I wear a lot of eye makeup and I don’t care who knows it. But at the end of the day, it has to come off. All of it. Sleeping in eye makeup can lead to puffiness and irritation and can cause the lash follicles to become clogged. Those clogged follicles can then form styes, which everybody loves. And if you don’t regularly remove your mascara, that can make your lashes brittle, in turn causing breakage. Breakage means that your eyelashes become short and stubby, something that no mascara can remedy.
Have I convinced you that your eye makeup needs to be removed every night? Good. So let’s talk about the best way to do that.
My personal process is to first cleanse my face using an oil cleanser. This both removes the makeup and cleanses the skin. If I have a lot of makeup on, I will occasionally double cleanse with an oil cleanser, or I’ll use an oil based makeup remover followed by a cream cleanser. I don’t apply the oil cleanser or makeup remover to my eyes, but I do splash water onto them as Phase 1 of the eye makeup removal process. During this process, I also hold a warm washcloth up to each eye to help break down the eye makeup. Some of it comes off just with water, so this is a good start.
After I pat my face dry, I put some Bioderma Sensibio H20 Micelle Solution (formerly Bioderma Crealine H20), a makeup remover, onto a cotton ball and hold it over one eye for about 30 seconds. (Some people prefer to use a flat cotton pad for this.) That gives the Bioderma a chance to break down what’s left of my eyeshadow, liner and mascara. I repeat the process on the other eye. I put more Bioderma on the cotton ball and use it to very gently remove any traces of makeup left on my lids or under my eyes.
I know this is technically a product review, but I couldn’t do this particular one without my how-to. Because if you buy this product based on my recommendation but don’t know how to properly use it, you’re not going to love it and you’ll think I’m a jerk. And I am sometimes, but never when it comes to beauty tips. I take your face very seriously.
So let’s talk about the star of the show. I refer to this gem as “Bioderma,” which is the company name, not the product name. But I feel that we are good enough friends to give each other nicknames. It is a micellar water, which has tiny molecules of cleansing oil that attract dirt and oil but don’t dry out the skin. Micellar water has been around for a long time but didn’t become mainstream until a couple of years ago.
Bioderma is the OG of micellar water. Because it’s so gentle on the skin, it’s been a staple for makeup artists who need to do quick makeup changes on set or for the runway. It removes face and eye makeup without leaving any residue, which allows an artist to quickly do a new makeup look. I would bet money that the true makeup artist pros–Lisa Eldridge, Pat McGrath, Charlotte Tilbury, Mary Greenwell, Billy B, etc.–all have a bottle of Bioderma in their kits.
That being said, I wouldn’t recommend Bioderma as an everyday face or waterproof makeup remover. It does not fully remove foundation or waterproof mascara (I know you don’t wear waterproof mascara every day though, right?). But for quick makeup changes, it’s ideal.
I think Bioderma’s best use is as an everyday eye makeup remover. It’s gentle so it’s ideal for sensitive eyes. I don’t consider my eyes particularly sensitive–that’s kind of my stomach’s thing–but I have tried many eye makeup removers that made my eyes sting, burn or water up. I’ve been personally using Bioderma for years and it has never even slightly irritated my peepers. When the skin around eyes gets irritated, it can get dry and cracked, which is not something that makeup can cover (and may even further irritate). So using a gentle eye makeup remover is key.
As gentle as it is, Bioderma is also a thorough eye makeup remover. As mentioned, it doesn’t remove waterproof mascara but it removes non-waterproof makeup like it ain’t no thang. And as you now know, sleeping with eye makeup on is bad, bad, bad and you will never do it again.
I buy my 16.7 fluid oz Bioderma on Amazon where it is usually around $15. That size bottle lasts me a good six months. If you have suffered from eye makeup remover irritation or your current eye makeup remover is doing a crap job, check out Bioderma.
Have a beautiful day 🙂
A Pretty Addiction 