THIS is the Correct Way to Remove Waterproof Makeup Without Damaging Your Lashes

Using waterproof eye-makeup can prove to be a double-edged sword. While on one hand, it’s great for rainy days, sweaty summer months, sad movies and long flights, it can also wreak havoc on your skin and lashes. This is because the very ingredients that make the products magically waterproof, also dry out your peepers and lashes (also, dried-out lashes tend to fall out faster). 

And then, there is the fact that most waterproof makeup is extremely difficult to remove and a LOT of us end up damaging the sensitive skin around our eyes and pulling-out our eyelashes in the process. Our overzealous efforts to make sure our eyes are squeaky-clean could actually cause damage to the area around our eyes.

So then, you might ask, what is the best way to take our trusty waterproof eye makeup off? The trick is to follow a soak-and-remove process. Here are five simple steps you need to follow to remove your waterproof eye makeup the right way ??.

1. Start by soaking a cotton ball in olive oil, eye-makeup remover, baby oil, coconut oil or your remover of choice. Using flat cotton-pads as opposed to round cotton-balls is always a better option as it leads to better absorption. 
2. Close your eyelids and rest the cotton pad on the top of your lashes for a few seconds. You can even let it sit for a while while you floss your teeth or exfoliate your skin.
3. Gently wipe the cotton-pad downwards, towards your lash tips.
4. Repeat this process until all traces of the mascara has been removed.
5. Always follow up this process with some moisturising eye-cream to prevent the area around your eyes from drying out.

Easy-peasy, right? Giving the makeup remover time to work its magic also prevents you from having to rub/scrub/tug with your makeup-remover pad—always a mistake, since the friction can damage the delicate skin around your eyes, causing irritation and contributing to wrinkles. 

When it comes to waterproof mascara, celebrity makeup artist Nick Barose (who works with Priyanka Chopra, BTW) has also shared a brilliant hack. You see, instead of applying two coats of waterproof mascara to his client’s lashes, he applies a coat of regular mascara, and then a coat of waterproof on top.

This way, your lashes are still sealed from exposure to the outside elements, like water and humidity (goodbye racoon eyes!). But, when it’s time to get the gucky stuff off, it’s wayyy easier as the makeup remover only has to break through a single layer of the waterproof stuff which also doesn’t get directly stuck to your lashes. Brilliant, right? We wish we'd have thought of it before all of the times we went to bed defeated by smudged, irritated eyes! Oh well, tomorrow is a new, smudge-free day, isn’t it?