Share: do you prefer using eye gel or eye cream?

I’m still on a blogging hiatus because of some work I need to clear off but I miss this space and wanted to say hello! Since I was going to say hello, I thought I might as well just ask you a quick question regarding your preference of eye products as it’s something that I’ve been mulling over recently.

One of the beauty goals I’ve just developed is to try to improve the look of my eye area; it’s looking a little dismal with the eye bags, dark circles, and crow’s feet. However, it’s quite a challenge, given the delicate skin condition. I’ve used eye gels, eye serums, eye creams, eye treatments and I haven’t seen anything noticeably better yet. I’ll be reviewing some of these eye products in a bit but I wanted to know what sort of eye product you prefer.

Case for eye gel
When it comes to product preference, I’m actually more of a eye serum or eye gel kind of gal. My preference for eye gel really began when I realized that they are less likely to cause milia as gels are lighter and have less chances of clogging your pores. In the day at least, an eye gel leaves my eye area with a less greasy residue. I also find that an eye gel seems to help with my eye bags somewhat, giving them an instant relief because it does soothe and cool the skin. I also suppose that eye gel allows for better absorption of the active ingredient as some of the products have been claiming.

Case for eye cream
But I have to admit that eye creams do a better job of moisturizing because they contain emollients that nourishes the skin and plumps up my eye area to eliminate fine lines. Unfortunately, I don’t like them much as they’re richer in consistency and hence, they are only used in the night. Even then, I still prefer an eye serum or eye gel over an eye cream although I know very well that eye gel is better suited for those who do not need as much skin repair as others. As a result, I tend to apply moisturizer over my eye gel should I use that in the night.

Your say
So what about you ladies? Do you prefer using an eye gel, an eye serum, or an eye cream? Or you don’t really care?

Comments

  1. aibicon says:

    I prefer eye gel too! last time i used to use eye cream and somehow applied too much. Now I have quite a number of millia seeds=( Ever since then, I use eye gel! Eye cream is a no for me now. To me, eye gel and serum is the same thing, just that they are spelled differently=X

  2. Audris says:

    As I get older, I prefer eye creams at night and I’ll prolly switch to one w/o retinol for day use when I finish my current eye gel, as it doesn’t moisturise well enough for my undereye anymore.

    I avoid the overtly creamy ones and so far, no new milia seeds. The seeds can always be zapped off, but wrinkles are hard to reverse ?

  3. Pauline says:

    Hi

    what is the brand of the product on the left ?? Snow..smoothing eye serum?
    I prefer to apply serum or light cream on my eye area cos i dont like the greasy feeling

  4. Carrie says:

    It is called Snowberry, a new line of natural products from New Zealand. Their packaging and info on the web seem very appealing though I am still hesitant to try because of the dear price!!

  5. Carrie says:

    I also prefer eye gel/serum over eye cream (way too rich for my age and skin type), however I have mixed feelings about the Sukin eye serum that I am using now. The goodies of it is that it is affordable with large quantity (35ml!!), does not contain fragrance, makes my eye area well moisturized and supple, and controlling the fine lines around the eye area. However, I find it difficult to apply! It does not absorb into the skin easily so that you have to massage it in or dab the skin a lot to make the white residue “go away”. This is also very time-consuming considering heading to work in the morning. The other thing is that it is a 35ml tube which needs to be used up within 6 months, I find that I need to apply the product a lot (which is even more time-consuming) before its shelf life runs out. And this even resulted me applying it three times a day: morning, late afternoon after shower (I shower before dinner) and bedtime. Despite some good results from it, I actually can’t wait for this product to finish so that I can jump on another brand that is far easier to apply with same results. Do you have any good suggestions? (Apologies for the ranting on your comment column, but I thought I should let the others know if they are considering Sukin eye serum =.=|||)

  6. RedScorpio says:

    I never liked eye gels, although I have to admit I have only tried a few different ones so I may have not encountered a good one.

    So my vote is for eye creams, because they are moisturising and feel more “comfortable” on my skin, which I need because my eye makeup routine is eye shadow over face powder (to make it last longer) which can be drying some times. My favourite one so far is Alverde’s Passionflower Eye Cream (a dirty cheap natural cosmetics line that one can only get in a certain German drugstore chain) – it moisturtises, does not leave my eye lids greasy or heavy and seems to keep wrinkles at bay. If it helped with my ever-present eye puffiness too, it would be perfect for me!

  7. sesame says:

    True…some eye gels do not work so well with makeup and one can look more crinkly in the eye area.

  8. sesame says:

    No problem…that’s not a rant but a valid comment. I know how you feel cos some products do get on my nerve too for the same reasons. Would you consider using it on your neck area? I’ve found eye cream good for neck region too and so if you don’t mind, that mind help you to finish up the eye cream quicker without wastage. I’ve not tried the product and didn’t know it doesn’t absorb well…if I were you using this product, probably I’ll only use it in the night and that makes it worse as I would have to take forever to finish up or probably end up throwing part of it away.

  9. sesame says:

    Pauline / Carrie: Yes, it’s Snowberry. It was good for awhile when I used it but the effects were sort of maximized and I don’t see much improvement thereafter.

  10. sesame says:

    Same here…prefer eye creams at night and use those with Retin-A only at night. I dislike milia seeds…never had it zapped but I poked one with a needle and got rid of it. I develop that one after using rosehip seed oil around my eye area.

  11. sesame says:

    I was thinking about that – is eye gel the same as eye serum – you’re right…just different spelling.

  12. Carrie says:

    Use it on the neck?? Oooooh now that’s something new!! I might try that tonight hehehehe! And yeah, you don’t normally see a tube of eye serum for 35ml, with very short shelf life >”<

  13. Issa says:

    I am using eye cream because that’s the only thing I see down here … I haven’t seen any affordable brand with eye gel… maybe i should check it out again…

  14. Destiny says:

    I stopped using an eye cream three years ago, and here’s why. I started using NeoCell Hyaluronic acid and noticed fine lines around my eyes disappeared. So to me, it was doing what my Clinique eye wasn’t. Also, a supplement goes throughout the skin, not just in one location. So while the capsules helped my eye area, they were also helping my lips, above my lips, around my mouth, etc. My current face cream is Perricone’s Concentrated Treatment and I do use that around my eyes, I just don’t buy a special cream.

  15. Amanda says:

    I’m an eye cream gal, because I like something richer for my eyes. I’ve tried eye gel, eye serum, and oil in the past, but none of them really work to minimize wrinkles. I think they are more for the prevention than solution. Sigh…

  16. Pollya says:

    I’m currently using both – gel in the morning and cream at night. Texture-wise, I prefer eye gels – same reason as everybody else: easier to apply, not sticky, less risk of milia seeds etc. But I have the impression eye gels/serums, by virture of their lighter texture, are more for hydration and maybe improving fine lines. Whereas for the deeper wrinkles, e.g. crow’s feet and the sort that will appear when you are 60+ years old (!), I think the creams will work better cos you need the lipids and ceramides in them to plump up the crumpled skin. So I like to think I’m killing 2 birds (or trying to!) by using both now :-). So when I use the eye cream at night, I tend to rub harder and longer at the crow’s feet area, since I want the effect more there (and hardly any risk of milia seeds there). Haha, maybe it’s all psychological…
    But from what I see, those “instant” wrinkle fillers are also cream-based — I’ve heard that they actually do work, but it’s really only for immediate effect, hence the “instant”.

  17. EcoBeauty says:

    I prefer serums/creams ’cause eye gels aren’t usually enough to keep my eye area moisturized. The skin around my eyes is extremely thin, don’t know who I got it from–mom or dad. It makes me very prone to fine lines and very dark circles. So I usually need a good cream/serum to keep the skin hydrated, moisturized and looking plumper.

  18. astrorainfall @ beauty box says:

    Hmm I agree with both cases for eye gel and cream…But in the end, I always choose cream because I need more moisturizing power in dry weather!

  19. sesame says:

    Ah…definitely eye cream for dry weather…I hadn’t thought about that!

  20. sesame says:

    Do you think serums are the same as gel as aibicon pointed out? It seems they are the same but gel can be slight more sticky to the touch. But usually if I use serum, I’ll still layer some moisturizer over in the night cos I find they’re not moisturizing enough.

  21. sesame says:

    You’re right about eye cream plumping up the skin…in fact, I find oil doing that too. I’ve tried some of those instant wrinkle fillers…don’t know…they don’t seem to do much for me. Maybe I didn’t try a good one.

  22. sesame says:

    I find oil good for erasing the lines temporarily but I still need an eye gel/eye cream.

  23. sesame says:

    NeoCell? Sounds very familiar! I’ll go and google it later. I’m two minds about using what’s on my face around my eyes. I think the night products work but not the day ones cos they tend to dry my eye area up.

  24. sesame says:

    Well, if the eye cream works well for you maybe it’s better and there’s no need for eye gel.

  25. sesame says:

    Well, I hope it works well for your neck. I find those products with thinner consistency works better for mine…somehow creams gives me bumps.

  26. Rola says:

    I use both. I use an eye gel for wake me up and de-puff treatment and I use a more intensive eye cream at bedtime.

  27. sesame says:

    That’s good cos I think we do need different eye treatments according to the time of the day.

  28. kay says:

    I prefer eye creams over eye gels but the key is to apply moderately and pat until everything is absorbed.

  29. Raelynn says:

    for me, i have to keep reminding myself that eye products are never miracle workers.. there are things that eye products can solve, things that eye products cannot.

    for a period of time, i applied something richer around my eyes because i felt that I was showing early signs of lines. however, i have developed millia seeds as a result. hence i am waiting to finish my current anti aging serum to move on to my next face serum which contains retinol so that it can help to purge the seed at night, as it has successfully done previously.

    based on my experience, eye serums, eye gels and eye creams are totally different things. eye serums (those really watery ones) are excellent at hydration, decongesting puffiness and sometimes relieving the bruising that gives us our dark circles. however they are unable to prevent moisture loss. eye creams are excellent at preventing moisture loss, reducing the appearance of dehydration lines, however for certain skin types, they tend to form millia seeds. eye gels are like the in between yet not as powerful as either. they provide a little hydration, and a little moisture barrier, but not as powerful as a serum not cream.

    for a period of time, it frustrated me, because it meant that i had to apply an eye serum and an eye gel (it was called an eye cream, but the texture was actually quite a rich gel), in order to hydrate and prevent moisture loss. i’m currently in the state of accepting that for now, applying 2 products is simply not worth the time and effort, so i’m applying my face serum in my undereye area, then topping with my eye gel. but at night, if your moisturizer is not too oily, a quick swipe at the undereye area after the eye gel will also be beneficial.

  30. L. says:

    It may sound silly but it depends on your skin condition (dry skin/combo/oily) AND where you live. I can’t imagine myself using thick and rich eye care products when I think of the hot and humid weather in Hongkong for example. However, living in Europe and suffering from minus degrees (it’s freezing cold over here….) a gel type/serum eye cream just don’t work. I need something that’s super rich (texture-wise) and caring in order to prevent wrinkles showing up. I’m fully aware that creams don’t work as great as gels against puffiness and dark circles but in my opinion it’s more important to protect the delicate eye area. At least it’s my top priority. If I really have dark circles I’d rather grab a good concealer to cover up these. lol

  31. sesame says:

    No, definitely not silly. Your comments make a lot of sense. I’m thinking now perhaps I compromised somewhere about the choice because of my preference for gel/serum type. I guess the thing is we tend to tackle what we think need immediate help first…at least in my case and it’s the puffiness and dark circles.

  32. sesame says:

    Very good points and I agree, eye area is a challenge when it comes to products. I find it hard to find one good eye product that works long term. Most of them either give me instant results and then fizzle out or it takes a long long time to see any improvements.

    I was also under the impression that eye serums are different until very recently. I have this product that is very watery and serum like and yet it’s called an eye gel. Eye gels tend to be a bit thicker and sticky in consistency. But I feel that eye serum is not sufficient for moisturizing…I always need to layer with some sort of moisturizer – a quick swipe like you’ve pointed out.

    Anyway I suspect my eye area is not improving cos of my sunscreen. It’s a bit drying and so with an eye gel, it’s really not enough.

  33. sesame says:

    Pat till absorbed…yeah, good tip. It’s something some of us tend to overlook.

  34. Raelynn says:

    perhaps the definition of serum, gel and cream is a game of semantics.. whether a product is a serum, gel or cream will depend not only on the texture but also on the ingredients that they use.

    i agree that the use of sunscreen always challenges my skincare routine.. it’s so hard to find a good sunscreen that is cosmetically elegant yet provide sufficient coverage and still be able to work with your skin type and regular regime.

  35. sesame says:

    I’m trying to ask one of the brands why they label their product gel instead of serum cos of the consistency…hope they’ll answer.

  36. Bee says:

    I agree with some of the other commenters here. As I am living in a area where the climate can get dry AND cold, eye creams definitely do a better job than gel formulas for me. My eye cream doesn’t take long to be absorbed from the skin, so it is very convenient. But I still have an eye gel for every now and then. It has a metal ball that cools the eye area and has a watery and gel-like formula. I always use that when I want to moisturize my eye area during the day. The eye cream is for the night and in the morning before i apply my make up.

  37. sesame says:

    I see…so eye creams are probably also a lot better when someone stays in an air-con environment for a long period of time too.

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