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Keep the frights to the horror movies and fun little tricks by exercising eye safety this Halloween. Whether you go all out or you like a last-minute makeup look and closet costume, costumes and makeup can hurt your eyes if you’re not careful. While red eyes can look cool for a demon or vampire costume, you don’t want said redness to be the result of an infection.
Here are some Halloween eye safety tips that you can utilize so that you can get the most out of your costume while protecting the health and safety of your eyes.
#1. Be Mindful Of Your Colored Contacts
In our previous blog, Colored Contacts And Your Eyes: Keep Your Eyes Safe This Halloween, we discussed colored contacts and the risks associated with buying colored contact lenses from a Halloween store or novelty shop. You can certainly use colored contacts for your Halloween costume, but ensure that you purchase them from a store that requires you to supply them with your prescription.
That way, you can rest assured that your colored contacts are FDA-approved and you can avoid the risks of non-prescription colored contact lenses, such as scratched eyes, pink eye, vision loss, and even blindness.
#2. Don’t Share Makeup
It can be tempting to share makeup with your friends, especially if you bought something specifically for your costume and you’re trying to save money by sharing the goodness. However, makeup is something you want to be selfish with.
This is because if you share your makeup, you could spread bacteria and suffer infections. Maybe your friend has the perfect eye shadow for you, but saving a bit of money by sharing makeup isn’t worth risking pink eye or a stye or another eye problem. Even if you or your friends feel like your eyes are healthy, it’s best to avoid sharing makeup.
If one of your friends is a professional makeup artist and knows how to properly sanitize makeup between different people using it, this can be okay, but still, it is better safe than sorry.
#3. Stay Away From Craft Glitter
Fairies, princesses, mermaids, aliens – there are so many different costumes that can be enhanced with glitter makeup! You can sparkle to your heart’s desire, but ensure that you’re practicing eye safety and don’t use craft glitter for your makeup – especially not near your eyes. Craft glitter has sharp edges and harmful ingredients that can hurt both your skin and your eyes.
If you want to do a sparkly Halloween makeup look, stick with shimmery eyeshadows and cosmetic glitter, that is rounded so it won’t cut. Ensure that you use glittery makeup specifically designed for use around your eyes. Just because something is safe to use on another part of your body does not mean that it’s safe to use around your eyes. If the makeup does not specifically mention eyes on the packaging, keep it away from your eyes.
It’s best to keep even cosmetic glitter away from your eyes, as if it gets into them, it can scratch them and cause infections or other damage. This can be even worse if you wear contact lenses. Even makeup specifically designed and approved for use around your eyes can get into them and hurt them, so be very careful to exercise caution and apply it properly.
#4. Don’t Use Products Not Intended For Your Skin
It can be tempting to use normal paints instead of special face paints in order to save some money, but this can cause many different adverse reactions, both in your eyes and your skin. Ensure that what you use is FDA-approved for cosmetic use. Never use super glue as lash glue, craft glitter instead of cosmetic glitter, or normal paint instead of body paint.
Bear in mind that as previously mentioned, just because makeup is safe for your skin does not necessarily mean that it’s safe to use it around your eyes. Always ensure that any product you use states on the packaging that it is safe to use around your eyes.
#5. Don’t Use Last Year’s Halloween Makeup
Many people don’t realize that makeup expires. If you use expired makeup, you can experience eye infections and other adverse reactions. We know it can be disappointing if you purchase something specifically for your costume only to learn that you can’t use the makeup again next year, but this is your health and safety that we’re talking about here. Only use makeup that is not expired.
Wolcott Optical is passionate about helping people with their vision and their eye health. If you need an eye exam or have questions about practicing eye safety this Halloween, please don’t hesitate to contact us today! We’re here to help.
