Elizabeth Arden's Ceramide Eyes comes in a rather futuristic-looking pot containing lots of little capsules.

On one hand we like the capsules as the product stays fresher for longer as you haven't opened the bottle or jar. But on the other hand they are a bit fiddly - some of us resorted to nail scissors to cut the end open because they didn't all twist off that easily and if opening them goes wrong you'll get it all over the place!

The capsules are recommended by Elizabeth Arden for moisturising, reducing puffiness and easing fine lines. It's not clear from the packaging whether to use in the morning or evening or both - we opted for both. And according to the packaging one capsule is an application for both eyes.

Inside each is something of a cross between a serum and an oil. It's a nice texture, not at all greasy and it pats and smooths easily and gently into the skin. We found one capsule is far too much for both eyes in one application, unless you're perhaps doing a home facial and you could then pile it on as an eye mask, so we usually used half in the morning and half at night.

Most of us found it to be good on puffiness, especially when you use a whole capsule at night - that was almost an instant result. It was also very good for moisturising the eye area and some of our testers with particularly dry skin found that this soothed and helped reduce redness and soreness near the eyes. All saw a positive improvement in the feel of the skin - much smoother and on the whole a reduction in crepiness and fine lines.

If moisturisation and smoothing is what you'd like from an eye product then we would recommend this. Reducing puffiness is a bonus, but if that's your only eye problem then there are other products that would be better for you.

It won't touch dark circles - none of us found an improvement there - and deeper lines and wrinkles didn't see much of a reduction, if any.

A good product for if you're in your late 20s - early 40s with worries of fine lines or for those with dry skin.

Available from:
Beauty Counter Direct
Garden Pharmacy

We had mixed reports on this one... some found it to be exactly what they needed, especially for visibly reducing wrinkles (as it says on the box), but others felt it didn't do enough, some found no change at all.

Overall, testers agreed that the texture was good and the cream absorbs well into the skin. It was also noted that the cream felt protective, yet not clogging.

Recommended for ages 35+.

Available from:
Boots

This proved extremely popular with our testers and we're very surprised it doesn't get more coverage in the magazines.

All of us noticed a difference around our eyes after using this product... crow's feet and lines were visibly reduced, some of us noticed a difference after a week, others after 3-4 weeks. It is recommended that this is used morning and night, though for some of us once a day still made a world of difference.

Longer-term some of our testers noticed an improvement on dark circles too, with shadows reduced and even puffy eyes soothed.

Express Eye Treatment is an eye gel from L'Occitane's Olive range.

Very light and soothing - not at all greasy, oily or sticky - it improves the appearance of the eye area instantly by soothing puffy, tired eyes.

Longer term puffiness is noticeably reduced and the appearance of dark circles also reduced.

Great for mornings and travelling.

Available from:

We love this gel, especially on those dreadful Monday mornings and when we're a little hung-over!! Wonderfully cooling and soothing. It can be used throughout the day, over or under make-up, if you need perking up - just dab it gently around the eyes. An eyebright gel should be a staple product in your cosmetics collection and this one from Love The Planet is excellent value for money.

Suitable for vegetarians and vegans.

Availability:
Love The Planet

This is a very nice gentle product made from natural ingredients. Most of us found it moisturised the eye area well, though only one person said they found it made a noticeable difference to dark circles.