Concealer often appears tidy and compact in the tube, soft and spreadable on the back of your hand, then dense and thick when applied under the eyes. The under-eye zone is tiny, mobile, and usually has more surface texture than is immediately evident from a few feet away. When you apply too much concealer in this zone, the product tends to settle into lines, can dry out under powder, or can make your face look thicker in this area than it does in the rest of your base makeup.
You can start by trying a new concealer concept: Don’t treat it as something that must cover the whole under-eye. Instead, look carefully at where the darkness or uneven skin tone is actually located. In most people, this area is deeper close to the inner corner, under the hollow of the eye or close to the bridge of the nose. If the concealer has a wide triangle shape starting from the inner corner and sweeping all the way to the outer cheek, you’re actually covering places that probably don’t need coverage and, therefore, are adding extra thickness.
Instead, place a single spot of concealer in this darkest area, then stop. Tap the product with your finger, small makeup brush, or tip of a makeup sponge. The action should be a pressing and softening motion, not a dragging one. Dragging moves the product too far, possibly leaving the spot where you needed the most coverage, virtually invisible. Tapping helps you keep more of the coverage where the discoloration exists, while fading the edges out so that they disappear into the foundation.
To get the hang of this, practice under only one eye. Finish your foundation (or skin tint) as you normally would, add a very small amount of concealer to just one eye, and leave the other eye without it. Look at your reflection from your normal viewing distance (step back from the mirror after blending). Remember, the objective isn’t to cover every shadow. It’s to make the under-eye area a bit more rested while blending with the same coverage of the skin tint in the rest of the face. If one side of your under-eye looks a bit brighter but a bit heavier, you’re likely using too much product.
Though powder is what keeps concealer secure, powder application can also emphasize overapplication. When you apply powder, it’s best to use less than you think you need. Tap the brush or puff to remove the excess, and press the powder lightly only where you notice the concealer is either creasing or is sticky. If you sweep your powder back and forth, you risk moving the concealer and creating patchiness. Light pressing will keep your layer a bit more thin and uniform.
Be careful to keep the outer corner of the eye in mind, as too much product applied too close to your bottom lashes or too much product on your cheek area can make your eyes look dry, especially when applying mascara and eyeliners later in your routine. Focus coverage only in the deepest areas of discoloration, while blending the edge with almost no additional product. A clean edge is more important than a large bright triangle.
Eventually, you may find that the concealer that worked best in your practice was actually much less product than you expected. The concealer under the eye should softly blend with your foundation, blush, and powder, rather than looking like a light island all its own. At the end, check the look of your face in natural light and ask yourself just one question: Is the shadow softer with concealer but not the first thing that draws your attention to your face? If the answer to that question is yes, then your concealer placement is likely moving in the right direction.