Bags under your eyes can make you look old and tired. Some bags are genetically determined, and surgery is the only way to make them disappear for good. But if your bags come and go, especially when you have had a few too many late nights or a little too much to drink, you can make them disappear by changing your habits and employing a few savvy beauty tricks. If your bags seem to be worst at certain times of year, like in the spring or fall, ask your doctor to test you for allergies--taking an antihistamine may be all you need to de-bag your eyes.
Step 1
Put two metal spoons in the refrigerator until they're cold, then press them gently over your eyes to reduce bags, recommends Kate Somerville, celebrity aesthetician in Los Angeles, in Cosmopolitan magazine.
Step 2
Soak a cotton ball in witch hazel and apply the wet cotton ball to bags to tighten them up, recommends makeup artist Shalini Vadhera in Cosmopolitan magazine.
Step 3
Use an eye cream that contains caffeine--it speeds up circulation and tightens bags. Use your fingers to gently press on the bones around your eyes as you apply the cream to drain excess fluid around your eyes and reduce bags even more, says Jody A. Levine, M.D., a New York City-based dermatologist, in Good Housekeeping magazine.
Step 4
Drink plenty of water and limit your alcohol consumption to one drink a night, since dehydration can cause under-eye bags.
Step 5
Sleep on your back with your head slightly elevated to encourage fluids to drain during the night, recommends Elle magazine. That way, fluids won't pool around your eyes, creating bags there.
Tips and Warnings
- If you don't have chilled spoons or witch hazel, you can substitute any cold compress, like chilled tea bags, cucumber slices, gel eye masks or even a bag of frozen peas. To draw attention away from bags, emphasize your upper lid, recommends New York City-based makeup artist Dara Klein in Cosmopolitan magazine. Apply liner generously to your upper lid, and brush on several coats of lash-lengthening mascara.
Things You'll Need
- Spoon
- Cotton ball
- Witch hazel
- Eye cream with caffeine
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