You know that very popular Facial Treatment Essence by SKII? The one deemed Holy Grail by lots of beauty bloggers and editors? The one that has a lot of women coveting for its hailed skincare benefits? It didn’t work on me. Not at all. In fact, the much cheaper Hada Labo Moisturising Lotion did a much better job than the Facial Treatment Essence ever did. I reckon it’s because of that that I don’t pay much attention to SKII products at all. And the fact that they do cost an arm and half a leg.

However, when I saw Val’s review on the Skin Signature Eye Cream, I must admit I was intrigued. I’ve been looking for a better eye cream for quite some time now. The ones I’ve been using are decent but not good enough. I decided to give SKII a go once more. So when I was at Changi Airport in November, I snapped one up to try. Duty free FTW, yo.

For an eye cream, this is quite rich. It’s a thick, ivory cream and one has to be careful to not use too much. I find that the slightest touch of a finger on the cream is already enough for both undereye areas. I use this on the orbital bone, very gently massaging the cream to the area.

The eye cream comes in a classic SKII red jar. It also comes with a tiny plastic spatula but since I’m the only one who uses it, I just use my fingers instead. Not the most hygienic way, I know, but after a while, I just got lazy with the tiny thing. 😛

It’s been 2 months since I started using the eye cream and I’m quite impressed at the results. I wasn’t expecting reduction of fine lines or even disappearance of wrinkles. Like I’ve mentioned many times before, nothing short of a miracle or surgery can do that. But what it does is that it keeps the undereye area well hydrated without the greasiness. I’ve noticed brightening of the area too, hence reducing the dark circles under the eyes.

This amount is more than enough for both undereye areas

With the area sufficiently “plumped” the next day, application of undereye highlighter or concealer is made easy. Previously, I found that my undereye highlighter tended to drag on the area and when I patted the makeup on, it didn’t blend very well. After using the Skin Signature Eye Cream, the same highlighter now works a treat on the delicate area. It’s now very blendable.

As the eye cream is very rich, I only use this at night. SKII recommends that you use this twice a day but since it’s very rich, I don’t want to risk millia seeds growing below my eyes. I still have a stubborn one under my left eye that I can’t get rid of.

I found another great use for the eye cream, and that is to apply it above the upper lip. From time to time, I get really heaty from dehydration and not drinking enough water. I don’t know how to explain “heatiness” to non-Asian readers so I’ll let this website do it instead. 😛

Anyway, my upper lip line would swell and it would get really painful. When the swelling has gone down, the upper lip line would harden into dry skin. For days to almost weeks I’d have a perpetual lip liner on my upper lip. It’s not a good look and it usually hurts like hell. I find that the eye cream softens the area without exacerbating it, keeping the lip line and the skin above it well hydrated and supple. I’ve tried this out with my regular moisturisers and none of them have worked to fix this issue. This eye cream does and with regular use, it prevents the swelling from starting on the area, even during my heaty periods.

It’s not a cheap eye cream to begin with. Heck, it’s SKII! But since I found not just one but two uses for it, the cost per use is reduced significantly. I bought this for around SG$110 (I think), and it retails for AU$145 in Australia. I’ve been using it for a couple of months and barely made a dent in the cream. It’s going to last me for at least 9-12 months from the looks of it, since I only need very, VERY little each time.

What I like about it: Keeps my undereye area well hydrated, reduces dark circles, also helps to keep my upper lip area moisturised

What I do not like about it: Nothing

Have you tried any eye creams by SKII before? What’s your go-to eye cream, the one that works fantastic for you?