Color Correcting 101: How To Cover Dark Circles

Aaaaand we’re back with another edition of Color Correcting 101! A couple of weeks ago, I taught you how to color correct redness, and today I am teaching you how to cover dark circles (the bane of my existence). If you have read my blog basically ever, you’ll know that I have pretty bad dark circles, as I complain about them on a regular basis, haha.

I have tried basically every concealer under the sun in an effort to find that one miracle product that will cover up my very purpley-blue dark under eye circles, and I’m here to report that that one miracle product does not exist. However, don’t let your hopes and dreams be crushed just yet, because I have found a few pretty miraculous product combos that DO work to cover my dark circles, even on their darkest days!

Here’s what you’ll need to get to tackling those dark circles:

• a color corrector for dark circles (something in a dark salmon, peach or papaya shade)
• a high coverage concealer
• your favorite foundation
• a concealer brush
• a Beauty Blender

I’ll go into more detail about each of these below, so don’t worry if you aren’t already sure what specific products will work best for you!

There are quite a few new color correctors that have come out on the market lately, and I’ve been trying as many as I possibly can in an effort to be able to recommend the best of the best for this Color Correcting 101 series. Here are my top picks for covering dark circles:

• Urban Decay Naked Skin Color Correcting Fluid in Peach (for all skin tones)
• BECCA Backlight Targeted Colour Corrector in Peach (for fair to medium skin tones)
• BECCA Backlight Targeted Colour Corrector in Papaya (for tan to deep bronze skin tones, or for those with extremely dark circles)
• Marc Jacobs Beauty Cover(t) Stick Color Corrector in Bright Now (for fair skin tones or those with minor dark circles)
• Tarte Rainforest of the Sea Wipeout Color-Correcting Palette (better suited to lighter skin tones)

It doesn’t matter what foundation you’re using, as long as it has enough coverage to not let the corrector show through. Anything medium to full coverage will be just fine! Some of my favorite foundations lately are:

• BECCA Aqua Luminous Perfecting Foundation (this starts off as lighter coverage, but is buildable)
• Tarte Rainforest of the Sea Water Foundation (see my full review here)
• NARS Velvet Matte Skin Tint (see my full review here)

As far as concealers go, I think I’ve pretty much tried them all at this point (not even an exaggeration, I have bought SO. MANY. on my quest to find the perfect one)! The three I’ve been reaching for most often lately are:

• Tarte Rainforest of the Sea Aquacealer Concealer
• Urban Decay Naked Skin Weightless Complete Coverage Concealer (holy grail)
• MAKE UP FOR EVER Ultra HD Concealer

My tools of choice:

• Sephora Collection PRO Stippling Concealer Brush
• Sephora Collection PRO Flat Concealer Brush
• a Beauty Blender

I like to use the stippling concealer brush for the more liquidy correctors, like the Urban Decay correctors, and the flat concealer brush for creamier products like BECCA correctors, but that’s just my personal preference.

I totally forgot to take a barefaced before picture when I was taking corrector demo photos for this post, but I figured this picture was a decent example of what we’re working with in terms of my dark circles. The below photo is me with a full face of makeup- medium coverage foundation AND high coverage concealer- and my dark circles are still showing through quite a lot.

For this demo, I used the Urban Decay Naked Skin Color Correcting Fluid in Peach. This is my favorite of all the correctors I’ve tried for dark circles thus far. I love that it’s super pigmented and blends out well without blending away, if that makes sense. Basically, if your correct blends away, then you have none of the color left to correct whatever it is you want to correct. I also prefer the more liquidy consistency over a cream based product, as I have fine lines under my eyes and I find this less likely to crease.

So, I assume at this point you just want to know how to cover dark circles, right? It’s honestly super easy, as long as you have the right products.

1. Start by moisturizing your under eye area with your usual eye cream, especially if you are prone to under eye dryness. We’re about to apply a few layers of product under the eyes and any dryness is going to show if it’s not taken care of in advance!
2. After you’ve let your eye cream sink in for a bit (I like to apply it at least ten minutes before I do my makeup), apply a small amount of your corrector directly to the dark area (. There is no need to plaster this all over your under eyes if it’s just one small area that is dark. The less product you can put on while still getting the coverage you need, the better.
3. Using your concealer brush, gently spread the product around the whole area that needs correcting. You want this to look a bit blended out, like the photo on the left up above, but you don’t want to lose the pigmentation. At this point, you shouldn’t really see any of the darkness showing through, but you also shouldn’t have a thick layer of corrector on.
4. Apply your foundation as usual, making sure to go over the edges of the area you just corrected. You don’t need to fully cover the under eye with your foundation (unless you like to), as this will add unnecessary layers of product that are likely to crease or cake. I like to use a damp Beauty Blender and just go along the edges of where I’ve corrected.
5. Apply your under eye concealer as usual, and very gently blend out with your damp Beauty Blender. You’ll want to do extremely light bouncing/patting motions with your Beauty Blender, rather than swiping motions, as this will make sure you don’t move any of the product you’ve so carefully placed.
6. Finish with a super finely milled setting powder (the only one I use is the Laura Mercier Translucent Loose Setting Powder) so that your under eye area doesn’t crease, cake up or move during the day.

And you’re done! This may take a few practice runs to get the hang of how much product to use and where, but remember that less is more when it comes to your corrector. You want enough on there that it’s cancelling out the darkness, but not so much that your under eyes look orange and thick with product when you’re done.

Have you mastered color correcting yet? Let me know if there is any specific type of color correcting post you’d like to see next!