We’ve all had those days when after a night out (or, in my case, night in, losing friends over Monopoly), you wake up looking haggard AF. Puffy, dark undereye bags, you get the gist. Like I’m talking witch from the Snow White cartoon. Obviously skincare is all about diligence, but let’s be real, a situation like this NEEDS a quick fix. No one wants to go out looking like it’s Halloween in the middle of May.
As it so happens, skincare line founders have obviously been on the same boat, which is why they created eye masks: your one stop shop to de-puffed undereyes. Like no one will ever need to know wtf you did the night before with the right product.
So undereyes are one of the most neglected areas on our body. They also age the fastest. The skin is really thin there, so extra TLC is necessary. A good eye cream is an absolute must on a day-to-day basis, but masks are also so important. We use masks for our face, why not extend that over to our undereye area?
I’ve tested a whole lot of undereye masks, so I wanted to share my faves for an emergency situation. And let’s be real, even if you have no real emergency, an undereye mask never hurts. Hot tip: leave your eye mask in the fridge. The coolness INSTANTLY de-puffs and feels so refreshing.
I can almost bet that you’ve seen a picture of someone on Instagram, wearing these gold undereye masks from Wander Beauty. But the thing is, this product isn’t just pretty, it’s actually super effective. I just interviewed Lindsay Ellingson, the Co-Founder of Wander Beauty for my podcast, and she told me that not only are the ingredients within the mask amazing for you, but the gold foil heats up the under eye region in order for the product to penetrate deeper. One of the key ingredients in the mask is Hyaluronic Acid, which we all love. It hydrates, diminishes the look of fine lines, and seriously de-puffs. Oh and it’s a clean beauty line, which is always a plus!
Elemis Pro-Collagen Hydra Gel Eye Mask
These guys were my first foray into the world of eye masks, and let me tell you, they’ve been a mainstay ever since. In general, I’m a big fan of Elemis products, they’re incredibly effective, and are known to use high-quality ingredients.
The Pro-Collagen eye masks basically act like an Instagram filter for your under-eyes. You’ll notice tighter, smoother and more hydrated skin after taking them off. K so let’s talk ingredients, yes? First and foremost, hylauronic acid, the fountain of youth. Other ingredients include chlorella, which is an algae which helps firm and restructure skin; and Padina Pavonica, another kind of algae with proven anti-aging benefits.
Shiseido Benefiance WrinkleResist24 Pure Retinol Smoothing Eye Mask
Listen, don’t take my word for it, look at the 40,000 ‘loves’ and an average of 4.5 stars the Shiseido eye mask has on Sephora. Like that’s pretty major. So what makes this eye mask special is the inclusion of retinol, which increases cell turnover, reducing the look of fine lines (ahem, crows feet). It also contains hyaluronic acid and chlorella, amongst many more superstar ingredients. The final effect is brighter, tighter and plump skin. Who doesn’t want that?
I hope you guys love these recommendations. One more tip I have for you is to jade roll your undereyes while you have your mask on. It’ll help depuff even quicker, and a little lymphatic drainage never hurt anyone.
PS – check out if this cult favourite toner is worth the hype and 4 face mists I’m loving.