Realistically there isn’t anything that the FOREO Iris offers that you couldn’t do using just fingers, for free. However, it’s unlikely your fingers can move as fast or create pulsations in the same way, so doing it manually is likely to take longer, and not prove as effective.
What’s more, using the silicone Iris means that all the eye cream is absorbed into your eye area, and you’re not losing any by it being absorbed into your fingers.
We used the FOREO Iris for four weeks and the skin around our eyes looked fresh. The dark circles were reduced and it helped us get rid of the bags under our eyes. It made little impact in that time on our fine lines but we’re confident it will help in the long run as we’re starting to see the early signs of it.
The Iris is so easy to use that we actually look forward to using the Iris every morning and evening. When we forget to use it, we don’t feel as fresh or as awake and that alone is worth the price tag. Well, part of it at least.
Can the FOREO Iris eye massager really turn back the clock when it comes to Crow’s Feet and eye bags? Find out in our FOREO Iris review
Of all the areas on our face that can give away our age – or show just how tired we are – it’s the area around the eyes.
The skin around our eyes is thinner than almost every other part of our body. It also contains zero oil glands, meaning it dries out quickly when we’re tired, as we get older, when we don’t drink enough water, and if we don’t keep it hydrated. This then leads to fine lines and wrinkles.
A good way to think about it is like a grape. If you leave a grape to dry out, the skin shrinks and becomes crinkled. This is like what happens around the eyes.
In an attempt to undo this damage to our eye area, and make ourselves look younger, we’ve tried a whole host of eye creams (and serums, gels, eye patches, rollerballs…we could go on).
Our absolute favourite combination is the Caffeine Solution from The Ordinary, followed by the CeraVe Eye Repair Cream – but when applying the two products, we’re always worried about dragging the skin can cause further damage. This is where the FOREO Iris comes in.
FOREO Iris is an eye massager that forms part of the Swedish brand’s wider beauty tech line. We’ve previously reviewed its electric cleanser in our FOREO Luna 3 review, and now we’re putting the Iris to the test to see if it performs just as well.
Jenny Tai/mamabella Before we dive into our FOREO Iris eye massager review, we wanted to give you some context of where it sits in the market – including its main competitors – as well as detail more about how we tested it.
Inspired by the lymphatic eye massages that are common and hugely popular in Asia, the Iris gently massages the eye area using its proprietary T-Sonic pulse technology.
Our lymphatic system plays a major role in our body’s immune system and our ability to fight off diseases. In the same way that blood moves around our circulatory system, lymphatic fluid moves through our lymph vessels and this connects to our lymph nodes. As it passes through the lymph nodes, white blood cells then trap harmful particles, such as bacteria, and take them away.
If it stops, it can cause swelling and puffiness and is most common in the arms and legs. However, it can also make your face and eyes look puffy, too. Massaging areas with, and without swelling helps get the fluid moving again.
In the wider beauty tech market, there are very few products like the FOREO Iris. However, there are similar alternatives, depending on your budget and what you’re trying to achieve.
Best FOREO Iris alternative if you’re on a budget: There are a number of manual eye massagers, like the Eye Therapist (£10) tool from TempleSpa. Such manual massagers include two sticks that have metal orbs on the end and which can be stored in the fridge to give a cryotherapy feel around the eyes.
With such manual, orb eye massages you apply eye cream with clean hands, take the orbs out of the fridge and gently roll them around the eye area. You have to watch the amount of pressure you’re applying, to make sure you don’t accidentally drag the skin. You also have to be careful when applying the cold orb to the skin to avoid a cold burn.
Best FOREO Iris alternative for eye bags: Alternatively, you can buy heated eye products. The rechargeable Heated Eye Wand (£60) from Peep Club is aimed at dry and tired eyes. The reason for the warm compress is to help gently unblock the tiny glands that line your upper and lower lid – a leading cause of dry eye symptoms.
The massager helps promote lymphatic drainage, which helps depuffing. This makes it a decent FOREO Iris alternative if eye bags, rather than fine lines, are your biggest concern. Peep Club’s wand has a red LED light, designed to boost collagen but it’s not aimed directly at helping improve fine lines.
The best way to use a heated eye wand is to run it from the inner corner of your eye to the outer in 15 seconds stints for a total of 60 seconds. You then repeat this on the upper part of your eye. Then move to the other eye. This takes a total of four minutes for the whole routine which is time-consuming.
The Iris is made from silicone which not only feels soft on the skin but makes it easy to clean and keep hygienic. It only comes in one size and shape, but you can choose from four colours, meaning you can easily match other FOREO items that you have, or have it match your aesthetic.
The size of the FOREO Iris is perfect for holding it in the palm of your hand and in between your fingers, and it’s super lightweight.
The shape is a little odd, resembling an eye of a needle at the top, and a thin shaft at the bottom. We even did a double-take because of its resemblance to a vibrator…However, this shape is designed to make sure it reaches the contour of your eyes but doesn’t apply too much pressure.
While its price tag may seem expensive for what appears to just be a simple vibrating tool, you’re paying for the tech that’s inside.
The T-Sonic Pulsations are a trademarked technology and they increase how well your skin can absorb active ingredients from your skincare. This means that you either need to use less of a product for the same result, or the product will be more effective – both of which will save you money in the long run.
In particular, the pulsations can oscillate between 50-300 HZ and, depending on the FOREO product, will pulse at up 8,000 pulsations a minute. Any vibrations on the skin also help boost circulation which in turn increases your skin’s oxygen uptake. This helps firm the skin and causes it to glow.
FOREO Iris: At a glance
Price: £129
Colours: Magenta, Pastel Pink, Black, Mint
Speed settings: 8
Modes: Pure Mode; Spa Mode
Built-in timer: 30 seconds
Automatic shut-off?: No
The Iris has two modes. When in Pure Mode, the Iris gently mimics the feeling of a manual lymphatic massage, with light tapping motions, to get the fluid to move away from the undereye area.
Meanwhile, the Spa Mode combines this tapping with pulsations. It has a built-in timer that will gently vibrate when it’s time to move the Iris to the other eye, and it has an eight-speed setting.
Sadly it doesn’t have an automatic shut-off feature, but this is a minor inconvenience.
Due to its silicone design, the Iris is 100% waterproof and, with one full charge, you can use it 140 times. We found that we only ever used one mode and the default speed – because that worked our skin and seemed to do the trick – but it’s a bonus having more, should you need it.
What we didn’t enjoy is that the FOREO Iris has a proprietary charger, which we subsequently misplaced. We know it’s commonplace but it’s so annoying that we have a box full of cables for various tech gadgets.
FOREO Despite its range of features, speeds, and multiple modes, the FOREO Iris is surprisingly easy to use.
There are three controls on the front – a depressed on/off button, a plus sign above, and a minus sign below. Pressing and holding the round button in the centre turns the Iris and it will start pulsating while the curved head twists from left to right.
If you press the middle button once it starts the Iris with T-sonic pulsations, but if you press it again it stops, leaving you with the patting motion if you prefer a more gentle approach. It is possible to use this massager on dry skin but we found it most effective when used with an eye cream. Use the Iris before the cream is absorbed, so your skin is damp and the FOREO Iris glides over the surface.
We also tried it with an eye serum and while it still works, serums tend to absorb quickly meaning it’s easy to accidentally pull and drag the skin around the eyes.
The good thing about the Iris and its shape is that you can use the tip of it to dip into an eye cream pot, or use it to top up the serum if you want to avoid using your fingers at all.
We worked on our left eye first and it’s a pleasant feeling. The pressure is enough to feel like it’s working but gentle enough not to damage or pull on the skin. Don’t be tempted to push it into the skin as it won’t improve the performance.
After 30 seconds, we felt a small buzz and we knew it was time to move to our right eye. When the total time was up, the Iris buzzed three times. It’s a shame that it doesn’t automatically stop. We also assumed you had to press and hold to turn it off but you don’t. You can just press the central button twice.
Jenny Tai/mamabella Realistically there isn’t anything that the FOREO Iris offers that you couldn’t do using just fingers, for free. However, it’s unlikely your fingers can move as fast or create pulsations in the same way, so doing it manually is likely to take longer, and not prove as effective.
What’s more, using the silicone Iris means that all the eye cream is absorbed into your eye area, and you’re not losing any by it being absorbed into your fingers.
We used the FOREO Iris for four weeks and the skin around our eyes looked fresh. The dark circles were reduced and it helped us get rid of the bags under our eyes. It made little impact in that time on our fine lines but we’re confident it will help in the long run as we’re starting to see the early signs of it.
The Iris is so easy to use that we actually look forward to using the Iris every morning and evening. When we forget to use it, we don’t feel as fresh or as awake and that alone is worth the price tag. Well, part of it at least.
