The 4 best ways to remove dark circles and under-eye bags.

I hate it when people say, “You look tired!”. I’m not really tired you know. It’s just my eyes. They are that way. They ‘pretend’ to be tired. After listening to this phrase a bit too often, I decided there’s definitely something I can do to make people stop. Here’s how I did it once and for all.

1. Know your enemies.

The skin around our eyes is the thinnest and the most transparent. So you can literally see veins and blood pooling under it, that leaves you with a bluish tinge, better known as dark circles. Also, because it’s so fragile, it’s the area that stores the most fluid leading to those detested puffy eyes.

2. Fight dark circles.

Your allies are Retinol or Vitamin C. Use an eye cream that contains either of these two ingredients. What they do is increase collagen production, making the skin around the eyes thicker and firmer. In other words, less transparent skin means less panda eyes. Yay!

3. Banish puffy eyes.

If you get a swelling anywhere on your body, you normally do two things: cold compress and anti-inflammatory medicines. The same trick actually also works for your eyes. In the morning, apply a cold compress such as frozen tea bags, chilled spoons, ice-cold rose water soaked cotton pads or cucumber slices for about 5 minutes to constrict the blood vessels. Then follow up with an eye-cream that contains soothing and anti-inflammatory qualities like caffeine. At night, prop up your head on two pillows when you go to sleep. Gravity is your friend when it comes to fluid retention. Sleeping on an extra pillow will prevent the dreaded water retention. So no puffy fish eyes.

4. Prevent them from returning.

Apply eye-cream VERY gently. Take a tiny amount on your ring finger. Then rub together with your other ring finger to warm the product. Now gently pat on your under-eye area as well as below the brow till completely absorbed. Never pull or tug. This leads to premature aging – something you’re actually trying to avoid. Always pat on your eye cream before your moisturizer. By topping your eye cream with lotion, you actually seal in all its active ingredients.

Load up on H2O. If you know you’ll be drinking alcohol or eating salty foods, be sure to drink lots of water. You’ll be less likely to puff out the next morning.

Reduce the swelling immediately. Soak a soft washcloth in cold chamomile tea to reduce the puffiness instantly as chamomile has anti-inflammatory properties. Another trick is chilled rose water. Soak cotton pads with it and place over your eyes for 5 minutes. It’s the best remedy to soothe tired and fatigued eyes.