Understanding how to apply eye cream can freshen and revitalize your looks. Do you know how to choose the best one? Here's the low-down on all things eye cream.
Eye cream is a staple skincare necessity. The skin around the eye area is thin, gentle and delicate, so it shows signs of aging and dehydration quicker than any other part of the body. It’s important to take special care of this tender area with an eye cream that keeps your skin feeling fresh, radiant, and full.
Ordinary moisturizers can be rough or abrasive around the fragile eye area, so eye creams are tailored to repair skin without damaging or irritating the skin.
Eye serums and creams are specialized to target and treat frustrating conditions around the eyes, like fine lines, wrinkles or “crow's feet”, dark circles, and puffiness.
More so than the rest of your skin, the skin around your eyes needs consistent TLC for it to maintain its natural youth and hydration.
Although skin types vary, everyone should consider eye cream to preserve the tight firmness of the skin. But which is the best eye cream for you? Which ingredients should you look for in your eye care products? When should you use eye cream? We’re here to give you the low-down on all things eye cream.
Anyone with tired, sagging, or less-than-firm skin is likely on the hunt for a healing treatment that brightens and refreshes the face. With the hustle and bustle of our daily lives and environmental factors constantly aging our skin, we can all benefit from an extra skin boost.
If you want to experience your best quality of skin, you have to nourish it properly. Products that work to moisturize and heal your entire body won’t deliver the same effects that a specialized eye cream will.
Eye creams benefit your skin as they:
Consider how to apply eye cream, when to apply eye cream, and which ingredients to look for in your eye cream for the best possible results.
Understanding how to apply eye cream correctly can support you in reaping the full benefits of proper, thorough skincare with specialized ingredients. When determining how to apply eye cream, a good principle to live by is applying your skincare products from lightest to heaviest.
Your eye cream or serum is typically the lightest product in your skincare lineup, so apply that first, and work your way up to the product with the heaviest consistency—which is usually a moisturizer. This way, the lightweight products will target skincare concerns directly, and the heavyweight products will penetrate through, reaching the deepest layers of the skin, while providing a protective barrier between the skin and the environment.
Steps for optimal eye cream application:
The best eye product for you is one that compliments your skin type without fighting your skin’s natural texture and consistency. Serums and creams have different purposes and benefits for the skin. These treatments address specific concerns around the eye area to deliver an intentional, potent treatment.
An eye serum is a treatment with powerful ingredients that you apply directly to the eye area. Serums include concentrated, active ingredients and nutrients that penetrate deep through the top layers of the skin for a vigorous effect.
Serums are comprised of smaller molecules that the skin easily absorbs, so these should be applied directly to the eye area, before a moisturizer or sunscreen. Eye serums target conditions that contribute to the appearance of tired skin, like eye bags, drooping skin, and dark circles.
A topical vitamin C serum may be used around the eyes to reduce the appearance of dark spots, uneven skin tone, and wrinkles in this area. Vitamin C is a dynamic, but gentle, antioxidant that fights free radicals and reverses the effects of aging and harmful environmental factors on the skin.
Eye creams are made of a thicker consistency than serums. These treatments include large molecules that act as a protective barrier on the skin. Some eye creams are lighter in weight and intended to be absorbed by the skin, while others are intended to coat the skin with minimal absorption.
Eye creams are typically used to hydrate the skin, and they target fine lines and wrinkles. A natural eye lift cream can diminish crow's feet, puffiness, and dark circles around the eyes, while improving the natural eye support structure and glow.
Repairing skin from sun damage, tightening skin, reducing puffiness, and filling fine lines and wrinkles are all concerns that need to be addressed, no matter our skin type. Before deciding on your next eye care product, look out for the following ingredients.
Hyaluronic Acid
Hyaluronic acid is deemed a key ingredient for reversing the signs of aging. As the skin ages, it doesn’t retain as much moisture and becomes susceptible to dehydration, especially without a proper skincare routine in place.
The gentle eye area is one of the first places to show aging and dehydration in the skin, so it can be considerably beneficial to lock moisture directly in the eye area. Hyaluronic acid is a humectant, meaning it’s a substance that attracts, retains, and preserves water. One molecule of hyaluronic acid can hold 1,000 times its weight in moisture.Applying this powerful ingredient around the eyes can reduce collagen breakdown, as a result of dehydration and aging, in this area.
Hyaluronic acid, specifically a hydrating hyaluronic acid serum helps the delicate skin around the eye area to retain tons of water and moisture, combatting the undesirable conditions associated with dehydrated skin. Look for hyaluronic acid in your eye cream products if you’re seeking a solution to reduce fine lines and wrinkles for a radiant and firm under-eye area.
Retinol
Retinol is another magic, anti-aging ingredient you should include in your nightly routine. This ingredient aids the skin in its cellular turnover process, which rids dead skin cells to reveal the fresh, firm layers of skin beneath. (This cellular turnover process also helps to reduce acne as it prevents clogged pores during the cell regeneration process.)
If you struggle with dark circles or bags around the eyes, retinol should be at the top of your skincare list. These conditions become more apparent around the eye area as we age and elastin in our skin naturally degenerates. Elastosis, the process by which we lose skin elasticity, is one reason why our skin starts to develop dark spots, liver spots, age spots, and discoloration.
Retinol stimulates collagen production in the skin, which counteracts the thinning of the epidermis to combat these undesirable conditions. Because retinol is considerably potent and the skin around the eyes is fragile, it’s important that you use a smaller amount around the eyes than you would on the rest of your face. The under-eye skin is quick to absorb products and ingredients, so you don’t want to irritate the skin with a powerful retinol serum.
Here’s how you can use a retinol booster around the eyes to reduce the appearance of crow's feet and wrinkles:
When it comes to retinol on delicate areas of the skin, less is more. Don’t overdo it, or you could damage the skin, leaving it flaky, red, and irritated. Apply small amounts of retinol serum to the eye area, and avoid getting too close to the eyes.
No matter your skin type, knowing how to apply eye cream in the morning and at night can aid your skin in healing from the effects of sun damage, environmental toxins, and natural aging.
Include sunscreen in your eye care regimen to preserve the firm-yet-thin skin in the eye area and to lessen sun damage that leads to wrinkles, fine lines, and crow’s feet in this area.
Choosing the right skincare products, especially the best eye cream, can make all the difference. Listen to your skin and observe how it reacts to specific ingredients and consistencies.
If you take care of your skin, your skin will take care of you.
