Pesky Pandas

Unlike last week’s post, where I was sharing with you a recent find, this week I want to tell you about a product I’ve been using since the 1990’s: L’Oréal’s eye make-up removers.  Before finding this product, I found removers made my eyes sting and run (rinsing my eyes with water afterwards was a pain!) so as soon as I found one that didn’t, I stuck with it.  The packaging has constantly changed over the years but thankfully they’ve never discontinued it!   Let’s stay with the 90’s for a second, a fabulous alternative to L’Oréal’s remover was Clarins’ Eye Make-up Remover Lotion.  I was working for Clarins at the time and I felt that it did exactly the same job – I obviously preferred a water-like formulation rather than a cream or gel. 

However, due to advancement in cosmetic technology over the decades - that nearly everything is now long-wear, waterproof, or water-resistant - I was noticing that my make-up wasn’t dissolving effectively.  I panicked!  The prospect of searching for another remover was daunting (it honestly had taken me years to find ‘the one’).  Thankfully, L’Oréal did have an alternative, their Absolute Make-up Remover Eye & Lip!  I was a bit nervous at first because the product is dual-phased (is that a word?) and I thought that the oily layer would irritate my eyes and leave an oily residue but it didn’t and I’ve been using it ever-since! 

The product is made up of two parts, one is a clear lotion which is the softening part and then it’s topped with a pretty blue layer (made up of gentle oils) that dissolve waterproof and long-lasting shadows, liners and mascaras!

To use, I give the bottle a good shake, mixing the two parts together and then squirt a generous amount onto my BYPHASSE cotton wool pad (of course!).  I then pop the pad onto my eye, pressing it very gently onto the skin, leaving it there for about 10 seconds, concentrating on my lashes also.  I then sweep the pad slightly downwards and out to the side.  For the under-eye area, I then fold the pad in half and use the straight side to just remove that pesky panda mascara smudge!  I then go back in with a soaked cotton-bud to make sure any mascara or liner left is gone, gone, gone. 

The most important thing about this product for me is that there is no greasy residue left that can irritate my eyes which I really thought might happen due to the oils but L’Oréal’s Absolute Make-up Remover Eye & Lip really does do what it says on the bottle!  

Various stockists, €5-€9