Neutralizers: Heavy Artillery for Dark Circles
Often, simple foundation or concealer alone is not enough. If your dark circles are so, so, dark and the discoloration starts showing through during the day, you may need “The heavy artillery”, a color neutralizer.
Neutralizers are pale color tints, like yellow, peach, rose, lavender or peachy orange. They are not natural skin shades, and are available in cream, liquid, or pencil forms. Essentially, neutralizers work along with your skin toned foundation or concealer.
Under eye circles can show up due to lack of sleep, stress, smoking, bad circulation, hormonal changes, poor nutrition, allergies or sinus problems. Sometimes deep set eyes or skin with blood vessels very close to the surface may look shadowy.
The Key to Successful Camouflage is Color.
The biggest challenge is concealing those little rascals without looking racoony, or worse than when you started.
Trick the eye with these optical illusions.
Working with Neutralizers
There are two ways to work with neutralizers:
- Apply a color neutralizer first, under your foundation.
- Or, mix a dab of neutralizer into your foundation, moisturizer or primer.
Don’t worry about perfection the first time, practice makes perfect – and after all, makeup does wash off. See the table below for neutralizer guidelines.
Peachy Orange
Cancels greyish, brownish, or bluish discolorations. Best for medium to dark toned skin.
Yellow Beige
Cancels red, bluish or purple discolorations. Best for lighter toned skin.
Peachy Beige
Cancels and brightens dull skin with yellow undertones. Best for light to medium toned skin.
Golden Beige
Cancels darker reddish, bluish or purple discolorations. Best for medium to dark toned skin.
Lavender
Cancels and brightens red allergy eyes or very dark circles. Best for very fair toned skin.
Aqua Green
Cancels reddish discolorations. Best for lighter toned skin.