Dry eye should not stop you having beautifully made-up eyes. It just requires the right products and a little bit of know how. Here is how to make-up your dry eyes beautifully
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When you have dry eye it can really sap your self-confidence. No one feels at their best with dry, sore, tired, red or watery eyes. This can be made even worse when you are told to wave good-bye to your much-loved mascara and eye-liner.
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Dry Eye Zone understands that for many of us facing the world without any make-up is a heart-breaker. But giving up on make-up because of dry eye is not a given, but you will need to get your symptoms under control first. Dry Eye Zone have sourced a range of eye friendly make-up and compiled this essential guide to applying make-up if you have dry eye.
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Read on to find out more about keeping your dry eyes looking their beautiful best:
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1. Give your natural tears a moisture boost
Before you start apply one or two drops of a trusted preservative-free eye drop to give your eyes a moisture boost to help avoid having to use eye drops once your make-up is in place. Well moisturised eyes are also sparkly eyes!
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2. Prepare your eyelids
One of the reasons why your make-up does not stay in place for as long as you might like is because our natural skin oils disrupt the make-up causing smudging and creasing. You can help avoid this by applying a primer or serum to your cleansed skin before you start. This way the make-up is sitting on a smoother, non-stick base. But make sure you select a product which is free from ingredients which may cause dry eyes to become irritated, watery and red – definitely to be avoided.
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3. Do not block your eyes natural dry protection
If you have dry eye (or even if you don’t!) your eyes oily layer is essential for stopping your eyes drying out too quickly. Your meibomian glands release, via tiny ducts along the inner edge of the eye lid, an oil the consistency of olive oil which creates a protective film over the surface of the eye. When you apply your eyeliner avoid the waterline (the inner eyelid margin) by applying it only outside of your eyelashes. This way you avoid accidently clogging up these tiny openings. The consequences will almost certainly be a poorer tear film quality.
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4. Avoid water proof mascara
Looking after your lashes is a whole topic on their own. Bottom-line is water-proof mascaras contain ingredients which will aggravate dry eye, they will also cause long term damage to your lashes. So when selecting a mascara avoid promises of no-smudge, long-lasting or water-proof as these might not be the best choice for your eyes
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5. Stop the smudge
As waterproof mascara is a no-go area you might find you are more at risk of your mascara smudging. You can minimise this by applying mascara only to the outer edge of your top lashes. You do this by applying the mascara to a closed or partly closed eye. Your eyes will still look amazing but are less likely to dab smudges on to your lower lid when you blink. And lastly, it may seem obvious but start with clean lashes to avoid yesterday’s mascara flaking off and starting the smudge!
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Remember – old mascara can harbour bacteria and if kept for long periods of time can become an eye hazard. Avoid this waste by using smaller sizes.
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6. For going-out lashes
 Do not go too heavily with mascara as a clogged lash will smudge and particles are almost certainly going to end up in your eye. Instead for extra impact apply a second coat only to the tips of the outer edge of your top lashes.
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7. Cream not powder
This rule applies to all make-up applied near your dry eyes but it is especially important when considering eye shadows. Many routinely used make-up ingredients are not dry eye friendly and if in powder form they are far more likely to enter the eye and cause irritation.
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8. Thicken your natural lashes
Eye lashes serums are becoming increasingly popular as they can give you naturally longer and thicker lashes to frame your eyes, even without make-up. However, you need to be aware that once again the majority of these products will make dry eye worse. That is why Dry Eye Zone has sourced one produced by a leading optometrist who was seeing more and more patients with poorly conditioned or lost lashes. Try it, you will be delighted with the results. Lash Builder restorative eyelash serum really works and it is kind to your eyes.
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9. Frame your eyes with a dramatic brow
Your eye brow provides the perfect frame to your eyes. By applying a little brow pencil to darken and thicken your brow will give even greater emphasis to your eyes without having to go overboard on the make-up. Lash Builder restorative serum also works on eye brows.
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10. Do not even think about false lashes!
Eye care professionals have long been warning their patients against false lashes due to the potentially toxic glues used which will cause issues for the healthiest of eye much less for someone who has compromised tears. There have now been plenty of studies which pin-point exactly the harm they can do so don’t go there!
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None of these tips and tricks are of any use if your dry eye is not under control: sore, tired, red, water eyes are not going to look good no matter what make-up you use. You can find out how to improve the quality of your natural tears in order to combat the effects of dry eye disease by visiting Dry Eye Zone. But most importantly, if you are overdue an eye examination make sure to book one as soon as you can. You can find out more about all things dry eye related here but do not forget to subscribe to Dry Eye Zone for regular free updates.
If you are experiencing dry eye symptoms then you should ask the advice of your eye care professional. Do not leave things untreated as symptoms may progress. Why not book your next eye examination with an independent optician today.
Sources:
Albdaya NA et al. Prevalence of dry eye disease and its association with the frequent usage of eye cosmetics among women. Cureus, 2022;14(7):e27142.
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Ng A, Evans K, North RV, Purslow C. Migration of Cosmetic Products into the Tear Film. Eye Contact Lens. 2015 Sep;41(5):304-9. doi: 10.1097/ICL.0000000000000124. PMID: 25738987. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25738987/
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Abah ER, Oladigbolu KK, Rafindadi AL, Audu O. Eyelash extension use among female students in a Tertiary Institution in Nigeria: A study of kaduna polytechnic, Kaduna. Niger J Clin Pract. 2017;20(12):1639–43
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The impact of cosmetics on the ocular surface. Optician Online.
Chen X, Sullivan DA, Sullivan AG, Kam WR, Liu Y. Toxicity of cosmetic preservatives on human ocular surface and adnexal cells. Exp Eye Res. 2018 May;170:188-197. doi: 10.1016/j.exer.2018.02.020. Epub 2018 Feb 24. PMID: 29486163.
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Ercan ZE. Effect of eyeliner and mascara use on tear film and meibomian glands. Saudi J Ophthalmol. 2022 Jul 11;36(1):113-116. doi: 10.4103/sjopt.sjopt_170_21. PMID: 35971493; PMCID: PMC9375468. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9375468/
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Amano Y, Sugimoto Y, Sugita M. Ocular disorders due to eyelash extensions. Cornea. 2012 Feb;31(2):121-5. doi: 10.1097/ICO.0b013e31821eea10. PMID: 22134404.
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Jingyi Wang, Yang Liu, Wendy R. Kam, Ying Li, David A. Sullivan, Toxicity of the cosmetic preservatives parabens, phenoxyethanol and chlorphenesin on human meibomian gland epithelial cells, Experimental Eye Research, Volume 196, 2020, 108057, ISSN 0014-4835,
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Mazyar Yazdani, Katja Benedikte Prestø Elgstøen & Tor Paaske Utheim (2022) Eye Make-up Products and Dry Eye Disease: A Mini Review, Current Eye Research, 47:1, 1-11, DOI: 10.1080/02713683.2021.1966476
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