Selena Gomez has an entire arsenal of products to help mask dark circles. There are the $4 eye masks she uses for de-puffing, the caffeine-infused cream she applies every morning, and the Rare Beauty concealer that’s a staple in her routine. But the one product she swears by ahead of a big event—when she needs to ensure her eyes look their best and brightest for hours on end—happens to be something that’s been a part of my personal routine for months: Olehenriksen’s Banana Bright Eye Crème ($40).
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The team behind Gomez’s glam revealed that they used the color-correcting cream (alongside a slew of other Olehenriksen products) to prep her skin for Sunday night’s Critics’ Awards—and from an ingredients standpoint, it was a perfect choice. The formula is jam-packed with skin-brightening vitamin C, and offers both smoothing and color-correcting benefits to deliver precisely what the skin under your eyes needs to look (and stay) camera-ready.
The formula
As any derm will tell you, vitamin C is the creme de la creme (no pun intended) for brightening skin and defending against free-radical damage, which is one of the main causes of skin aging. As a potent antioxidant, it protects your cells from the harsh effects that sun and pollution exposure can have over time.
Additionally, it helps to speed up the process of cell regeneration, which is key to targeting dullness. “When cell turnover is slower, it can lead to skin looking duller—and vitamin C helps prevent cell turnover from happening as quickly,” Frances Phillips, RD, a registered dietitian specializing in beauty, previously told Well+Good.
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From a color-correcting standpoint, the Olehenriksen eye cream is designed to mimic the “banana powder” that makeup artists often use to even out their clients’ skin tones. This yellow-gold translucent powder helps to reduce the appearance of discoloration and dark circles, and the banana cream has a similar tint that allows it to do the same thing. FYI, yellow can naturally help counteract and neutralize purple shades, which is why it’s ideal for concealing dark circles.
First Impressions
The first thing I noticed when I first tried the Olehenriksen eye cream was how pleasantly bright it is. Its color-correcting pigments balanced my skin tone. While I typically don’t like to apply makeup immediately after my skin-care products, this product is great for prepping skin before concealer or foundation (Gomez’s glam team is clearly onto something). Specifically, it kept my concealer from creasing and helped amplify its brightening effects.
What’s more, the cream deserves a gold medal for hydration. It adds an instant boost of moisture, which sticks around for hours after application. When I apply it during my nighttime skin-care regimen, the skin under my eyes still feels soft and supple the following day. It’s got a lightweight texture that allows it to easily penetrate deep within the layers of your skin—a single dab of product is all you need.
It’s worth noting that the product has a very faint citrus smell, but it’s subtle enough that it wasn’t a dealbreaker for me.
Is it worth it?
All in all, the cream helped to nourish and brighten my skin. I saw noticeable changes within the first week of using it, and those results improved over the course of two months. In general, my under-eye area was more hydrated, less puffy, and brighter.
Though the cream can increase skin radiance over time (it certainly did for me), if you’re looking for immediate effects, I’d recommend pairing the product with a concealer to mask dark circles.
Other beauty lovers have also sung its praises. “This cream is amazing!” raves one Sephora reviewer. “I have tried, like, at least 20 different high-end under-eye creams in the last six months; this is the only one that actually worked. My under-eye bags, dark circles, etc., are gone, and it adds a natural brightness.”
Another shopper echoes this sentiment, adding how effectively the cream targets puffiness and dullness. “I have to say, after trying multiple different eye creams even at drug stores, this is truly magic. My eye area is definitely brighter, and the puffiness does go away,” they write.
Plus, if it’s good enough for Selena Gomez, it’s good enough for me.
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