Is anyone else waking up with really puffy eyes at the moment? To look at me this morning you’d think I’d spent the night weeping, when the fact is I had a rare seven-hour kip. So what’s that all about?
In a word (or two) – central heating. It may be the friend of your freezing toes, but it is the enemy of your skin. And let’s be honest, Shiraz doesn’t help. Or watching Breaking Bad till 1am… but let’s blame the boiler. Here are my top five eye bag busters – by 8am no-one will ever know.
First up is this sublime new offering from Origins, called No Puffery (£18.90). I keep it in the fridge door for extra coolness, and rolling it around my eyes has become the first thing I do – even before I put the kettle on, which says a lot. It contains yeast extract and Hoelen mushroom, which help to de-puff and calm. This will change how you feel about the morning. Fact.
Thalgo Collagen Eye Roll-On (£29.50) uses the same rollerball style but with three mini balls, to really up the massage element. I use this once I’ve cleansed, as it contains not only de-puffers like caffeine, it also boasts collagen to work longer-term on fine lines.
Some mornings, I like the feel of a gel I can massage in myself, so I keep BF Aromatherapy Awake Firming Eye Gel (£7) in the fridge door too. I love the cute little tin, the purse-friendly price tag and the combination of cucumber and aloe, which soothe and cool almost instantly.
After a night out, another reason for morning puffiness can be the slapdash removal of makeup the night before. This is when I call on Liz Earle Eyebright Soothing Eye Lotion (£10.75), which wakes up your eyes, removes any last bits of mascara and brightens. You can use it as a mask, on two cotton pads – or if you’re in a hurry, just go with a quick wipe over before a roll-on or gel.
Finally, Eye Know from Mama Mio (£27.50), which is one hard-working little serum. It’s full of peptides to firm up and bust bags. And because you apply it in circles around your eyes, it seems to have an instant ‘draining’ effect. It also comes with some facial exercises that don’t just amuse the children, they make you look more wide awake. Genius.
Have you looked at the Bobbi Brown Christmas Collection yet?