‘I’ve Been a Makeup Artist for 18 Years, and This Is the Concealer I Swear By for Hiding Dark Circles and Looking More Awake’

We all go through periods when we’re simply run down and exhausted. While prioritizing rest is the best thing you can do, sometimes you need a little help to fake it. And if coffee is the key to helping you feel more awake, concealer is the key to hepling you look it. Mary Irwin, a celebrity makeup artist who has been in the industry for nearly two decades, knows exactly how to make herself and her clients look like they just got eight blissful hours of sleep.

“I love the Surratt Perfectioniste Concealer Palette,” says Irwin. “It gives you a huge range of coverage whether you need just a hint of concealer or a whole I-definitely-didn’t-sleep-last-night’s worth.”

Surratt Perfectioniste Concealer Palette — $58.00

The Surratt Perfectioniste Concealer Palette ($58) is a high-coverage, buildable palette that comes with two tacky cream concealers and a finishing powder. Having two concealer shades allows you to mix your perfect match while also playing with the shades on different areas of your face. For example, Irwin uses two shades to camouflage her under-eye circles.

“If you’ve got dark circles, learning how to use a color corrector will change your life. You’ll end up using less product overall,” she says. “For bags, think of it almost the same way you think of contour—where is the darkness, and where is the light? I’ll use a lighter color in the deepest part of my under-eye bags, and a slightly darker color in the middle to visually even out the area.

This palette comes in six color combos—1 (light pink/warm pink/white powder), 2 (light peach/warm peach/violet powder), 3 (warm peach/light tan/yellow powder), 4 (light tan/warm brown/orange powder), 5 (copper/brown/brown powder), and 6 (brown/chocolate/apricot powder).

How you apply the products is up to you. The brand recommends warming the concealer up between your fingers and then tapping it onto your skin. Irwin likes to apply the concealer with a brush because with it, “you have more control, you can be more precise, and for me, it just makes it easier,” she says. Her go-to is a tiny flat brush like the Sian Richards London Flexible Favourite ($22).

Sian Richards London Flexible Favourite — $22.00

Both then recommend using a larger, fluffy brush—like the Surratt Perfectionniste Complexion Brush ($75) or Smashbox Precise Highlighting Brush ($38)—to blend and perfect

Surratt Perfectionniste Complexion Brush — $75.00

Smashbox Precise Highlighting Brush — $38.00

Finally, apply the powder with a soft and fluffy shadow brush, like the Surratt Artistique Smoky Eye Brush ($80), to set the look in place.

Surratt Artistique Smoky Eye Brush — $80.00

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