tarte Colored Clay CC Undereye Corrector, Light-Medium Peach

Angie's honest notes

This one is not my concealer. It is the step before my concealer, and that distinction is the whole reason I keep it.

Where it goes. Only on the darkest part. I don't spread it across the whole under-eye the way you would with a concealer — I put it exactly where the shadow is deepest, and nowhere else. Then my Clinique goes on top, and the two together look right in a way that neither one does alone.

Why it goes first. The coverage is very good. Really good. If I put my concealer down first, I would need a lot of it to get the same result, and a lot of concealer under the eye is how you end up with a heavy face. This does the heavy lifting on the shadow, and then the concealer only has to even out the skin.

The texture. Creamy. It blends out without pulling at the thin skin under the eye, which matters when you are working in a small area with your finger.

What tarte says is in it. Vegan squalane and caffeine, in a formula built specifically to correct dark circles and discoloration and to smooth the look of the skin. tarte also describes it as waterproof. I am telling you what the brand says because that is the brand's claim, not mine.

It travels. It is a tiny square. It fits anywhere in my purse, and I never have to think about where to put it. All three of these are practical to carry, but this one disappears.

Fair warning, and this is the real one. Go lightly. If you use too much product, the under-eye looks dense and overloaded — heavy, not covered. That is not a flaw in the product, it is the nature of a full-coverage corrector in the most delicate spot on your face. Less than you think.

Skip it if you are looking for one single product to do everything. This is a step, not a solution. If you want to swipe on one thing and walk out the door, buy the Clinique on its own. But if your dark circles are deep enough that concealer alone never quite gets there, this is the piece that was missing.