Review (5/5): Works for Eye Puffiness & Amazing Off-Label Headache Relief!!
This eye cream was far different than I was expecting -- but in a GREAT way. I'm 29-years-old, so the lines around my eyes aren't terribly deep, although they are probably deeper than many other females my age due to my sun-worshiping in earlier years. I do suffer, however, from severe seasonal allergies and am constantly plagued with dark circles ("allergic shiners" as they call them) and extreme puffiness of both my upper eyelids and just under my eyes (the infamous "bags").
To be honest, my impression of this cream at first glance wasn't too great. For starters, the jar of cream was much smaller than I had imagined, but I guess that's my fault for not noticing the (very) small-printed "0.5 fl oz" on the label in the picture. (I do think that this was a little deceitful though, because the size/amount of this cream is not listed anywhere on the product description.) In addition, while trying to read the teeny tiny print on the jar, I also almost immediately noticed a spelling typo on the front of the label that reads "Nautral & Healthy" rather than "Natural & Healthy." I know this seems like a rather minuscule and knit-picky detail to point out, but it did make me at least wonder about this company's quality control standards.
Despite my initial impression, I gave the company/cream the benefit of the doubt and have been using it for the last few days. With my first application under my eyes, the cream felt more on the "thin" side (similar to a lotion rather than thick cream), but while rubbing the cream into my skin in a circular motion, the moisture that the cream delivered was far better than I anticipated. It takes at least 3-4 minutes before your skin feels like the cream is completely absorbed, which gave me ample time to slowly massage the area during absorption (and felt very soothing and relaxing). I had absolutely no issues with any side effects or skin reactions such as burning, tingling, redness, or irritation. I noticed a small "immediate" reduction in the pores and fine lines of the areas I applied the cream, though not as impressive as some of the Retinol and Vitamin C serums that I've used in the past. There was no obvious difference in the dark circles or puffiness right after application, however, within about 30-45min, the puffiness started to visibly decrease and the area all around my eyes felt less tender/achy in general.
With each subsequent application, I noticed the same resulting decrease in puffiness as was observed initially. My puffiness did return each morning, but I expected because I'm still constantly being exposed to my allergens. (After all, the cream is meant to relieve a symptom of my allergies, not be a miracle cure for my chronic systemic condition.) I've noticed that if I apply the cream immediately before bed and spend more time rubbing it into my skin in the circular motions, I do have a noticeable decrease in the morning when I wake up compared to before I started using the cream. As far as the under-eye dark circles, I can't tell a difference so far - but in all fairness, I've only been using the cream for 4 days (twice daily) so there's still hope.
Now for the best part (in my opinion, at least). On the second night of using this cream, I had yet another one of my throbbing headaches (allergies are the worst!!) About 15-20min after my evening cream application, I noticed that my headache felt a little better -- I'm not saying that there was some miraculous change here, but it did feel less severe. This was very unusual for me, as I hadn't taken any ibuprofen or Zyrtec at that point (my usual go-to medications when my headaches are severe). The only thing I could think that I had done differently this time than any other time was that I applied the cream -- it was a strange connection, but stranger things have certainly happened to me. I went back to look at the ingredients listed on the jar and saw that it had rooibos in it. I had absolutely no idea what this was (and probably didn't notice it the first time I looked because I don't have a magnifying glass), but I looked it up online and read that it's an herb from South Africa with a laundry-list of health benefits -- including antioxidant properties and... headache relief?!?! Although still relatively skeptical that this was just a coincidence and that I had gotten "lucky" on my google search, I was still optimistic and proceeded to rub the eye cream on my temples and at the base of my skull to see what would happen. After a good 30-45min, my headache was almost completely gone. I know this headache thing sounds ridiculous and obscure, but I encourage anyone to research this mysterious Rooibos for themselves. I haven't had a headache as severe as that one since, but I have had a few headaches start to come on, and with each headache, I applied the cream to my temples, under my eyes, and to the base of my skull and the feeling has gone away each time within about an hour.
With all of this said, I couldn't rate this "eye" cream turned headache remedy anything less than 5 stars despite my initial less-than-thrilled first impression. Because the cream is light and only requires a very small amount with each application, I think the small jar will actually last me a reasonably long time, too. Between the headache relief and the disappearing eye bags, I would be confident in recommending this product to others. I was also fortunate to receive my first jar of this cream at a discounted price or free in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.