Behind the Scenes of Gwyneth’s Eye Cream Party

If some of the entrepreneurs gathered around the long tables at Gwyneth’s dinner for goop’s new eye cream had a few dark circles under their eyes, they had come by them honestly: It was March 15, and many had spent the weekend scrambling for the future of their businesses after the unraveling of Silicon Valley Bank.

“What a weekend,” sighed Gwyneth, looking radiant in a strapless sequined G. Label by goop dress. “Not a lot of sleep, but we made it.” If she looked suspiciously bright-eyed, the substance inside the little pots labeled “G” definitely got some of the credit. “You guys, this stuff is unreal,” she said. “We love vitamin C here at goop because it really works for skin, so we put it where many of us need it most: under our eyes. I’m 50—I’ve got some sun damage—and this cream got me through the weekend. It’s got all this color-correcting, depuffing stuff going on, and then you get benefits over the long term, too.”

Guests—from Rachel Zoe and Brigette Romanek to Jennifer Meyer, Erica Chidi, and Shani Darden—started with cocktails and mocktails fortified with vitamin C and carotenoids, key ingredients that make the eye cream so powerful on skin. Tomatoes were strewn around the tables (the cream’s carotenoids come from tomatoes), along with flowers, personalized silk eye masks from Slip, and plenty of creams.

As the dinner (flawlessly executed by Mimi Brown Studio) got underway, GP sat down for a chat with Maria Shriver, founder of Shriver Media and its digital publication, The Sunday Paper, as well as a cofounder of MOSH, a mission-driven brain health and wellness brand. Shriver had experienced a similarly challenging weekend and had a remarkable perspective on it: External events, she pointed out, are “out of our control. Let’s learn how to breathe. Let’s let it go.”