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How to

How to use eye patches correctly

It's a two-step product with a surprising number of ways to get it slightly wrong.

DRAFT — in review, noindexed, not listed in the sitemap.

By The pep patch team, Product & formulation

Published · 4 min read

An opened pep patch sachet with two blue gel eye patches resting on the packaging

The order of operations

  1. Cleanse and pat dry. Not bone dry — just not dripping.
  2. Open the sachet and lift each patch out by its outer edge.
  3. Place, press gently along the whole curve, and leave for fifteen minutes.
  4. Peel off, tap the leftover essence in with a ring finger, then moisturiser and SPF.

Patches go on clean skin, before everything else. Anything you apply first — oil, cream, sunscreen — becomes a layer between the gel and your face and turns the patch into something that slides.

Which way up

A crescent-shaped patch has a thin end and a wide end. The wide, thicker part sits low, toward the cheek; the thin tip curves up toward the outer corner of the eye. Set the top edge about a finger's width below your lower lash line — close enough to cover the hollow, far enough that nothing migrates into your eye.

Then press. Run a fingertip along the whole edge so there are no lifted corners. Most patch failure is really an adhesion failure at one end.

Mistake one: skin that's too wet or too oily

Gel patches grip through surface contact, not adhesive. A film of water or a layer of moisturiser both break that contact. Pat until your skin feels barely damp and the patch will stay where you put it while you brush your teeth.

Mistake two: leaving them on too long

A patch is mostly water. Once it starts to dry at the edges, the gradient reverses and it begins to pull moisture back off your skin — the opposite of the point. Fifteen minutes is where the benefit and the drying curve cross. Twenty is fine. Falling asleep in them is not.

What to do with the leftover essence

There's always a slick of gel left behind. Don't wipe it off. Tap it in with your ring finger — the weakest finger, so you can't drag the skin — and carry the excess up onto your temples and down along the cheekbone. It absorbs in under a minute.

A pep patch sachet on a bathroom counter beside a folded towel in morning light
Fifteen minutes is roughly one shower, or one cup of coffee.

If you're doing makeup after

Give the area two or three minutes after the essence disappears before concealer. Skin that's still tacky is what makes concealer separate and settle into lines by mid-morning.

frequently asked

Which way up do eye patches go?
Thicker, wider end toward the cheek; the thin tip curves up to the outer corner. Set the top edge a finger's width below the lash line.
Before or after moisturiser?
Before. Patches go on clean, barely damp skin — moisturiser first stops them adhering.
Do you rinse after using an eye patch?
No. Tap the remaining essence in and continue with your routine.
Can you reuse an eye patch?
No. They're single-use, and a used patch has already given up most of its water.

Cosmetic information only. pep patch™ is a cosmetic product and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.