Kahina Eye Serum – Done Deal

After a face serum, another form of serums started to come along. It’s natural, I guess. Years ago, I was one of those skeptics doubting the efficacy of serums. I thought it’s one of those marketing gimmicks, trying to make us spend more. You do realize serums are usually on the expensive side, right?

Enter an eye serum. I wasn’t intrigued until I came across this product. It sounds.. believable. I know it promises the many things any other eye treatment products do. I kept thinking to myself, “Do I need this? What are the different ways can I use it for?”. The curiosity just got to me. If I never try it, I’ll never know. The price point was still within my budget. At that time, I saw my friend Nic used this too and she likes it a lot (read her review here). So into the cart it went.

Kahina Giving Beauty Eye Serum.

What it is (from the website):

An intense treatment utilizing active botanicals to address fine lines and wrinkles, puffiness and dark circles. Rich in peptides and antioxidants, the serum penetrates easily to:

• Increase lymphatic drainage to reduce puffiness
• Increase micro-circulation to minimize dark circles
• Reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles
• Restore collagen and improve elasticity

Kahina Eye Serum is housed in a Miron violet glass pump bottle. It carries 15 ml of liquid inside; small, but that’s the general standard amount for eye products. I definitely had no idea what an eye serum looks like before. So when I saw this, the only thing I could think of is it looks and feels like a serum. The liquid is thin. It’s like the runniest lotion it could be but on the borderline on being watery. I’m just being fussy here. I’m not sure what to describe the color other than it looks like a murky yellow with a greenish tinge. It has the slightest scent but I could only smell it when I actually put my nose on it.

I’ve read here that the star ingredient, Saccharomyces cerevisiae extract, is studied to be effective in reducing the appearance of dark circles by increasing the micro-circulation. It’s a skin-conditioning agent and a natural antioxidant. With a cocktail of peptides and sodium hyaluronate, the product is bound to be promising. Now, I don’t want to relay fake hopes here because eye treatments are always trickier than other skincare products. Read my Sunday Riley Start Over review and you’ll understand my hesitations. With most people’s problems are dark circles, the issue itself is almost impossible to deal with, especially when it’s inheritance.

But.. after using Kahina Eye Serum for a while, I do notice a difference. And as much as I prefer not to admit it, it does make my under eyes look brighter. It’s not that obvious, dark-to-light situation, but I can see the meaningful results. The areas look less somber. I need a less amount of corrector when I do my makeup. However, by any means, if I lack the sleep and in under stress, they will get darker again. The product can only do so much, but the health of the body will be the ultimate factor.

I do find it helps to tone down the puffiness as well. This is important to me because puffy eyes are really hard to cover up. With dark circles, finding the right shade of corrector and concealer can sort out the situation. Puffy eyes, on the other hand, require a god-like skill set of painting the eyes to make it look invisible. So you can see why this is a crucial aspect.

There’s an interesting statement from an online retailer called Amazingy about this product:

Kahina also has an Eye Cream, which we recommend if your primary concern is dryness, irritation or deeper lines and wrinkles. If your primary concern is dark circles and/or puffiness, we recommend this Eye Serum. Both address all eye concerns, including fine lines and wrinkles, and both have peptides and antioxidants to help further damage and aging.

Based on my personal experience, the Kahina Eye Serum does exactly those two. Spot on.

Another thing, I find my eye area has become softer and smoother. The skin is still delicate, but it’s not as fragile, if that makes sense. I don’t use a magnifying glass or anything to inspect the fine lines, but in hindsight, the area looks well taken-care of.

Again, please take a grain of salt with this.

I use Kahina Eye Serum on night time, 99% of the time. For every application, I pump about a size of a mung bean. I gently swipe and pat it over my under eyes, the outside corner and on my eye lids too. The formula absorbs into the skin quickly, making it easy for one to think she doesn’t apply enough. But really, this small size amount has given me the benefits.

Here’s the deal, I don’t find it to be the most moisturizing so I find myself often applying another eye cream over the top such as Sunday Riley Start Over, which makes a serious power couple. My favorite combination. Perfect for times where I need to look very awake in the next morning. Other eye products I like use on top are Guerlain Abeille Royale Eye Sculpt Serum and Tatcha Deep Hydration Firming Eye Serum (which I’m thinking to review in the future). Doubling on the eye serum, oh yeah.

Kahina Eye Serum can be used on the lips and neck too. I don’t use it on the neck because hell naw, this thing is tiny and expensive! I love to use it on the lips though. I take about half the size of that mung bean, very little but very efficient. Coat the lips evenly and the liquid sinks in just as quickly. At first, it was a weird sensation using an eye product for the lips, thinking I might poison myself. Everything is cool though. I don’t feel it’s that moisturizing, so I still layer NUXE Rêve de Miel over it to seal the deal.

As a makeshift lip serum, and for someone who has never tried any, this is quite a potent one. It makes my lips more plump and bouncy. The lines on my lips are still there, but they’re not as prominent. The texture of these lines are not as crepe-y, if you know what I mean. And because it seems to improve the circulation, the color of my lips look more alive, more rosy and less mauve than usual. I see even more distinguished results especially after using a matte lipstick during the day. If I use this Kahina Eye Serum + NUXE combo the night before, I wake up with soft cushion-y lips the next morning. Love!

The only thing that I don’t like is the liquid can get clogged into the pump and solidified. On a few occasions, I found myself cringing at the sight of the tiny lump. I had to throw it away because it’s unusable. But that’s more on the packaging issues, I guess. I love the actual liquid, obviously!

Another thing, because the Miron violet glass itself is quite heavy, I could never guesstimate how much is left inside without opening the bottle. I suppose I can try to open it, but I risk exposing the product, compromising the quality.

Kahina Eye Serum definitely opens up a new world to me. It’s a terrific addition to my skincare routine with its versatility and multi-function personality. I will repurchase this if I don’t see anything else that attract my eyes (ehem, a pun?). But I think I will anyway, because I really like what it does for my lips (and eyes)!