Hey everyone!

Summer has come to an end already, which is quite unbelievable. After those months of partying with friends, late nights out, and lots and lots of negligence towards our beauty routines, it’s about time to buckle down on it once again. While it’s totally understandable to slack off a bit during the summer, we gotta get back into our routines and show our skin some love. Replenish and refuel it for the coming winter. Where better to start than your nighttime routine? After all, as the summer winds down you will be getting back more time to get ready for bed.

So I’ve never really been big on eye creams before. I do have an extensive and lengthy nighttime skincare routine, but I haven’t found THE eye cream yet. Coincidentally, I recently got the chance to try out an eye cream, and surprisingly I quite like it. Granted, it’s also difficult to tell if a product is truly working, or if it’s just the placebo effect. But, I think it’s actually doing something. This isn’t just a nighttime eye cream, but can be used during the daytime as well. But I mean we all tend to have more time for pampering at night, so it is easier to use eye creams at night. Even though your eyes do need some love during the day too.

This product I’m talking about is the VIIcode the 2nd Oxygen Eye Cream O3. VIIcode is a brand that specializes in luxury skincare for the eyes. They offer a variety of eye masks and eye creams to choose from to help with anti-aging, dark circles, and moisturizing. VIIcode is currently a US based skincare company that originated in Austria.

Before I get into the details about this eye cream, let me give you the rundown on what you need to know about my skin. It doesn’t all apply to my use of the eye cream, but it does explain how my skin reacts to products, and my whole thought process when choosing skincare products.

I have combination sensitive skin. Meaning some areas of my skin are dry, while other parts are oily. Usually the outer edges of my forehead like closer to the hairline will be dry or feel drier, while the center will be a bit shiny. The areas on my cheeks around my nose and near my smile lines will get shiny too. Usually the area that really stands out with shine and oiliness are the areas of my cheeks by my nose. Like it’s a sharp highlight on camera when taking selfies… and not the good kind of highlight that you want either. The areas around my eyes do get a bit dry too throughout the day. Usually right under or near the inner corners. The hard part about wanting to moisturize mid-day is when you got on a full face of makeup that you don’t want to ruin. So I like to spritz on a facial spray to refresh my face when I need it. Truthfully, I used to think those kinds of facial sprays were just a scam and a waste of money (like 8 bucks for a bottle of mostly water? I can grab a spray bottle and fill it with water at home for free). While you can just spritz on some water to freshen up your face, something about facial sprays makes it actually work better than just feeling like you walked too close to the sprinklers in your yard.

I also got sensitive skin, which I’ve had to deal with pretty much all my life. It’s not sensitive to the point where it will break out in hives if I go near something. But, my skin will react to a product. And if there’s no reaction (like nearly no difference if used), then typically it means that it’s working. Basically if it does something it’s usually a negative reaction, and if it doesn’t do anything it’s probably because my skin is okay with it and the benefits are so subtle I can’t tell because angry red allergic reactions are louder than subtle and slow healing. Usually I will know within a day or so if a product isn’t working with my sensitive skin. I have been dealing with eczema my whole life too, so coupled with sensitive skin makes me really wary about trying out new products.

That being said, I was a bit skeptical to try out this product at first. But, after reading the ingredient list, and seeing that it was marketed for all skin types I decided to try it out. My skin isn’t super sensitive to the point where “for all skin types” won’t work; the sensitivity usually has to do with products that have harsher ingredients like acids and such. Also, because it claimed to be moisturizing and to help in repairing skin cells, I figured it would work well with the dry areas around my eyes.

This product in particular claims to:
Instantly feel moisturized and youthful
Minimize the look of fine lines and wrinkles
Absorbs well with no residue

As indicated by their website, it offers key ingredients such as elderberries which provide antioxidants to maintain skin cells, jojoba oil to firm and hydrate the skin which will reduce the appearance of skin wrinkles, and evening primrose to boost blood circulation and remove wrinkles.

I received the eye cream quite fast. As it is US based, it only had to be shipped within the country, and was thus faster. That’s something to keep in mind depending on where you live. The eye cream came in a small black drawstring bag, and had an activation strip with it. The black bag the cream was stored in wasn’t of a cheap, disposable material. Rather, it is a convenient yet chic way to travel with and store the cream. To be honest, I might even end up using the bag for other purposes too.

On the packaging itself there is a downside. What I don’t like about the container is how the words barely show up. It was a bit difficult to read the jar itself due to the way the jar was made. Because I was able to find the information online, that wasn’t too much of a burden to me to not be able to read it.

The activation strip is what set it apart for me. I didn’t expect it to come with an activation strip, and I didn’t really know what to make of it at first. It came in a small plastic bag, and I wasn’t sure how to use it. I was confused if it was a single use thing, or what. To save you guys the trouble of figuring it out, it’s something you use prior to applying the eye cream in order to help with activating your skin cells and massage the area. I honestly had no idea what it was at first. I thought it was one of those anti-moisture packets that come in bags sometimes, or that it was some kind of wipe or whatnot. Thank god I didn’t just toss it.

According to the instructions, you take the activation strip and run it along the curvature of your eyes to basically massage that area and activate it. As the description details, it will help your eyes to be better prepped for the eye cream.

I haven’t gotten to use the eye cream during the day yet, mostly because in the morning I don’t have a ton of time. I’m usually scrambling to get ready and out the door on time. However, I’ve really enjoyed using it at night. I like to pamper myself a bit when I get ready for the night, and really take the time to allow products to absorb. A couple times I also tried putting it on in the afternoon because I wasn’t wearing makeup that day, but my face really need a pick-me-up. I liked how that helped to perk up my skin once more.

When you first apply it, it feels very cool and creamy to the touch. It’s lightweight, and not super watery. With it being a creamier consistency, I was worried about it being too heavy. But, just a small little dab was enough. Like barely even a dab, as once you smooth it in one little dab proves to be enough. A little goes a long way. I’m not sure if it was just me, but when I first put it on it almost tingled just the slightest bit. Barely even noticeable. It went away once I massaged it in.

So far I don’t know if it’s really anti-aging or not because lucky me I’m barely in my 20’s so that’s not super evident for me yet. But, I have really noticed it helping with the dryness under my eyes. Perhaps it could be due to the placebo effect as well, but when I applied it at night the following morning my skin still felt quite hydrated.

Overall, I think that this eye cream was pretty good. I do plan on continuing to use up the rest of the container. Will I buy it again? Maybe not. It is on the pricier side. Perhaps in the future once I am settled with a good job, and not just a part-time job, I might consider it. For the time being I don’t see myself repurchasing it. Mostly because of the cost, and as a university student that is not in my budget! However, that is not to say I didn’t think it was was good. I definitely recommend giving it a try yourself, perhaps it could turn into one of your holy grail skincare items.

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BUT WAIT THERE’S MORE!! 

Haha did I sound like some kind of late-night commercial? If that caught your eye and made you stay, then I did my job.

Before you scroll and click away from this page after reading an intensive review about a product you may or may not purchase, I wanted to let you guys know I have a giveaway to share!

Sunglasses and magazine not included in giveaway (I just added them to make the photo more interesting haha)

I wanted to clarify that the winner will be chosen based on how detailed and well thought out the answer is. Not whether the tip is truly the best effective tip. Just wanted to clarify that part. 

If you want another chance to enter the giveaway, head on over to my Instagram and comment on THIS post! Same rules apply! What is your favorite beauty tip for eye skin care? 

This giveaway will end on September 18th! 

Have you ever tried out this eye cream before? What is your favorite kind of eye cream! Lemme know what you think in the comments below! 

Thank you for reading! I hope you are all having a great start in September so far!

Til next time,
~A