💕😌 2024 Masking Challenge 😌💖

[eshoe]

Welcome to the 2024 Masking Challenge! 

This year is going to be a little different - simplified. Easy. Every month will have a new theme, and that's it. Feel free to join in whenever and wherever. Most importantly - have fun!

Spring Fling - Baskets and bouquets, showers of much-anticipated rain...this month's focus is herbal and floral sensory delights 💮

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January	Fresh Starts - Time for a re-set, or morning masking? However you see it, this month is all about new beginnings.
February	Winter Love - Whether it's a mask you adore, or something extra-special to care for dry winter skin, this month is for some soothing TLC.
March	March Madness - Competition is in the air! Find a $ dupe of a $$$ mask that is share-worthy? Or find a dupe that works even better than the original? Details, please!
April	Spring Fling - Baskets and bouquets, showers of much-anticipated rain...this month's focus is herbal and floral sensory delights.
May	Dew Drops - May Day lore says to wash your face in the dew you collect in the morning of the first day of May for radiant skin. This month is for absorbing all of that good-for-you H2O.
June	Summer Sunshine - Ice cream, sunglasses, SPF, check! Once the sun is down (or before it's up), extra care is most necessary. How do you give your skin cooling repair?

Mask of the Week Misc. Info & Previous Year's Links:

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To Post:

Each week features a different theme, as well as a letter of the alphabet for coming up with new masking ideas. 

Please include the brand and name of the mask you are trying out, as well as a photo if possible. Any other details are greatly appreciated, including scent, fit, adherence, mask type (hydrating, brightening, exfoliating, detox, sleeping, etc.) as well as your overall experience.

Most importantly: Would you repurchase it? 

Second most important: Have fun and merry masking!

2023 Mask of the Week Challenge

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2022 Mask of the Week Challenge

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2021 Mask of the Week Challenge

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2020 Mask of the Week Challenge:

https://community.sephora.com/t5/Skincare-Aware/2020-Mask-of-the-Week-Challenge-PART-1/m-p/4995162/h...

2019 Mask of the Week Challenge:

https://community.sephora.com/t5/Skincare-Aware/2019-Mask-of-the-Week-Challenge/m-p/4497678/highligh...

2018 Mask of the Week Challenge:

https://community.sephora.com/t5/Skincare-Aware/Mask-of-the-Week-Challenge/td-p/3615125   

Thank you @Aaliaa for starting this thread, and giving us a place to share our love for masks💗

[itsfi]

Ha! There’s usually coffee in this house every day @eshoe. ☕️ This is the first time in a long time though that it came from an outside source. The PTR mask I found at TJ Maxx or Marshalls - for $12.99!!!! 😍 It was last year but I cannot remember where (whether in town or when I was away for work) I picked it up. 

[eshoe]

WOW great deal on the pumpkin mask, @itsfi 🤩 Especially since it’s one you already know you love, what a fantastic find. 

Yay for fall coffee, it must have felt like such a nice treat. We tried making Frappuccino’s at home, and well...it just wasn’t the same:D 

[itsfi]

Yeah, I was taken by surprise at the price @eshoe, which I'm sure is what cemented my decision to purchase it. I always seem to find the best deals on skincare / masks at TJM / Marshalls when I go in not looking to pick up any of those things. 😂 Or, when I'm out of town. 

Oooh, a frappuccino. I can't even remember the last time I had one of those, from Starbucks or homemade. It must have been refreshing with the warm weather though. 

[PrettyPaint]

@itsfi  I always love pumpkin stuff, but I am particularly excited about it this year for some reason. Maybe because it's comforting. Do I spy a PSL? Mmmm. I was just thinking yesterday about how I probably won't have one this year because of social distancing. That's ok, because I just ordered some of the LE pumpkin spice nespresso capsules and will be making my own. 

That PTR mask will always be one of my favorites. I think I'll use it tomorrow morning, in fact.

And that will be really cool if Trader Joe's has a pumpkin line for the Fall. It's probably good I don't have one nearby because I would buy all the things!!!

[itsfi]

Yes @PrettyPaint! This is my first PSL for this year . . . and I think it will be my last, actually. I went to Target on an errand for my mom and got there before the store opened, so I was literally the only customer on the lower level and there was no one in line at the Starbucks so I went for it. As for it being my last PSL, I think my taste buds have become accustomed to just coffee, no extras; it tasted so rich and sweet to me. When I got back home, I ended up diluting it with coffee. hahaha! Going forward, I may just burn a pumpkin spice candle while I sip my coffee; well, I'll burn a candle when we're not in the middle of a heat wave. 🤣 BUT that pumpkin spice nespresso sounds delish! Hmmm . . . Making a note to self. "Self, time to restock on nespresso... and check out the LE pumpkin spice varietal." I am excited for all the pumpkin goodness that TJ's will have. I doubt I'll pick everything up but I always do enjoy seeing all the pumpkin treats. 

[PrettyPaint]

@itsfi  Oh, yes, the PSL is quite rich. And I truly love that you dilute espresso with coffee. I'm pretty sure I have done that before to make it last longer. Apparently Starbucks now has a WAP latte (white mocha, almond milk, pumpkin spice). I saw it in some random news article.

[itsfi]

@PrettyPaint, I think my tooth just started aching when I read about the WAP latte. I’m on board with the almond milk and pumpkin spice. But I’m not sure about the white mocha. That sounds so rich; too rich for me now. When I was in school, there was a popular cafe on my way to class that was renowned for its mocha bianca. I loved that drink when I was in school. Years later I was back on campus and for nostalgia sake,  decided to order one. Oh good grief. So rich. So much sugar. Give me espresso and coffee all day every day. Okay, maybe not all day. That would not be good. 😂 

[Shosh85]

@itsfi  Yumm, love a good pumpkin session - definitely makes you wish fall was here!  That PTR mask is a favorite of mine - sometimes I open it just so I can smell it 😂😋

[itsfi]

You too @Shosh85?! 😳🤣 I do that with a few masks and the PTR pumpkin is definitely one of them. It smells so good. 

[WinglessOne]

J = JayJun, and I just realized this sleeve fits the rainbow theme. I’d intended this to be J = Japan week, but it’s taken my skin longer than expected to heal from my bad oil cleanser mishap. I’m testing skin readiness by trying a new-to-me mask: JayJun Lecithin Barrier Mask. 

I've used several JayJun masks, but not this one.

Notes: 

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Claims: Strengthens skin barrier; hydrates, firms, and soothes skin; balances oil and moisture; provides dewy radiance. 

Ingredients: I chose this mask mainly for isopentyldiol (a humectant), niacinamide, hyaluronic acid, shea butter, lecithin, squalane, various ferments, ceramide, and calcium pantothenate which is the salt form of vitamin B5, aka pantothenic acid. (By comparison, panthenol is provitamin B5: it’s a substance our bodies convert to pantothenic acid.) There’s also a form of vitamin C (sodium ascorbyl phosphate) included, though it reportedly has trouble penetrating skin. Still, all those ingredients should make this mask a good hydrator, moisturizer, and skin brightener. 

Other interesting ingredients: pyridoxine HCL, aka vitamin B6, is said to control sebum. Then there's silkworm extract, which I assume comes from cocoons. My hair’s no stranger to silk protein in shampoos and conditioners, but I haven’t used much of this ingredient on my face in skincare products. And I see rosa hybrid flower extract, which comes from the black rose, aka black baccara rose. It’s ✨fancier✨ than damask rose (the usual perfuming rose ingredient you’ll see in skincare products; my skin doesn’t like that stuff). Black rose extract is touted as an anti-aging ingredient, but I’m never quite convinced it’s not used more for perfuming purposes instead. It’s the only iffy ingredient in this mask for me. 

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Water, Isopentyldiol, Propanediol, Glycerin, Butylene Glycol, 1,2-Hexanediol, Niacinamide, Sodium Hyaluronate, Acetyl Hexapeptide-8, Lactobacillus/Soybean Ferment Extract, Lactobacillus/Rice Ferment, Lactobacillus/Panax Ginseng Root Ferment Filtrate, Saccharomyces/Coix Lacryma-Jobi Ma-yuen Seed Ferment Filtrate, Saccharomyces/Potato Extract Ferment Filtrate, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Olea Europaea (Olive) Fruit Ol, Butyrospermum Parki (Shea) Butter, Hydrogenated Lecithin (320 ppm), Squalane, Cholesterol, Ceramide NP, Phytosphingosine, Hydrolyzed Collagen, Tremella Fuciformis Polysaccharide, Camellia Japonica Flower Extract, Rosa Hybrid Flower Extract, Prunus Serrulata Flower Extract, Silkworm Extract, Calcium Pantothenate, Sodium Ascorbyl Phosphate, Tocopheryl Acetate, Pyridoxine HCL, Tocopherol, Ethylhexylglycerin, Trehalose, Betaine, Allantoin, Hydroxyacetophenone, Carbomer, Tromethamine, Maltodextrin, Sodium Starch Octenylsuccinate, Silica, PEG-60 Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Disodium EDTA, Fragrance 

Performance: This non-stretch tencel sheet was full of thin gel serum that had a shea butter + very slightly rosy scent. I had to tailor the heck outta this sheet as it was too long from undereyes to chin: I widened the entire perimeter of the eye and mouth holes, cut the nose shorter, trimmed the chin slightly shorter, and cut a long wedge out of both sides (at my cheeks) so I could remove a lot of excess length in the center of my face. The sheet was too narrow to cover my jaw, so all the trimmings came in handy—along with the 1/5 handful of leftover serum I used to cover that skin and my neck. 

The mask felt fine on my face: not particularly cooling but not warm either, and more importantly, not irritating. After 30 minutes of wear, I spent 3-4 minutes massaging and pressing residual serum into my skin. I had no pilling afterward but my face did feel mildly tacky. 

Results: Very hydrated, supple, and moisturized skin. My face and neck had zero dryness, and my oily and dry zones were balanced. I'm sure I didn't need an additional moisturizer since shea butter’s quite occlusive, but I wanted to tone down the tackiness a bit—so I applied YTTP Superfood Moisturizer, which turned the mild tackiness into a plush softness. My skin did look more radiant, but that result wasn’t nearly as noticeable as the hydration boost, skin balance, and moisturization. 

I think I bought only one of these masks, and now I kinda wish I’d bought a few more—though I wouldn’t look forward to all the scissor snipping required for a decent fit. Looks like JayJun has discontinued this mask, but I’d pick up a couple more if I saw them somewhere. 

[Shosh85]

@WinglessOne  The results from this one sound great! I'm not sure I've ever noticed if I've used a mask with lechithin, but I'll have to watch out for it now 😉 

Love that YTTP moisturizer! I agree though, I'd love it even more if they changed the packaging!

[eshoe]

@Shosh85 @WinglessOne besides that, it seems like spatulas are becoming a luxury. YTTP used to include them, as did GR. It’s so important when a jar is the delivery method!

[WinglessOne]

@Shosh85 @eshoe  For me, missing spatulas is not an issue. Dip into a traditional jar with clean fingers and you'll cut down on bacteria. Besides, you should wash the spatula before dipping it into the jar anyway, so... why not just wash your hands instead? 😉 

Sure, I'm a bit biased about this because I don't like tiny spatulas for various reasons and won't use them unless absolutely necessary (for instance, removing delicate JayJun eye patches from their jar). But also, I care far more about the air exposure allowed by traditional jars: it can greatly degrade antioxidant ingredients. Considering how many times you open a traditional jar of moisturizer before using up all the product, that's a lot of air exposure over a long stretch of time. In the case of YTTP Superfood, you've pretty much killed any efficacy of its ascorbic acid by the time you're halfway through the jar. Possibly sooner than that; it's not like I've actually measured/tested that since I'm not a chemist, but I'm sure there's a study somewhere that states how quickly vitamin C degrades with x amount of air exposure. Ascorbic acid is famously unstable, after all. But it's not the only antioxidant that's sensitive to air and light. YTTP Superfood is loaded with antioxidant sources, so it's a shame to destroy their efficacy by keeping them in a traditional glass jar—or to package them in that jar in the first place. 

A friend of mine sprays rubbing alcohol on her index finger before dipping it into her Tatcha jars. She used to use all those fussy little spatulas but finally got fed up with washing and storing (and not losing) them. So now she just dips in with one finger that's been sanitized and water-rinsed (so as not to transfer rubbing alcohol to her face). 

[eshoe]

Yeah I think an area that always concerns me is once I’ve scooped it out, securing the lid, applying it and cleansing the spatula @WinglessOne. It’s the whole process to contain the goodness and keep out the yuck that is so consuming 😆 

The thing is...why would they (YTTP) not use the dark jar, like the Yerba exfoliant, instead of a clear one, at least? Better yet...how about a spray on Kale Cream, too. A customizable nozzle, like with cleaning products. Only this would allow for a thin mist or a good ‘foam’ for moisturizer 🤷🏻‍♀️ I also think it’s time for me to go to bed 😉

[lmaster]

@WinglessOne couldn't agree more @eshoe the knowledge this beauty has is outstanding!! 

[WinglessOne]

@lmaster  Aw, thank you! 

[itsfi]

Sorry to hear about the cleanser mishap @WinglessOne; good that your skin is healing. I’m working through my own skincare mishap recovery - ugh. 😑 

This sounds and looks like a nice mask; too bad it’s been / being discontinued. Oh, I spy tremella mushroom in the ingredients list, which my skin loves! ♥️ Wish it were higher up on the list. 

[WinglessOne]

@itsfi  I hope your skin heals up soon! On a positive note, anti-cootie masks cover up some of the visible damage. (Or in my case, most of the damage, since my oily zone took the biggest hit.) But yeah, I had to roll my AM and PM routines back to basics last month, stop all AHA exfoliation and vitamin C serum, and drop several other products, including frequent masks. I've spent the last few weeks following a VERY consistent routine that includes 2 anti-inflammation serums. I'm almost afraid to tell my derm how happy my skin is as a result. 🤣 

I wonder if JayJun will bring this mask back, or maybe reformulate/update it. They've stopped and relaunched their Real Water Brightening Black Mask at least once—and frankly, the old version was better than the new one. (I love the old version.) Hmm. I also wonder if they currently have another mask containing snow mushroom as a key ingredient... I'm sure they've added at least one new mask to their lineup by now, but I haven't kept up with their releases. Do you have a favorite snow mushroom mask? 

[itsfi]

Yeah @WinglessOne, the anti-cootie masks cover up the very visible signs of my mishap, but having that area covered for too long isn't great for me either. Fortunately, the worst is over, I think. I hope. Please, let the worst be over. I've been bare bones on the skincare products as well, and using hydrating sheet masks occasionally to keep the dehydration beneath the surface attended to. Sheet masking is usually just on the top half of my face recently, and the bottom half of my sheet masks have been re-assigned to my chest a few times per week. My propolis ampoule has been working overtime, but its anti-bacterial, anti-inflammatory, hydrating and soothing properties have been good to my skin. 

I'm usually a little bummed when products undergo a reformulation; I'm happy about brands sourcing better ingredients but sometimes the efficacy of a product gets lost with the new formulation. As much as I like sheet masks, well, masks in general, I'm perfectly happy with a brand having just a few sheet masks that are well curated and well formulated (i.e., Benton).

Oooh, snow mushroom. Eminence Snow Mushroom & Reishi Masque is a nice one. Joanna Vargas has a sheet mask with tremella mushroom as a star ingredient - Euphoria Sheet Mask, that makes for a lovely treat for the skin. I have The Inkey List Snow Mushroom moisturizer; am planning on incorporating that into a routine when the weather cools and my skin is less oily, though at this point, I'm wondering if my skin is just veering more towards dehydrated-combo all year round. I guess I'll find out this winter.

[eshoe]

Ok a very pretty mask pack, @WinglessOne, and  also a curious name. I didn’t know my skin needs protective layer of lecithin! 

Your description of the Youth To The People Superfood Air-Whip Lightweight Face Moisturizer with Hyaluronic Acid 2 oz / 59 m... is perfect. I spent a good portion of the year on a quest for a dupe, and although others have shared similarities, none compare in the way this does everything I need it to for my skin. No matter the season!

[WinglessOne]

@eshoe  Good news: just like hyaluronic acid and niacinamide, lecithin's included in many skincare products. I frequently see it in sheet masks. So, chances are your skin's already getting a good dose once in a while. 👍 It does lots of things for skin: it's a natural moisturizing factor and a liposome creator, so it can help active ingredients penetrate skin better and keep skin hydrated. I think it's in a lot of sheet masks more as a stabilizer, especially when it's listed in the second half of an ingredients list. So when I found this mask focused on lecithin as a key ingredient, I was very intrigued. 🙂 

And yeeeeesssss, YTTP Superfood is so good! It's still my skin's favorite moisturizer. I also haven't found a good dupe yet. I've found a couple other moisturizers my skin likes, sure, but they don't do quite what this one does for me. My only complaint is still the way it's packaged. I still don't understand why YTTP won't put this cream in an airless vacuum jar or a tube. I'm sure they'll claim glass is better for the environment, but surely there are recyclable materials one can use to create MUCH better packaging for this moisturizer. Nothing that contains l-ascorbic acid should be kept in a traditional clear jar. But since my skin's so in love with this cream, I keep buying it and transferring it (as fast as possible to reduce air exposure) to my own reusable airless jar. It's worth the hassle.