What is this stuff?
Is it possible that a cosmetic product can make eye bags and wrinkles disappear in 60 seconds flat? That’s the claim that My Perfect Eyes is making. I have to say I’d never heard of the product nor the brand it comes from – The Perfect Cosmetics Company – until Tuesday evening when the news broke…
And the big news is?
The product is sold on TV and online, and a viewer had complained to the Advertising Standards Authority, the advertising watchdog, that it couldn’t possibly do what it claimed. But the ASA looked at those claims, and the evidence the company had to show that it worked, and decided that it really DID do exactly what it suggested it could (the videos on the company’s website here make compelling viewing).
My Perfect Eyes wrinkle-smoothing gel
The Times newspaper rang to ask me to put it to the test, so I did, and the article is published here (if you are a subscriber and can get past the firewall. If not, keep reading here). It’s really easy to use. The product is a gel, so using the want in the bottle-top, you dab a bit of it onto the back of your hand, then use a finger to wipe it in a smooth sweep from the inner corner of the eye outwards. It has to go onto clean, dry skin – with no moisturiser or makeup underneath it, or it won’t work.
How can you resist?
All of us who have tried many products that promise the earth over the years tend to get a bit cynical about whether a product like this can possibly work. And yet, well, what if it did? What if this was the one?
So how does it work?
As the product dries, it tightens and forms a film that compresses the skin. It only takes a minute and it’s the strangest feeling, as if your skin was pulling inwards on itself.
I asked cosmetic dermatologist Dr Sam Bunting for an opinion and she said she’d seen this kind of product before:
Results
Well it certainly works, and it leaves the under-eye feeling very tight and a bit dry. I don’t normally have any puffiness under my eyes but there are plenty of wrinkles, and it somehow made these just vanish, so we got the pictures we needed for the newspaper. It looked so smooth that I didn’t mind that you can’t put liquid foundation or concealer on top of it (because anything wet will make the web of film under the eye soften and dissolve).
Any problems?
All was fine until I took it off. I tried with damp cotton wool, which softened the product, but it was quite difficult to wipe it away from the skin, and it felt rough. So I moved onto a creamy cleanser but it still wasn’t easy to shift and my under-eye-skin felt sore and looked a bit red afterwards. That was Wednesday. The next morning, the skin was still sore and puffier than usual. The result of the product? Possibly. Of course, being ever curious, my first thought was, ‘Now I can REALLY test the product – and used it again. Those are the pictures at the top of the page, from the morning-after, as it were. But this time I took it off straight away after I’d got the shots and used very ordinary calming skincare for the rest of the day. One more day on (it’s Friday today), my eyes are almost back to normal.
Will I use it again?
Maybe – but only when I really need it.
UPDATE – MAY 2018. I have to say, I haven’t wanted to try this product again, because of that follow-on soreness and puffiness.
