It happens quite suddenly. One day you’re debating whether banana on toast is a nutritious dinner (it is), and the next you notice your eye area looks a little…older. Fine lines are more of a permanent fixture. So naturally, you start to look for a treatment product. Asap. 

Confusingly, there are a lot to choose from: serums, creams, formulas made specifically to hydrate, brighten, de-puff, pay your phone bill. Therefore knowing the difference, and finding the perfect product, can be quite a tricky process. So let us help. 

Eye creams are…

Typically rich and buttery in texture (likely the closest in consistency to your daily face moisturiser), eye creams are designed to alleviate dryness and help soften crepey skin. Their formulas rely on emollients, like jojoba oil, and occlusives, like shea butter, to lock in moisture on the skin’s surface and prevent water from evaporating.  

Eye serums are…

A touch more innovative. Being lighter in texture, therefore absorbed quicker and deeper into the skin, eye serums offer more treatment-focused results. With little to no emollient or occlusive ingredients they don’t offer the same moisturising benefits as a cream. But their active ingredient component works harder to help correct more concerns, like: dark circles, dark spots, fine lines, loss of collagen and elasticity. 

Which product is best suited to me?

Welp, it depends on a few key factors:

Your skin type: This area of the face tends to get thinner and drier with maturity, for everyone. 

So! If you're someone who is already working with dry skin, chances are you’ll need to reach for an eye cream given its intensely moisturising properties. And sensitive skin might benefit more from an eye cream too. Because serums, as you’ve just learned, are a touch more potent (and potentially irritable) (think retinal, hyaluronic acid, vitamin c). 

Your skin concern: Eyes are the first place to show signs of tiredness or ageing. 

For hydration, smoothness, a general pick-me-up, eye creams can effectively nourish and restore the skin. But if you’re looking to create real change, eye serums are the more efficacious route. Depending on the formula of course, they have the power to improve the appearance of dark circles, dark spots, fine lines, and sagging.

Your skincare routine: There are some products best kept for the AM, others the PM. 

It can be particularly beneficial to use an eye cream at night, because the product’s richness is then given ample time to sink into the skin while you sleep. Which is when the skin is in its most regenerative state. 

Because of their ability to absorb quickly without leaving behind any residue, eye serums are especially great for AM use and being layered in your skincare (and therefore, makeup) routine. 

Can I use both?

You can! Layer away! Thinnest to thickest, as always! Or alternate between the two - reserving serums for the morning and creams for the evening. This is really a question of personal preference. 

Eye serums are known to pack more of a punch long term, but they might not be as comforting on a daily basis. So if your eyes are screaming for some extra TLC, why not try both.