Here are the powders that have worked best for my dry under eyes.
By Terry Hyaluronic Hydra-Powder: I first tried this a week or 2 ago and it’s quickly become my favorite. A tiny amount goes a long way under my eyes. It leaves the alligator skin under my eyes velvety soft, and it has a subtle blurring effect. It plays nice with my lines: it doesn’t hide them (nor do I expect it to), but it also doesn’t settle deep into them, so my lines don’t look chiseled on my face. Best of all, this stuff really locks my concealer in place. I recently wore it during a 90 degree day of walking all over Epcot, and this powder kept my concealer from melting off my face.
The only con is flashback. I never bake my under eyes and always buff off any excess powder—and I use only the smallest amount of powder necessary to start with—so I don’t get a flashback effect under bright lights. But this powder will reflect in flash photography, so keep that in mind.
Charlotte Tilbury Genius Magic Powder: This works great under my eyes without drying out my skin, probably because it contains emollients. It usually doesn’t settle deep into my lines. It does have a funky smell, which is why I don’t use it as often as I’d like. I’ve never done a flash photo test with it, but I never get a flashback effect under bright lights while wearing it.
CHARLOTTE TILBURY - Airbrush Flawless Finish Setting Powder: This pressed powder works best with a dab-roll-sweep application on my skin. It’s another emollient-rich powder that doesn’t dry out my skin. I love it, especially for the convenient compact packaging, but it doesn’t set quite as well as the CT loose powder I mentioned above. This Airbrush powder also doesn’t have any weird smell, and I’ve never noticed flashback with it.
Hourglass Veil™ Translucent Setting Powder - Talc Free Translucent
: If you need a loose powder that’ll set concealer, doesn’t smell funny, and has no flashback, then this is the one. It’s the powder I used most often before I discovered the By Terry powder. It’s a solid performer and works well with my dry under eyes, though it does sometimes fall into my lines more than I’d like. But it doesn’t make my skin super cakey. I usually travel with my mini size of this powder, just in case I need something that won’t reflect photo flashes.
BECCA - Hydra-Mist Set & Refresh Powder: When I got fed-up with the Laura Mercier loose powder, I first switched to this one. It contains glycerin and really does feel like you’re splashing water on your face—for the first 3-4 weeks after you open your new jar. Afterward, the powder loses that sensation. It performs really well in those first few weeks, then starts to feel and look kinda chalky on my face. That’s why I don’t use it anymore. On a positive note, if you use it every day for 4 weeks, you might actually use up a lot of the jar—there doesn’t seem to be much product in there—so you might get the full performance benefit after all.
And a powder I’ve never tried, Prescriptives Magic Liquid Powder, is something a friend raves about. She says it’s what Becca’s powder tried to be. The Prescriptives powder contains hyaluronic acid and, according to my friend, works wonders. But I haven’t tried it myself, so I can’t recommend it first-hand.