Serena Williams shares her dark circles hack to look wide awake ahead of Wimbledon

If there’s one person who is no stranger to an early start, it's Serena Williams. The tennis pro is used to spending long days training, not to mention plenty of events and travelling, which means that dark circles and puffy eyes are inevitable.

Although she’s been retired since 2022, Serena racked up an impressive seven Wimbledon wins before that, which means she’s got her pre-game under-eye brightening routine down to a fine art. She finally shared her secret in her on Harper’s Bazaar’s YouTube channel, where she revealed two products in particular from MZ Skin are responsible.

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After applying the majority of her nighttime skincare routine, Serena then places the MZ Skin Hydra-Bright Gold Eye Mask under her eyes. She says: "Typically you want to leave this one for about 10 minutes,” before adding after removing them: “That’s like a bright, golden bright eye treatment, because I’m like ‘I hate dark circles around my eyes’, so I tried to get serious about treating my eyes.”

The gold eye masks retail £80 for a pack of five, which may be a splurge for some but their benefits are evident (and not just thanks to Serena’s bright under eyes). Each mask is infused with nano gold particles which boost how quickly your skin absorbs the ingredients, which include collagen, multi-molecular hyaluronic acid and seaweed extract, which is rich in nutrients.

Each of these works to firm, smooth and hydrate your eye, and the gold particles help to quickly reduce puffiness, fine lines and wrinkles whilst giving them a luminous glow. If you do want something a little more budget-friendly, you could always try the Peter Thomas Roth Gold Hydra Gel Eye Masks.

These retail at £58.95 for 30 Pairs, giving you six times as many patches as Serena’s for £20 less. They’re also designed to target dark circles, brighten your under eyes and reduce puffiness, however they don’t contain the gold particles which makes the MK Skin masks work their magic so quickly.

After removing the Hydra-Bright Gold Eye Mask, Serena then applies a layer of Soothe & Smooth Illuminate, also from MZ Skin, which hydrates and refreshes the delicate eye area. The under-eye cream contains Albizia bark extract which reduces dark circles by strengthening capillaries and detoxifying the area, whilst a tri-peptide complex boats collagen and elastin, making them look fuller and smoother.

It also contains plumping and hydrating hyaluronic acid and ceramides, which help smooth fine lines and wrinkles. In the video, Serena shared that she also sometimes applies the cream to her whole face whilst travelling, and joked: “Sometimes I have a little five o’clock shadow so I put a little on top of my mustache… I think that if it’s brightening it, it might brighten that too.”

The cream is another splurge at £110, although it does have some rave reviews from shoppers to back up its price point. For something easier on your budget, you could always try Ole Henriksen Banana Bright Eye Crème which currently has 20% off, slashing it from £38 to £30.40.

It contains vitamin C and gold extract which encourage radiance to increase over time and banish dark circles, uneven skin tones and fine lines. It also contains light-reflecting yellow mineral pigments to revive tired-looking eyes, with hydrating ingredients to plump and smooth the area.