eye products for your personal needs, you need to understand at least a little about skincare ingredients. First, decide what you want to improve about the skin around your eyes.

Are you battling dark circles? Dullness? Puffiness? Is the skin crepey and fragile looking? Maybe you want to improve the appearance of fine lines and sagging?

What helps with fine lines?

Look for products containing humectants such as hyaluronic acid, squalane, and glycerin. These ingredients condition and draw moisture into your skin. The best products will contain ingredients, such as good pre and pro-biotic complexes, to help reduce trans-epidermal water loss and protect the integrity of the skin’s microbiome,

Make sure your eye care products contain ingredients that will help stimulate collagen production. Contrary to popular belief, neither topical nor ingested collagen accomplishes anti-aging benefits. However, peptides and growth factors are shown to help stimulate collagen production.

Effective products contain such ingredients as Palmitoyl Tripeptide-1 and Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7. Garcinia Indica Seed Butter is a natural extract providing excellent eye care benefits.

You will see an immediate temporary improvement in your skin’s appearance with a good product containing an effective level of actives. Plus, you will experience long-term benefits which show up at around 28-36 days, depending on your existing damage and skin’s rejuvenation cycle, which slows as we age.

How do I get rid of my hyperpigmentation?

Darkening of areas of skin around the eyes is called peri-orbital hyperpigmentation and is usually caused by unprotected exposure to the sun’s UV rays. At the risk of stating the obvious, start by making sure you are protecting your skin from the sun. This means wear sunglasses, but avoid metal-rimmed shades which can trigger melasma by creating concentrated heat on your skin.

Also, make sure you wear a non-chemical broad-spectrum sunscreen, even when you don’t think you need it, meaning wear it every single day! Wear it when the sky is cloudy. Wear it when you will be riding in your car. An excellent moisturizing sunscreen is the best investment in maintaining your age-defying beauty!

For a night eye cream, look for natural or bio-identical lightening and brightening ingredients such as Nymphaea Alba Flower Extract (my favorite), arbutin, vitamin C, Licorice root, or niacinamide (vitamin B-3).

Can I fix my puffy eyes?

Of course, you can fix puffy eyes! In fact, often eye puffiness can easily be remedied with a simple lifestyle change. Practice some extra self-care by getting enough sleep and drinking plenty of water. Avoid excess sodium and fried or processed food to prevent puffiness.

When you need instant results for short-term benefits, chill wet green tea bags or coffee-soaked cotton rounds and place them on closed eyes for at least 10 minutes. Some cosmetic products offer temporary lifting and firming action using such ingredients as Argireline. Massaging the eye area with a small roller, lymph drainage massage, and tapping motions will also provide benefits by increasing circulation and decreasing fluid retention.

What else should I do to help keep my eyes young?

Always makes sure your eye products (and all products) contain anti-oxidants. Anti-oxidants are powerful free-radical scavengers; free radicals in our skin are triggered by such factors as UV rays, smoking, and pollution. Furthermore, anti-oxidants may play a huge part in slowing the aging process by interfering with the oxidative process caused by free-radicals. Some effective antioxidant ingredients are vitamin C, vitamin E, green tea, and vitamin B-3 (niacinamide).

Some popular ingredients should be avoided even though marketing makes using them tempting. Retinoids (prescription-based), retinol (over-the-counter options) and, other vitamin A derivates cause both photosensitivity and thinning of the skin, which accelerates the aging process.

Alpha hydroxy acids, azalaic acid, kojic acid, and popular acids used in skincare should also be avoided. Such ingredients thin and sensitize the skin. These acids also interfere with the health of the delicate ecosystem of the microbiome.

Remember Lifestyle Choices Matter

What we do for our internal systems always shows up in our skin. So, be sure to get plenty of rest – women need an average of 8-9 hours of sleep daily.

Eat a healthy diet that is high in vegetables and lean proteins. Stay away from sugars, simple carbs, and processed foods. Also, make sure your diet is right for you: do you have food sensitivities that affect your skin? Diet can make a huge difference in the health of your skin. And stay hydrated.

Make sure you engage in some sort of regular physical activity. This will increase circulation and lymph flow, and oxygenate your skin. the result is a healthy glow. Sweating helps by removing toxins.

Do I need to say this? For goodness sake, quit smoking! Just do it; smoking ages you!

Smoking strangles your skin, suffocating the oxygen out of it, and leaving toxins behind to clog and age your skin. Smoking impairs blood flow and damages collagen and elastin, necessary fibers for supple skin.

In short

It’s easy to show some love to the skin around your eyes. Seriously, since no reason not to care for your peepers, just jump in and begin doing it today. Never sleep in your eye makeup again. Apply moisture, actives and sun protection daily. Eliminate environmental and lifestyle factors such as alcohol, cigarettes, lack of sleep. You will love what you see in the mirror once you make the improvements.

Below are a few of my favorite eye care products:

  • Dual Phase Eye Makeup Remover by TruAura Gently dissolve and remove mascara and eye makeup while hydrating and soothing the skin with this dual-phase, non-drying makeup formula. This mild eye makeup remover is formulated to be safe for sensitive skin on and around the eye area. OPHTHALMOLOGIST TESTED; SAFE FOR CONTACT LENS WEARERS

KEY INGREDIENTS

  • Inulin, Yogurt Powder – Combines the skin benefits of yogurt with the prebiotic activity of Inulin, a vegetable fructose polysaccharide derived from chicory.

  • Lipid Complex – Jojoba Oil/Macadamia Seed Oil Esters, Squalene, Phytosteryl Macadamiate, Phytosterols and Tocopherol – A patented lipid complex, carefully engineered from botanically sourced lipids designed to help restore the skin’s lipid barrier.

  • Peony Root Extract – Obtained from the peony flower, this unique extract from the root of the plant optimizes cellular energy production and detoxification, making skin cells more resilient to damage.

  • Essential Fatty Acids – Linoleic and Linolenic acids, derived from Safflower oil, help restore the skin’s lipid barrier to effectively minimize dry skin conditions.

 

  • Advance Repair Eye Treatment by TruAura This multi-functional eye cream provides targeted benefits to help restore hydration, reduce the appearance of lines and wrinkles and diminish the appearance of dark under-eye circles.

KEY INGREDIENTS:

  • Probiotic Complex – A blend of Lactobacillus Ferment Lysate and Radish Root Ferment Filtrate that helps to balance the skin’s immune system and inhibit the growth of some pathogens. It aids in recovery of the skin barrier, improves moisturization, helps reduce skin redness and regulates oil production.
    Palmitoyl Tripeptide-1 and Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7 – A multi-functional peptide designed to visibly reduce fine lines and wrinkles around the eyes while quickly and visibly reducing the appearance of dark under-eye circles.

  • Nymphaea Alba Flower Extract – Derived from the water lily flower, this highly effective ingredient works to soothe the skin, helping to reduce stress and inflammation while helping to decrease dark circles caused by hyperpigmentation.

  • Natural Butters – Shea, Mango Seed and Kokum Butters both hydrate and condition the skin.

 

  • Renew Lift Instant Wrinkle Eraser by Derm.One A topical formulation designed to visibly redefine, smooth and lift facial contours, within minutes. This luxurious serum combines a powerful cocktail of botanical extracts, a skin-lightening and tightening complex, minerals—and the revolutionary anti-aging peptide Argireline®, to deliver dramatic age-defying results. Use a tapping method when applying to activate, results last for hours, 

KEY INGREDIENTS:

 

  • Ageless Age Repair – A targeted complex based on natural, clinically proven botanical actives that address fine lines, puffy eyes, dry skin and dark circles to revitalize the eye area.

    • Sodium Hyaluronate – humectant that attracts and binds water to the skin

    • Aloe Vera – certified organic – anti-inflammatory that soothes and balances

    • Glycerin, organic – from karanja nut oil provide dual-ended benefits of nourishment and hydration. 

Until next time…

Beautiful blessings,

~Heather K. Master Esthetician and Image Consultant

  

 

Tagged:

You Might Also Like