Skincare can get pretty complex. There are a lot of products, a lot of rules for application, and a lot of different theories behind what works and why. It can get a little confusing, and easy to ask the question “what does it matter, anyway?”. There are some key rules that you should always, always follow, such as: keep your face clean, always stay moisturized, and don’t sleep with makeup on. Those are pretty essential, basic and the cornerstone to good skin care. But when it comes to the skin around your eyes, things can get a little more intimate. The most looked at the skin on your face is the skin around your eyes, because people make eye contact when they see you and when they have conversations with you.
When it comes to our skin, we only get one chance to take care of it, and the skin around our eyes certainly deserves some special treatment, because the skin around your eyes is different than the skin on the rest of your face and decollete. The skin is much more sensitive, and it doesn’t have a lot of oil glands there to help keep it hydrated. In fact, it is the thinnest skin on your body. You really should baby it, because it is nearly as delicate as baby skin. The skin under your eyes is affected by the constant blinking we do, the wiping of tired eyes, and the harsh rubbing off of eye makeup, and even worse attention for those of us affected by seasonal allergies. It is usually the first place we age and develop wrinkles, the first place we show tiredness, sagging skin, and aging. It is crucial if you want to age gracefully to take good care of the skin around your eyes, once you start to break down the collagen in this area or damage it with lack of care, it can be really hard to gain it back.
- Moisturizer vs. Eye Cream
With all of this attack against our under eyes, it certainly deserves some pampering and care to make up for the toll it takes. Eye cream usually comes in a smaller package and is more expensive so it can be tempting to skip this step and just use your standard moisturizer. However, the saying that you get what you pay for really applies here. Good eye cream uses a concentrated amount of oils and ingredients such as vitamin C, rose, and caffeine that are ultra-moisturizing, lifting and firming for this under eye area. Retinol is effective for acne prevention in the face and is found in many moisturizers, but is one ingredient that the more sensitive places on your skin should not have as much of such as the under eye area. Other irritants such as fragrance are also usually lower in eye creams so as not to irritate this delicate skin. Eye creams usually contain peptides which help with collagen production, something desperately needed for anti-aging.
2. Large sunglasses
Keeping the area around your eyes protected from the sun is a great way to keep them from premature aging. Whenever you are exposed to sunlight, grab some large shades that wrap around your eyes. This will help prevent crows feet, dryness and wrinkles.
3. Gentle Makeup Remover
The area around our eyes is sensitive to the touch, and excessive touching can cause stress and premature aging. Wiping our eyes every day, sometimes twice a day to get eye makeup off our eyes is not a good practice. Break this habit by using a soft tissue and coconut oil, rubbing away at your mascara gently until it’s all gone. Avoid waterproof mascara unless needed, as this stubborn mascara usually requires some more elbow grease to get it off your eyes. Another trick is to avoid harsh eyeliner underneath your eyes, as this usually requires a lot of maintenance throughout the day to wipe smudges.
4. No-touch Zone
When we are stressed, tired or have burning eyes, it can be tempting to rub, rub, rub and make them feel better. This really does a number on your eyes and the skin around your eyes. Try to spend less time staring at screens which causes extreme stress and tiredness to your eyes. If you have to be on the computer for work, wear tinted glasses, or make it a habit to look away from the screen every 30 seconds for 30 seconds. This will help reduce the stress on your eyes and prevent the need to rub them incessantly. If you have some itching or dry eyes, try blinking 30 times in a row quickly instead of rubbing. This quick blinking helps reproduce the oils needed to flush our dry eyes and restore them to normal. If this doesn’t work, try to keep your eyes closed for a few minutes. If you must rub your eyes, do so gently and as little as possible. Especially be sure to keep your fingers clean when touching this area.
What do you think?