You wake up in the morning and gawk at the bruise you were left with. You come back from a party with a little gift from the person you were dancing with. Your date went very well, and you definitely have the mark to show for it. Bluish maybe purple and a little red, but definitely there along your neck and definitely very visible. Whoever gave it to you- significant other, random hookup, etc.- doesn’t matter at the moment, but covering it up and making sure your boss/professor/parents/etc doesn’t see it does. You might wanna just slip in that white lie and say you burned yourself with a curling iron, but everyone knows what’s actually going on. You have a hickey – what do you do?
If you notice right away:
1. Direct your significant other away
It can be difficult to notice when you might get a hickey, as you’re probably just in the heat of the moment. But if you know it might be an issue in the morning or even right after the deed is done, move their mouth somewhere else where covering up might not need to be an issue.
2. Apply cold and pressure
A hickey is essentially just another bruise, so the quicker you notice it and can tend to the wound, the better. Whether it’s a cold compress, a spoon stuck in the fridge for 15 minutes, or even a frozen bag of peas, take your cold item of choice and stick it on your neck for 20 minutes. Make sure not to put the cold item on directly, but instead wrapped in a cloth or zip lock bag.
If you notice later on:
1. Apply heat and massage
If you don’t notice until hours later, start by placing heat to quicken the healing process. It varies person to person, but hickeys normally take up to a week to fade. Apply a warm towel or heating pad, then WikiHow recommends to “massage the area from the inside out .. help(ing) to break up the blood clots and will improve circulation in the area.” Try doing this daily until the hickey fades.
2. Dress the part
Sometimes you truly don’t have the time to cover the hickey up in a more efficient manner, so you might have to resort to accessorizing and changing your outfit up. Think of anything you own that can cover up your neck: turtleneck, a collared shirt that covers your neck, a scarf, etc. This might only be applicable to cold weather because you can’t really hide your hickey if you’re wearing a turtleneck summer in 90 degree weather.
3. Conceal
Spending 10-15 minutes extra on your makeup routine might help out in the long run to cover up the hickey in a way that won’t compromise your outfit. To do this, you will need a primer, color corrector, concealer, foundation and setting spray. Start off with the primer, so every other product will be easier to apply. Next you’ll want to apply color corrector, depending on how deep your hickey is. This Self article has a guide to which colors you should use in your palette to cancel out your hickey:
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Purple-red : Green color corrector
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Black-blue: Red/ Orange.
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Green-Yellow: Purple.
Next you’ll want to blend the corrector out with products, so the hickey is blended in with the skin around it. Use your preferred foundation or concealer. Apply around the hickey and up, making sure the skin around the bruise is a consistent skin tone. Finally, finish off with a little powder or setting spray. It’ll be as if you never got bit at all!
Hickeys might seem like things that only hormonal teens obtain, but it’s a common bruise that can really happen to anyone. The most important thing is you had a good time while getting it. The mark won’t be there for long, so just be cautious of it if you’d like. Or don’t! Proudly show off your hickey and let everyone know that you got some. Whatever you prefer, these are some tried and trued methods that can work in your favor.