How To Reduce The Appearance of Dark Circles

I’m a fairly confident person, but I’ve always been self-conscious about my under eyes. I have deep-set eyes, hereditary dark circles, and seasonal allergies that make my dark circles appear to be even darker. It’s not something that I think about on a day-to-day basis; however, I’m always self-conscious about how my under eye area looks in photos. I’ve tried every single trick in the book to reduce the appearance of dark under eye circles, and today I’m sharing the five strategies that have worked the best – with both long-term and short-term options. Keep reading to see five easy ways to reduce the appearance of dark circles and learn about my favorite new eye cream that’s effective and affordable!

How To Reduce The Appearance of Dark Circles

1. Take care of yourself.

Dark circles can be hereditary, but they can also be caused or exacerbated by your health and lifestyle. Think about how you look when you’re really tired. A tell-tale sign is dark under eye circles. Same things goes for someone’s who’s sick with a cold or sniffling away from seasonal allergies. You’ll almost always see a sick person with red eyes and eye bags. Now think about the last time you were on vacation and slept like a baby without a care in the world. I bet your eyes looked a lot better then. Whether you’re not getting enough sleep, not feeling well, have a bundle of stress on your plate, or aren’t eating a healthy diet, the delicate skin under your eyes can be affected and show discoloration – AKA dark circles.

If you’re really serious about getting your dark circles under control, definitely take time to examine your health and lifestyle. Are you getting enough sleep each night? Do you feel overwhelmed with stress? Have you been fighting off a cold? The skin under your eyes is the thinnest and most delicate part of your face, so it’s going to show signs of fatigue and illness before the rest of your skin. 

As always, the things to prioritize are controlling your stress levels as much as possible, creating a healthy sleep schedule, getting your body moving each day, and eating a healthy diet. When you make your health and lifestyle choices a priority, I promise you that you will look- and more importantly, feel better. I’m going to talk about one particular part of your health that’s attributed to my dark circles later on in this post, so be sure to read through the end of the post.

2. Find a good eye cream.  

No matter your age and no matter your skin type, you need to be using an eye cream. Whether you’re treating existing wrinkles, puffiness, or dark circles or simply trying to prevent them, a good eye cream will make your under eyes look the best they can be. I’ve been using a few different expensive eye creams for the past few years, and while they’ve worked just fine, I always wondered if they were worth the exorbitant price. When I ran out of my last jar of eye cream a few months ago, I immediately started searching for an affordable eye cream that I could recommend to you.

Over the past few weeks, I’ve been testing out the new Olay Eyes Brightening Eye Cream (see my first impressions on my Instagram Stories under the beauty highlight), and I am really impressed with this product. It’s aimed at smoothing your skin and reducing fine lines over time while giving your dark circles an instant boost of brightness! I loved the lightweight texture right away, and I knew that the ingredients in the formula were right up my alley. This eye cream includes Vitamin C, Niacinamide Vitamin B3, a Vitamin E anti-oxidant complex, Pro-Vitamin B5, and optic brighteners to help reduce the appearance of dark circles and make your eyes look refreshed and youthful. I love four things about the Olay Eyes Brightening Eye Cream: the lightweight but moisturizing texture, the cooling sensation when first applied, the vitamin-packed formula, the optic brighteners, and of course, the price!

Let’s chat about the texture first. Some eye creams are extremely moisturizing, but they have a greasy texture that instantly melts away your makeup. Even if those eye creams work well on your under eye skin, I never end up using them because I can’t use them with my concealer in the morning. The Olay Eyes Brightening Eye Cream has the perfect balance between providing lots of moisture but still having a lightweight and non-greasy texture. It’s not too lightweight where it sinks in too quickly without providing long-lasting moisture, but it doesn’t leave a greasy film on your skin either. In my opinion, the texture is just right, and most importantly, it does not make my makeup melt off at all! In fact, it leaves the skin under my eyes smooth, firm, and plump, so my under eye concealer applies like a dream!


In addition to providing the perfect amount of moisture, the Olay Eyes Brightening Eye Cream also leaves behind a light cooling sensation after it’s applied. It’s extremely refreshing and helps me wake up in the morning. I love all of the nutrients packed into this formula that are aimed at improving the appearance of your skin over time, and the optic brighteners included in the eye cream are just right. I’ve tried other brightening eye creams that left behind glitter, shimmer, or a color under my eyes. All of those things usually bother me because they either negatively affect my makeup, or they look weird on my skin when I’m not wearing makeup. The brightening complex in the Olay Eyes Brightening Eye Cream simply gives an instant boost of brightness without adding sparkle. It’s made of light-reflecting particles and brightening pigments to illuminate your skin and give the appearance of brighter skin.

If you have dark circles and are looking for solid moisturizing eye cream that will also give your under eyes an instant boost of brightness, I think you’ll really like this Olay eye cream. It’s packed with antioxidants to improve your skin over the time, and the price is amazing at CVS Pharmacy! You can head to my Instagram Stories to see exactly where this item is on the shelf, but I found the Olay Eyes Brightening Eye Cream in the skincare section of my local CVS next to the moisturizers. With that being said, I always shop online when I can! Click here to shop the Olay Eyes Brightening Eye Cream online.

3. Control your seasonal allergies.

As I mentioned at the beginning of this post, your health can play a significant role in the appearance of your under eyes. After speaking with dermatologists, makeup artists, skincare experts, and my general practitioner physician, I’ve determined that my seasonal allergies play a big role in the severity of my under eye circles. The reason is simple: seasonal allergies can cause your eyes to tear and itch, so you’re more prone to poke and rub your eyes. The more you irritate the delicate skin around your eyes, the more likely you are to break the blood vessels and cause discolored skin. Plus, my seasonal allergies give me a runny nose, which negatively affects my quality of sleep and makes my dark circles even worse.

If you have seasonal allergies too and don’t want them to exacerbate your dark circles, definitely speak to your doctor to see the best way to control your symptoms. My doctors recommended three things: taking a non-drowsy allergy medicine on days when my symptoms are particularly bothersome, using an allergy eye drop if my eyes become very itchy or runny from allergies, and simply trying my best not to touch or rub at my eyes. If I need to wipe tears from my eyes, I simply dab a tissue in the corner of my eye and wait for the paper to absorb the tear instead of rubbing. If you experience itchy eyes from allergies or even from contact wear, definitely go see your optometrist as well. They can see what’s irritating your eyes and recommend the appropriate treatment. 

4. Stop rubbing your eyes. 

The skin under your eyes is very, very delicate, so even lightly rubbing your eyes can irritate your skin and make your dark circles become even darker. If your eyes are watery or itchy, and you just can’t stop rubbing them – please go see an optometrist to determine the underlying condition. In my case, I realized that my allergies, makeup use, and contact use were irritating the inner lining of eyelid and causing them to feel irritated and itchy. I started to control my allergies, made sure I thoroughly cleaned my eyelids each night, and switched to daily contacts to solve the problem. Now I very rarely have watery or itchy eyes, and it’s definitely made a difference in my dark circles!

If you’re currently using any eye medications or treatments, definitely ask your optometrist if they could be contributing to your dark circles. Certain eyelash growth serums and glaucoma drops can transfer onto the skin under your eyes and cause the skin to darken. 

5. Rethink your concealer routine.

While I have to stress that the most important things you can do to treat your under eye circles are all long-term beauty routine and lifestyle changes, sometimes you just need a quick fix! If that’s the case, it’s time to rethink your concealer routine. Before I apply my makeup, I use a moisturizer on my face and Olay Eyes Brightening Eye Cream under my eyes and allow both products to sink into my skin while I get dressed for the day. These products plump my skin and create a smooth surface for my makeup. 

I can do an entire post on my favorite under eye correctors, concealers, and setting powders if you guys are interested, but here’s the gist of my routine. I use a peach-toned concealer on the darkest part of my dark circles to cancel out some of the discoloration. Then I top the correcting concealer with a high-pigment under eye concealer that’s one or two shades lighter than my skin tone. Once my second concealer is blended into my skin, I use a beauty sponge to set my concealer with a lightweight setting powder. Lastly, I use a beauty sponge or a small and fluffy brush to add either a powder foundation or brightening powder if extra coverage or brightness is required. 

I hope this post gave you a few ways to help reduce the appearance of your dark circles! If you’re looking for an easy place to start, definitely check out the Olay Eyes Brightening Eye Cream and give it a go. It’s packed with great antioxidants, and the formula is lightweight and cool on your skin. I think you guys are gonna love it! Do you have dark circles too? Do you use an eye cream?

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Olay. The opinions and text are all mine.