One thing that nobody ever talks about with dark circles is this. it could literally just be a shadow. If you have even slightly deep set eyes your brow is going to create a shadow underneath. And no amount of cream is going to help.

Now as soon as a brand or person promotes a product as "anti-ageing" my brain says nope. Maybe because I'm over 30 and I've been told since I was 15 that I need to think about doing everything I can to minimise my wrinkles and reduce ageing because as a woman that's what you're supposed to do and it's just ridiculous. People get older, women get older, it's normal, I'm sick of it being frowned upon. I'm all for skin routines that prevent premature skin ageing (like good moisturising, avoiding sun exposure or smoking) but that's it. Plus retinol makes your skin more sensitive to UV rays I don't know if this is clearly stated on the instructions or packaging of products containing it and if people overall are aware of this, so without sunscreen it's likely to have the opposite effect to the one intended.

Another thing no one talks about re: dark circles - allergies!! If you have chronic allergies or sinus issues, like sinusitis for example, that can cause what's called "allergic shiners" or blood pooling (almost like a black eye, hence "shiner") due to sinus blockage. There are *so many* factors that cause dark circles! I've had them my whole life, and I took advice from both James and Robert: Vitamin C cream for brightening and proper color correcting + concealing goes a long way! They both have great videos on that!

The moment someone puts *life hack* and *dark circles* in the same sentence I roll my eyes 😂 I have dark circles that I inherited from my mom. Her entire family has them. Skincare has helped make them less puffy, maybe slightly less noticeable , but I've learned to live with it. 🤷‍♀️

Careful with ice-cold water or ice cubes applied directly to your skin! Especially after a warn shower… capillaries of very sensitive skin may break easily! If you want to calm swollen skin just put a clean facial cloth in your freezer and wait for 5 minutes. Then put it on your face or just the under eyes and wait a couple of minutes. Your skin will look tightened up, smoother and fresh. Don’t use ice cubes on your skin. Please 🙏

It's always been weird to me to not tie your hair back to wash your face, I kinda get it if you have pretty short hair but soon as I lean over to rinse I'd just have a sheet of hair in my way if it wasn't tied

Omg every single person who tagged you in that “tick” video should go to jail 😰😰

I don't care if they're real or not...that "tick" video was nightmare fuel! I can't unsee that!🤢Was that a misery loves company situation? 🤣 I'm sorry people tagged you in that!

i've had "dark circles" or "eye bags" literally since i was born, its just my face shape. my mum had the same thing, and she was really self conscious about it but somehow all this combined made me literally never once feel self conscious of mine, luckily. i know a lot of other people find it hard to accept though, and ive definitely found other things to feel self conscious about 😅

The clear skin skincare hack was spot on. This is the way I remember my Grandma doing her skincare routine when I was growing up, I mean different products but same principals. Clean hands, applying cleanser/cold cream/whatever you're using with light circular motions (there's a fascinating historical publication on skincare from the 1920's where it talks about thinking of your skin as the petals of a rose ), if you do use a face cloth make sure it's A: clean, B: kept only for facial purposes, and C: ultra soft (no scrubbing your epidermis off with a rough flannel), no extremes of water temperature when rinsing your skin (summer in Australia might be an exception), leave skin slightly damp if applying a toner (especially glycerine based from personal experience) and finish up with a good moisturiser. I'm so glad that folks are actually spelling out more of the real basics of skincare, like making sure your hands are clean when applying products, and having clean face towels, and so on, because I sometimes feel like people get way too caught up in the trend of skincare and then miss the basics like this. Kudos to the original video poster. :)

Also, about ticks! I live in the southern US, my state is one of THE WORST for ticks. The best way to remove a tick is to soak a q tip or cotton ball in isopropyl alcohol and just set it by the head of the tick and it will literally back out of your skin. I might still see a doctor, or at the very least identify the type of tick and look out for certain warning signs of tick related diseases. I’ve had Lyme disease and know people who’ve had Rocky Mountain spotted fever and several with alpha gal.

So I'm a recovering addict, and my mom used to take pictures of me to show me how bad I looked, but I honestly never even noticed until I got clean. While I was using, my eyes looked all sunken in and I had the darkest eye bags. There's a picture she took of me when I was in acoma (I was trying to get clean, and I took something that kicks the opiates out of my system, and I took it a week early, you're supposed to not have any opiates in your system when you take it, and I took it hours after using. So I started seizuring and my mom took me to the hospital and I was in acoma for like 2 weeks. ) where I literally looked dead because of my drug use. I wonder what makes most addicts have that same dead look when they use?

I have dry skin, I don’t wash with a cleanser in the morning, but I always rinse it off with water. Made a complete difference for me.

As someone who can’t stand the texture of bananas (eating or touching), that first one almost killed me.

I absolutely eat up every video you put out but I have to admit…the videos with humor over absolutely asinine shit like this banana BS just hit different 😂 You are too kind to explain “literally” why it’s completely illogical and sir…I LIVE for it! 🥰

I know that plantain skin is used in skin remedies in west Africa and some Caribbean islands. Black soap and jabón de plátano contains plantain skin so maybe that is where the first videos info was derived from

The tip about mixing retinol with body lotion is very close to how my mom taught me to do skincare ( without mixing though ) : whatever product you put on your face, put in on your neck, chest and hands. I've seen too many people with good skin on their face, but prematurely aged elsewhere. No fancy things, just good bases and practices.

The #1 thing I did to get rid of dark circles and improve my skin was to quit drinking. I still may have a glass of wine a few times a year but I rarely drink alcohol anymore and I look better and healthier now than I did even 10 years ago when I was a regular drinker. Might not be the right choice for everyone, but it worked for me.

love this sm, but i def needed a phobia/trigger warning for that last one ☠

I'm really glad you touched on not really cleansing based on face texture/moisture/oils. I don't do full face makeup and washing morning and night some times just dries me out so much

Watching James be disgusted by the banana hack is gold

I remember seeing on a children's programme, possibly Blue Peter but it was so long ago ( I'm 56 now) but we were told that we can use banana skins to polish shoes. That was the first thing I though when she said about using them under your eyes 👀

That “tick” video is 100% scammy crap. But please, PLEASE take ticks seriously! Wear light colored clothing. Use bug repellent that specifies ticks. Do full body checks in front of a mirror and/or with a trusted person. Use small combs and check all body hair. Don’t assume that because you’ve just been chilling and not hiking that you won’t get bitten. Don’t rely on “Lyme always presents as a bullseye rash”. Lyme is no joke. I have permanent full body pain and memory impairment from a tick bite I got at 13. I wasn’t in the woods. A mouse with ticks on it died where I was staying. The ticks jumped off & bit me in my sleep. I didn’t know about the mouse, so I didn’t know to check myself for ticks. But I didn’t have a rash anywhere (was checking for unrelated derm reasons). I went from being 13yo to having the pain & brain of 60+ in just a few months. Please be careful and insist on Lyme tests!

There's literally body wash and moisturizers with retinol/retinal in them.. why not just buy one? Even Olay has a body wash with retinol...

The inset grooves under the eye are often called "tear troughs."

Yep, as a chemistry student I can say that the slightest straying from the original formula can completely change the product. If you mix an active ingredient with a product with the wrong PH it would render it useless. Plus some are not water or oil soluble, so if you get it wrong it won't penetrate into the skin

The banana one is an immediate no. Banana fibers are not "formulated" to absorb into the skin. How stupid 😅😅

I started using Versed Press Restart Retinol body lotion, about a year ago. It works great, and no need to mix your Retinol!

James, your skin in the last 2 videos is absolutely gorgeous!! You're glowing!

A few years ago I started to use these infant hypoallergenic wash cloths. After I cleanse, I pat my eye area dry and behind my ears and neck and chest. I allow my face to air dry the rest of the way. These small infant wash clothes are so soft and delicate! They really made a difference as opposed to me using a regular towel or even adult wash cloth to pat my face dry. I absolutely love them. The brand doesn't really matter as long as there soft, hypoallergenic infant wash cloths. Softest things ever! lol

Dark eyes can also be a signal that you are ill. Mine were dark and made me look super super super tiered. I found out I had to get my Gallbladder out. It is out now and my under eyes are no longer dark. I still look tiered but that is because I am still recovering from my surgery which was about two weeks ago.

I wish I could unsee the ticks... Now I'm itchy, and it's going to take a while for my body to stop itching 💔

….1:11 Banana peel is also great against anxiety, depression, fixed the relationship with my husband and children and helped with my financial struggles!!1

Also! My dog Laddie would often get ticks. He was actually Lyme Disease positive when we got him from the shelter. He was on NexGuard and everything which really helped if ever had ticks but when he used to get them our vet showed us how to remove them. So you take your index finger and put it on the tick and spin it around really fast in a circular motion. It literally makes the tick back out from the skin and you can get it out and not just the sack. They also have tools now for super cheap that do the same thing. You put the tick inside this slot and spin in around and poof! The whole tick comes out! If you were to just wipe them away, you're only getting rid of the sack. The actual tick is super small and will stay in the skin. When you spin them around, you can actually see their little demon bodies attached to the sack so you know you're getting the whole tick.

for dark circles im using pyungyangkul black eye cream & ckd retinol collagen eye cream for wrinkles it serves its purpose you can see good results in 8 weeks but it only works for light wrinkles not the deep ones if you are 60 up no matter what you do it will not go away acceptance is key 😁

Oop James is feeding us well in the new year w several uploads in one week 🤭 love it

A good way of getting rid of ticks that I learned during vet nurse training is to cover them in petroleum jelly (Vaseline) and just leave them. This will suffocate them and they drop off without leaving their head inside the skin.

That “tick” video was the grossest thing I’ve ever seen… thanks James!! 😂 🤢

In summer I need to wash my face in the morning because I sweat overnight and have oily skin. However, in winter time I just use a micellar water in the morning and my cleanser at night. I think it depends on your skin type and needs.

James I love your videos but I am coming back to this video after two painful days to rant because I can’t tell anybody this. I have trypophobia and that tick video has sent me into absolute distress! I haven’t stopped itching the back of my neck to the point it is bleeding, I’ve had to take a picture of my neck to remind myself what normal skin looks like! I seriously need professional help lol! but it’s actually not funny though because now I’m crying myself to sleep because the image is burnt into my mind 😂

I recently realized that I have really dry skin, which is a bit weird. Like I can feel my skin getting oily, but my skin flakes off, it's just that dry (with or w/o using products). Finding the proper prep and foundation are hard because my foundation tends to separate and flake off on certain areas (in-between my brows, on my cheeks, etc.) I love learning so much from James always! I have always has thin skin under my eyes, but didn't know how to correct it. Well, now I do! Thank you James for everything you do, spreading knowledge and love ❤️

If you choose to remove body hair u should be cautious about using any actives on or around that skin, shaving and waxing are pretty effective physical exfoliation already so it's easy to go overboard. Taking vit a derived medication or supplements increases sensitivity too

The hand thing has happened to me but with sunscreen. I put it on the left too and the left has less freckles and wrinkles. I always mean to swap to the right but forget 😬😂

All of these retinol "hacks" I always wonder where they are located. I live in the super dry desert of the US southwest and retinols or exfoliators of any kind need to be used sparingly. Any desert or mountain dwellers will get more benefit out of moisturizing than they will out of chemical exfoliators.

years ago my grandma gave me a book about skincare by diego della palma, it's all about "natural" methods, most of them involve food. I've read some of it recently and I'm glad i didn't follow any of the tips when i was younger, the ATROCITIES in that book 😭 i doubt there's an english version (it's in italian), i would love to see you cringe over it

I have a towel to dry the sink, a towel for my hands, a towel for my face, and a towel for my body. And the towel for my face is alone, while the rest of the towels are on my towel rack. I just make sure to only use the towel for like 3 days max before swapping it oit

Even tho it’s not real ticks the imagery is disgustingggg🤢 but yeah, scaling ticks off with a knife?? He’d be full of red spots and with bits of heads sticking out🙃

There are body lotions with active ingredients in them. I have one with 5% AHA and I like to use it when when I don‘t shave (as instructed) and I‘m careful in the summer with sun. I just use it a lot less, make sure to use sun screen and focus on moisturising. Works great for me, skin is extra smooth and I getvway less bumbs and ingrown hairs. No need to mix things. Just my two cents on that one.

The last one grossed me out so much! 🤢😣

My girl, just buy a retinol body lotion one. There are really amazing ones for like $10-$15. Why go through the trouble of trying to mix and match?

My favorite kind of your videos! 😁

"Through the heavy filter, we can see what she means" 💀

Yes I am this person with tear-throughs, aka hollow inner undereyes. I've been insecure about it since that I'm a kid. And yes there is nothing to do... It's just a shadow. I learned to embrace it because of people like Liv Tyler who has the same feature, and finally seeing that my undereye was smooth and clear besides that, so I don't complain much :)

Eye creams: needs to be formulated for fine eye skin Random Mom: Shove mashed food on there!

James, out in the rural US and prob rural UK, people are expected to remove their own ticks, so I would just like to add that if you've been taught properly how to remove and dispose of them, it's not necessary to see a doctor. It would be very expensive for an American and probably not covered by insurance. Not all ticks cause Lyme Disease, but there are many other serious tick-borne diseases around the world. I only got one this summer and I am out in the woods a lot, taking preventive measures with your clothing and hair works very well.

I was about to look at buying a pack of embordered "face" towels so no one uses them but never crossed my mind that I don't even need to use them.

The ice water “hack” has been done since at least the 1940’s. Old Hollywood actresses did that all the time as a beauty routine.

OMG! I have AGS from a tick bite and it is horrible. Just seeing all those ticks makes me hyperventilate!

That last clip gives new meaning to the word 'TikTok'. Sorry, I couldn't resist.

LMAO! Let me just go plant my face in my compost pile.😂😂😂

I have an ice roller and the only time I use it is when I have a particularly rough (or really good) night of sleep and wake up with kind of a puffy face. Other than that I dont know what the benefits would really be.

My grandpa is 78 and a ginger so he’s used sunscreen for most of his life and he has the best skin! I swear moisturizer and spf is all you need

That tick video was so gross! The hand washing thing is so important and im the same, don't use a towel on my face. I still don't really get the whole spatula with products thing for hygiene as I would always wash my hands before using a pot of something. You'd have to clean and dry the spatula each time, it's odd to me, but maybe im wrong

lmao that last one reminded me of the video with the IT tech going “this is beans in here”

15:10 ticks absolutely do line up like that, but other than that you're right, that is not the way to remove them and I don't think those were ticks in the vid

Those "ticks" are dried beans, superglued to whatever area they put them on 😂😂 ngl...it give me the heebie jeebies but its just dried beans 😂

I had to cover the screen on that last one. I had a nightmare that that reminded me of, oh I'm gagging!!!!!!!

Happy Sunday, James! 💓💜💓💜💓💜

The thing with the hack to know what ingredients will help is, both of those ingredients help with both things? Both build collagen and both brighten?

It's so funny that you said that about bananas, I love a banana but anything banana scented makes me queasy!

Anyone who's ever had a pet know that's not how you remove ticks. If you just yank them off the head can stay buried under the skin, and that can lead to trouble. So the last video has to be fake.

Just so you know banana peel can get rid of Veruccas. As a kid I would go to a chiropodist who wasn’t cheap . In the last few weeks of treatment he used banana peel pith side to the verucca. When I got one again thru swimming at school mum went straight for the banana pith not the chiropodist. To her surprise it worked within a week or so with no need for the chiropodist it turned out!

If rubbing ice on your face actually worked that way, everyone in Canada would be snatched AF. 🤣

“Balancing some food on ya face” made me cackle 😂

The thought of putting food on my face just 🤮

food skincare hacks are so common its quite surprising

Tiktoker saying "if the skin you've pinched remains dark that means it's thin" me trying even if I have hyperpigmentation and I am sleep deprived

Fun fact, I don't do the morning cleanse or night cleanse. I splash my face with water at night bc every time I use soap I start breaking out with angry, itchy red hives 😭 every time I use anything my face just gets angry and neither I or my derm can figure it out.

First time that I hear someone suggesting composting in a skin care video 😍

My partners best friends dad got lymes disease from a tic. I'm from a part of Alaska where we didn't have tics or fleas, so now that I live in Washington I'm super anal about my dog having medicine in the spring and summer. She got a flea once, and I never want to have to go through that again. I say a flea because we only ever found one flea on her 🤷‍♀️

PLEASE try the geek and gorgeous A gam 5-10 or the Peter Thomas Roth pm fusion serum with retinol! Luv ya🎉❤

Lmfao. 😂. That tick one. Like u see the GLUE lol. Omg. 😂

Didn't we just say we're over the word ,'hack'? .. 😒 🤣

To extend on dirty towels *clean your pillowcases* !

I have really really red undereyes. I never see anyone talking about it. I'm never really dark. I might be a bit swollen, but I'm always super red. It screws up my eyeshadow and it looks weird when I put foundation over it.

i'm gonna die explaining to people that when someone says "x food is good for your skin" you're probably meant to EAT THE FOOD and not put it directly on the skin

I only wash and moisturize my face once a day. I have thought about sunscreen for the morning, but I don’t go outside much and my morning routine on workdays just doesn’t give me time to do that, and I hate having my skin feel oily or heavy. I use a gel-cream moisturizer and it’s practically the only one that works for me. My skin doesn’t sting, it’s lightweight and cooling.

Should I still do skincare if I’m a regular smoker? Just been wondering for a while, it seems like it works a lot but then sometimes I think it’s a placebo

The hand one also have to do with uv exposure during driving. If the original person was non-us or always a passenger their left hand wouldn’t have been as close to the window…

It's TIKTOK. Pretty much everything is made up. I don't even have that 💩 app. I've seen the same content uploaded to KZfaq shorts.

I guess if it was the end of the world and we were all living in bunkers I might perhaps maybe consider putting food on my skin. As long as skincare is readily available I fail to see why I'd use food instead.

that ‘tick’ video made me shiver, i couldn’t look at it ew

I'm so, so tired of the use of the word "hack".... especially if it's followed by banana. Can we collectively agree that food on the face is a no-no?

Oops. I have been playing chemist for years, mixing my unscented body lotion with a yummy smelling body oil in a separate container to make it even more lotiony.

Reading the title, seeing your face

Omg the banana “hack” made me actually vocalize “oh no no no….” . I’m glad this works for her but I’d rather go for something scientifically formulated… 😂

Why does no one mention that retinol without sunscreen is actually going to make your skin way more sensitive and susceptible to aging..... Unless you are going to put on sunscreen all over your body every time you leave the house the retinol is not going to help. ALSO broken capillaries / spider veins are often effected by extreme temperature (hot or cold) so sticking your face in a bucket of ice every day when you have them is probably going to make them more visible.

I did two internships as a cosmetic chemist. Please do not mix products that were not formulated together. You will either cause the preservatives to fail (hello acne), break the formulation or worse cause side products that are potentially toxic.

That last video will haunt my nightmares 🤢

Banana on skin really works though. Just like avocado. Regardless of her bogus explanation, it works.