I was reading Kahani’s thoughts on how she successfully used a peach coloured concealer to conceal her undereye circles and it got me thinking. Peach concealer? Then I remembered myself saying that a peachy-orange eyeshadow colour made me look more awake though I couldn’t quite put my finger on why.
So, looking online for inspiration as to why this could be so, I came across articles that said that basically, it comes down to the colour wheel. If you have ever been in art class, you should be able to relate to this wheel. Colours opposite each other on the colour wheel complement each other and even help to neutralize each other. (source)
So, when choosing concealers to hide dark undereye circles (not bags – you can’t ever totally hide bags) first, take a good long look at the shade of the circles on your undereye area then use this little guide:-
- Purple tones – use a yellow toned concealer
- Blue tones – use a peach or salmon toned concealer
- Gray tones – use a pink toned concealer
Sure, we have all been led to think that concealers are supposed to be yellow but clearly, all is not equal in this world and thus, different people have different needs. Since I discovered this, I have been peering at my own dark circles wondering what tone they fall under.
To be honest, its so hard to tell. Purple, blue and grey are all mixed up! Thus far, I have been using a yellow toned concealer in the Make Up For Ever lift concealer. However, when I thought about how wonderfully L’oreal Touche Magique worked for me (discontinued here in Malaysia), I remember that it had very slight peachy tones mixed into the colour. It wasn’t as yellow as I thought. Kahani might have hit the nail right on the head – I might actually need a concealer with peach-yellow tones!
Now, I wonder where I can find that!
I’m using a concealer with peachy/orange tones and it’s from Missha. Very effective too! You can check that out 🙂 Shu Uemura has peachy concealers as well but kinda pricey and not as smooth as I wanted it to be.
Another tip would be to apply a layer of orange LIPSTICK on the under eye before you use a skin-toned concealer.
hope that helps!
I’m not sure but NYX do have peachy yellow concealer too…I’ve been using just plain yellow tone concealer in the past and it just magnify my circles! LOL So this is a great post and I like it that you continued and confirmed Kahani’s post 🙂
Hmmm I should try a pink concealer then! I have yellow and peachy ones but neither seem to really neutralize my circles properly…they just lighten the area a bit with the discolouration still showing through.
I use a salmon/peach-toned concealer under the eyes as the dark bits seems to be a weird hue of purply-blue, and it works for me 🙂
Thank you for this tip! I will wait for tomorrow when there is better lighting so I can examine to see what color my dark circles really are!
Ooh thanks for the mention, babe! If you’re in doubt, do what I did, swipe yellow under one eye and peach under the other, blend and eyeball your reflection. ; )
@Connie : Ah I shall have to find a Missha and check it out. I don’t quite like Shu Uemura – found it a tad too thick. And lipstick is something I didn’t think about. Wonder if it’ll be too oily for everyday?
@Nikki: Thanks. Yes I did see NYX’s concealer but its hard to buy online without seeing it in person. Maybe when I check it out in Singapore.
@blue: I never thought about pink either, but it might just do the trick if the others don’t. Maybe a mix?
@Tine : That’s great! What brand do you use?
@giddy tigress: Good luck! I still can’t quite put my finger on mine LOL…
@Kahani: Yes I think I’ll do that once I find a peach coloured concealer – I think The Body Shop one is slightly peachy. Might do the trick
I only have yellow-toned concealers for under eyes but I’m still not very satisfied with the result. I have Bobbi Brown creamy concealer and MAC Studio Finish SPF35. The MAC one is perfect for concealing spots.
I’m going to check out L’oreal Touche Magique. I’ve never bought anything from L’oreal before… hopefully I can find this product.
maybe you could look for a matte lipstick? you only need very little as a corrector 🙂 You know how MUFE has those color corrector palettes? they have a palette with a really freaky orange even when applied it looked tangy. But after layering the concealer over, it looked fab! so, I suppose it’s the same concept with the lipstick.
Ah… now I understand why my dark eye circles still come through even after concealer… it doesn’t color-correct enough to hide…
@connie : The Misscha concealer you use works? Where can I find Misscha? Would like to go check it out…
@Amanda : The L’oreal one is discontinued here – boo! I loved it. Perhaps you need peach too.
@Connie: I’ll give it a shot. Thanks!
@rinnah: They lied! Yellow concealer isn’t for everyone! LOL…I think there’s a Missha at Ikano near Ace Hardware.
Yes, I have read it in a magazine before that teaches us to use lipstick to conceal dark eye circles. I guess this is due to the theory you mentioned in your post above! I tried using pink blush on my dark circles after reading the magazine and it conceals quite well compared to my yellow concealer!
I’ve used MAC moisture select NC35 (the darkness shows through), Everyday minerals Sunlight concealer (too pale and the darkness still comes through), YSL TE #3 peachy colour (hides darkness somewhat, but I’m just not 100% satisfied). And then I read your article suggesting a pink based product for my “grey” toned undereye – what a revelation! I don’t suppose anyone can recommend a pink based product I can try?
PS/ Keep up the good work, this is one of my fav blogs!
@Kei : Thanks for your kind words, Kei. I’m not certain about a pink concealer – perhaps a reader could help out here?
Kei, actually I can help you 😛 Annu Sui came out with their latest colour primer which 1 of it comes in pink!!! Lucky you 🙂 It’s suppose to brighten up complexion and make you look refreshed. Go check it out. If you live nearby Subang Parade pls do drop by at Parkson’s Anna Sui and look for Mira. She’s so friendly and nice and I’ve been purchasing from her since 4 yrs ago when Anna Sui came to Parkson. Tell her my nick 😛 Go go go test it~!
Though… I still can’t find the right concealer for myself. Actually my dark circles, you can say that I’ve been born with it. It’s getting darker even I’ve had enough sleep. I still cannot determine the color T_T~ I’ve tried green, yellow, skin tone dark medium bright, I think I should give up… Still I yet to try the Benefit Eye Bright!!!
Oh~! Kei!!! Kei!!! Don’t forget to try Benefit’s Eye Bright~! Phew~~
any suggestions on peach/salmon concealers that we can get in malaysia? i heard bobbi brown corrector is quite good, but you’ll have to get the concealer to go with it, otherwise the peach is too obvious..
I understand the dark circles dilemma..ive tried them all. The best so far are everydayminerals.com-Peach corrector/Abbots perk me up(peachy concealers-mineral), Amazingcosmetics.com-pricey salmony creamy concealers, Silknaturals.com-mineral peachy and yellow correctors, and LAminerals.com their correctors r peachy too. Spray on a finishing spray aftr minerals n youll look alive n awake..hehe.
hmm i use yellow concealer doesn’t do much gonna try peach/salmon color one lol hope it works