Charlotte Tilbury Cryo-Recovery Eye Serum Versus Wishful Eye Lift & Contour 1% Bakuchiol & Peptide Serum

Charlotte Tilbury Cryo-Recovery Eye Serum Versus Wishful Eye Lift & Contour 1% Bakuchiol & Peptide Serum

This anti-aging eye moisturizer is formulated around Caffeine and Sodium Hyaluronate to soften the look of wrinkles and hydrate skin.

This anti-aging eye moisturizer is formulated around Bakuchiol and Palmitoyl Tripeptide-5 to soften the look of wrinkles and refine skin texture.

What's inside

Key Ingredients

Benefits

Concerns

Ingredients Side-by-side

Water

Glycereth-26

Triheptanoin

Maltodextrin

Methyl Gluceth-20

Camellia Oleifera Seed Oil

Butyrospermum Parkii Oil

Phenoxyethanol

Alcohol

Lecithin

Caesalpinia Spinosa Gum

Dimethyl Isosorbide

Polysorbate 20

Glyceryl Stearate

Silica

Octyldodecyl Oleate

Benzyl Alcohol

Glycerin

Caffeine

PEG-100 Stearate

Carbomer

Octyldodecyl Stearoyl Stearate

Sodium Gluconate

Sodium Hyaluronate

Chondrus Crispus Extract

Ascophyllum Nodosum Extract

Escin

Sodium Hydroxide

Tocopheryl Acetate

Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice

Rosa Canina Fruit Extract

Polyhydroxystearic Acid

Octyldodecanol

Potassium Phosphate

Biosaccharide Gum-4

Plumeria Alba Flower Extract

Plumeria Rubra Flower Extract

Lithothamnion Calcareum Extract

Parfum

Wine

Amethyst Powder

Moonstone Powder

Quartz

Ruby Powder

Solanum Tuberosum Pulp Extract

Acetyl Tetrapeptide-11

Acetyl Tetrapeptide-9

Citric Acid

Sodium Benzoate

Potassium Sorbate

Succinic Acid

Dehydroacetic Acid

Limonene

Geraniol

Citronellol

Linalool

Water, Glycereth-26, Triheptanoin, Maltodextrin, Methyl Gluceth-20, Camellia Oleifera Seed Oil, Butyrospermum Parkii Oil, Phenoxyethanol, Alcohol, Lecithin, Caesalpinia Spinosa Gum, Dimethyl Isosorbide, Polysorbate 20, Glyceryl Stearate, Silica, Octyldodecyl Oleate, Benzyl Alcohol, Glycerin, Caffeine, PEG-100 Stearate, Carbomer, Octyldodecyl Stearoyl Stearate, Sodium Gluconate, Sodium Hyaluronate, Chondrus Crispus Extract, Ascophyllum Nodosum Extract, Escin, Sodium Hydroxide, Tocopheryl Acetate, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Rosa Canina Fruit Extract, Polyhydroxystearic Acid, Octyldodecanol, Potassium Phosphate, Biosaccharide Gum-4, Plumeria Alba Flower Extract, Plumeria Rubra Flower Extract, Lithothamnion Calcareum Extract, Parfum, Wine, Amethyst Powder, Moonstone Powder, Quartz, Ruby Powder, Solanum Tuberosum Pulp Extract, Acetyl Tetrapeptide-11, Acetyl Tetrapeptide-9, Citric Acid, Sodium Benzoate, Potassium Sorbate, Succinic Acid, Dehydroacetic Acid, Limonene, Geraniol, Citronellol, Linalool

Propanediol

Heptyl Undecylenate

Bakuchiol

Pullulan

Palmitoyl Tripeptide-5

Jasminum Sambac Flower Extract

Crataegus Monogyna Flower Extract

Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract

Ethylhexylglycerin

Cetearyl Alcohol

Sodium Carbomer

Xanthan Gum

Stearic Acid

Sodium Lauroyl Glutamate

Water, Glycerin, Propanediol, Heptyl Undecylenate, Bakuchiol, Pullulan, Palmitoyl Tripeptide-5, Jasminum Sambac Flower Extract, Crataegus Monogyna Flower Extract, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract, Caffeine, Ethylhexylglycerin, Cetearyl Alcohol, Glyceryl Stearate, Sodium Carbomer, Xanthan Gum, Stearic Acid, Sodium Lauroyl Glutamate, Citric Acid, Phenoxyethanol

Alternatives

Ingredients Explained

These ingredients are found in both products.

Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.

Caffeine is a naturally occurring plant compound found in coffee beans, tea leaves, cocoa pods, and guarana.

As an antioxidant, caffeine protects your skin from free radical damage caused by UV exposure and envionrmnetal stressors.

Early research also shows that caffeine can help calm redness, soothe irritated skin, and support hair growth by stimulating microcirculation in the scalp.

You might have seen eye creams marketing caffeine as a depuffing ingredient. This is because it is a vasoconstrictor meaning it can temporarily constrict blood vessels, though clinical evidence for this specific use is still limited.

Most skincare products contain this ingredient at concentrations between 1-6%. It is able to penetrate skin easily regardless of skin type or thickness.

Just so you know, a very small number of case reports describe caffeine-induced allergy. This ingredient is generally well-tolerated, non-irritating, and non-sensitizing for the majority of people.

Citric Acid is an alpha hydroxy acid (AHA) naturally found in citrus fruits like oranges, lemons, and limes.

Like other AHAs, citric acid can exfoliate skin by breaking down the bonds that hold dead skin cells together. This helps reveal smoother and brighter skin underneath.

However, this exfoliating effect only happens at high concentrations (20%) which can be hard to find in cosmetic products.

Due to this, citric acid is usually included in small amounts as a pH adjuster. This helps keep products slightly more acidic and compatible with skin's natural pH.

In skincare formulas, citric acid can:

While it can provide some skin benefits, research shows lactic acid and glycolic acid are generally more effective and less irritating exfoliants.

Most citric acid used in skincare today is made by fermenting sugars (usually from molasses). This synthetic version is identical to the natural citrus form but easier to stabilize and use in formulations.

Rosacea skin has a lower threshold for acids generally, with 62.5% of rosacea subjects in one study reacting to lactic acid in a sting test. This is why we mark citric acid as a potential rosacea trigger.

However, this ingredient shows up as a pH adjuster or chelator at roughly 0.1-1% in many products. These low levels are unlikely to be an issue for rosacea skin and becomes a potential trigger at exfoliating concentrations (20%). Because everybody's skin is unique, we recommend a patch test if you are unsure.

Glycerin (or glycerol) is a compound naturally found in your skin. It's a powerhouse humectant that pulls water into the stratum corneum.

Topically, glycerin does several things at once:

Your skin makes glycerin on its own (mostly from sebaceous oil breakdown) and shuttles it to your outermost layer of skin, or your epidermis, via aquaporin-3.

Aquaporin-3 is a transporter that is essential for normal skin hydration, elasticity, and repair. Interestingly, mice lacking in AQP3 have dry and less elastic skin that can be fully corrected with glycerin.

This ingredient is non-irritating, plays well with almost every ingredient, and works across all skin types. Typical use is anywhere between 3-10% but can go up to 79% in some leave-on products.

Just know very high concentrations (>40%) can feel tacky in low humidity.

Glycerin is the name for this ingredient in American English. British English uses Glycerol/Glycerine.

Glyceryl Stearate is made by reacting glycerin with stearic acid (typically sourced from plant oils like palm or coconut). It's an emulsifier, emollient, and mild occlusive.

Emulsifiers help ingredients like oil and water stay mixed so your formula stays nicely blended and uniform in texture.

This ingredient is typically used in concentrations between 1-10%. Studies have found it to be non-sensitizing, non-phototoxic, and non-photoallergenic.

A close cousin of this ingredient is Glyceryl Stearate SE ("self-emulsifying"). This just has a small amount of sodium or potassium stearate added so it can emulsify without a co-emulsifier.

Since this ingredient is an ester of a C18 fatty acid, it may not be fungal acne safe. The Malassezia yeast can potentially metabolize within the C11-C24 range.

Fun fact: The human body also creates Glyceryl Stearate naturally.

Phenoxyethanol is one of the most widely used preservatives in skincare (and for good reason!).

It has a large spectrum of antimicrobial activity and especially effective bacteria, yeast, and mold while only having a weak effect on your skin's natural microbiome.

On a cellular level, it disrupts the cell membranes of microbes by poking holes that make the cell leak. This shuts down the chemical reactions the microbe needs to make energy so it can no longer survive.

Another perk of this ingredient is that it stays functional across a wide pH range (3-10).

You'll often see it paired with boosters like Ethylhexylglycerin; one study showed that a 1:9 ratio of Ethylhexylglycerin to Phenoxyethanol damages bacterial membranes as effectively as doubling the Phenoxyethanol concentration on its own.

Typical use concentrations range from 0.3-1% depending on the formula, and this ingredient is capped at 1% int the EU.

Safety-wise, the fear mongering does not hold up to the evidence. The EU's Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety and FDA consider it safe as a preservative at up to 1%, including for children of all ages.

Adverse systemic effects only showed up in animal studies at exposures roughly 200x higher than what people get from cosmetics. And despite its very widespread use, this ingredient is a rare sensitizer and allergic reactions are uncommon.

Water. It's the most common cosmetic ingredient of all. You'll usually see it at the top of ingredient lists, meaning that it makes up the largest part of the product.

So why is it so popular? Water most often acts as a solvent - this means that it helps dissolve other ingredients into the formulation.

You'll also recognize water as that liquid we all need to stay alive. If you see this, drink a glass of water. Remember to stay hydrated!

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