💕😌 Mask of the Week Challenge 😌💖

[eshoe]

Time to reset and begin again. The 2021 Challenge is finally here! 

Thank you @Aaliaa for starting this thread, and giving us a place to share our love for masks💗 Post as frequently or infrequently as you would like, with or without following the challenge. We love hearing about every masking experience, and suggestions are always welcome. 

This Week’s Theme: Rinse-off masks & peels (physical or chemical) that soften your face & body. Much gratitude to @keana1 for this new challenge!

Letter of the Week:  E

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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, if it's an exfoliating mask (include acid info if known), your overall experience, and whether or not you would repurchase. Don't forget to include a grade (thanks to @ShortErica for the idea) to help others along the way.

Most importantly, have fun and merry masking!

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   

[itsfi]

@lmaster, the packaging on this mask is very pretty, refreshing. I’ve used 2 masks from this line and really enjoyed them. I’ll have to see if I have the raspberry one; the results sound amazing! 😍

[lmaster]

@itsfi I'm going to have to try more from the brand,, but this was definitely an A+ 5⭐ mask!!

[itsfi]

@lmaster, definitely keep us posted on ones you try! 😍 Love it when a brand has several noteworthy masks (and other skincare goodies) as part of its collection! 💗

[lmaster]

Absolutely!! @itsfi 

[itsfi]

I is for Irish Sea Moss, International, and Interesting . . . 🤔

The I's have it. Irish sea moss is said to help rebuild damaged skin by imparting it with hydration and moisture to make it supple and healthy. International because based on the literature on the reverse side of the box, the sheet masks in this set are "responsibly manufactured" in China, for KNC Beauty, a Los Angeles, California based US brand, and apparently with some regulatory support from an UK based company. Interesting because the mask seemed more like a hydrogel mask than the bio-cellulose, as marketed.

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The 13-ingredients list of the KNC Beauty Big Drip Irish Sea Moss + Marula Oil Super Hydrating Bio-Cellulose Face Mask immediately caught my eye. The ingredients highlighted by the brand are Irish moss (aka sea moss; rich in Omega 3s, helps to rebuild damaged skin); marula oil (full of antioxidants, Omega 6 and Omega 9 and known for its anti-pollu-aging (I had to drop that in somewhere!) skin benefit;) and rose centifolia (anti-oxidant, moisturizing and helps to tighten pores and reduce redness). No alcohol or added fragrance in this one @lmaster @Shosh85. Sounds great to me; my skin could definitely benefit from these ingredients. I also found it noteworthy that this mask contains tremella mushroom in it, which I've found to be a useful ingredient for hydrating my skin. I do want to point out that this mask also contains coconut oil and mica, for those who may be sensitive or prefer that their skincare not include such ingredients. 

Mask Material and Essence: The essence is light, slightly viscous and has a subtle fresh, slightly earthy scent to it. The mask itself is a clear mask with blue sparkles sprinkled throughout so that when I bundled up the mask after removing it, it has a slightly sparkly pale blue hue to it - it's very pretty. 

Bio-cellulose? Or hydrogel?
Here's where the I for interesting comes in. The mask is marketed as being a bio-cellulose face mask. However, when I pulled it out of the packet, my first thought was "this looks and feels like a hydrogel mask."  Then I put it on and thought "this wears like a hydrogel mask, a good hydrogel mask at that." Hmmm.... Two masks came to mind when I was using this KNC Beauty mask - (1) the now discontinued Glow Recipe Watermelon Sheet Mask, though this KNC Beauty one was lighter but also more durable and adhered better, and (2)  Etude House Jewel Beam Gel Mask Twinkling Diamond which I very much liked. I went to look up my photo of and notes for the EH mask and they say it's a hydrogel mask. Interesting, right? I reached out to the brand to see if I could get more information because I'm curious whether it's a misprint with the packaging or whether I'm just confused. which is entirely possible, generally speaking, but I do sorta feel like I have a fairly good feel for hydrogel vs. bio-cellulose masks. I received a response back that says that the masks are bio-cellulose. I dunno, but I have 2 more masks from the line; I'll try to remember to post a pic of the mask if I find the material similar to the Irish Sea Moss version.

Fit & Adherence: This mask is much smaller in size and shape than other masks I've used. Initially, I thought it was a two-piece mask and that I just pulled out the top portion. Nope. It's the entire mask. It does have some ability to stretch and conform to my facial contours. The only issues for me fit-wise, was that there wasn't enough material to cover my entire forehead, which isn't unusual at all, and the eye and mouth holes needed some adjustments to better fit with my facial features. I typically need to snip off anywhere from an inch to two inches at the chin and jawline of a sheet mask. Not so with this one. Ooouh! You better believed I was both surprised and happy to discover this to be the case.  Adherence was wonderful!! My experience with hydrogel masks (it just looks and feels like a hydrogel mask to me!) is that adherence can be a challenge because there's a certain amount of slip to the material and essence that causes it to slide about. Not so with this mask. 

Performance & Results: I intended to keep the mask on for the recommended 20 minutes, but lost track of time and probably had it on for close to my usual 30, which was probably the long end of wear time for this mask; at least, for those with dehydrated skin like mine. My skin felt supple to the touch and nicely hydrated as I removed the mask from my face. The slightest bit of essence that remained was quickly absorbed, initially leaving the slightest bit of tack that dissipated within a few minutes. My skin looked and felt soft, lightly hydrated, and looked fresh and brightened, all results that I'm happy with.  

Overall Thoughts: I like this mask and am interested in trying out the other variations from the line. Irish sea moss is a new skincare ingredient to me and from what I've read about it, sounds like something that could be beneficial for my skin over time. All of the masks in this line contain Irish moss so that provides even more incentive for me to try them out sooner rather than later. 😁 

Ingredients (from kncbeauty (dot) com) 

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Aqua/Water/Eau, Glycerin, Chondrus Crispus Powder, Trehalose, Sodium Hyaluronate, Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil, Tremella Fuciformis Polysaccharide, Vitis Vinifera (Grape) Seed Oil, Sclerocarya Birrea Seed Oil, Rosa Rugosa Flower Extract, Mica, Allantoin, Caprylhydroxamic Acid

[Shosh85]

@itsfi  Hmmm, now I want to try this, just because I'm curious about the material. Was it thicker than you'd expect biocellulose to be?

I'm not sure I've tried a mask with Irish Sea Moss, but it sounds like a great ingredient to look out for! Glad this one turned out nice for you!

[itsfi]

@Shosh85, I'm excited that all these masks contain the Irish sea moss in it. I had fun doing some research on it and learning about it. The material was less bouncy/squishy than I associate with biocellulose and it adhered differently than how the biocellulose masks I've used before adhere. The look of the mask itself was also different ~ with biocellulose masks, I feel like the material is not completely clear, whereas with a hydrogel, even if it's tinted, there's more transparency to the material than in a biocellulose one. This "is it a biocellulose mask or a hydrogel mask" is presenting quite the experiment for me - FUN!! 😁

[Shosh85]

@itsfi That's probably when I would've wrote back the company and asked them to explain the difference between the two 🤔😉

[itsfi]

@Shosh85, lol. 😆 I contemplated that, but first I wanted to try out another one of the KNC masks and then compare it to other hydrogels and bio-cellulose masks. I’ll take photos and when I have more time, I may just to that - this, of course, assumes I’m right. 😂 

[eshoe]

Oooh a mask that reminded you of the GR one, @itsfi? So many notes you brought up about this one make it quite appealing! The question of material makes me want to try it for myself just to feel it. Making a mental note now to keep my eyes open for this one😉

[itsfi]

Yep, except this KNC mask was slightly more dense and less prone to tearing and adhered better than the GR watermelon sheet mask @eshoe, which I found to be very slippery every time I used it.

[lmaster]

@itsfi ohhhh this is very interesting!! Keep us posted if you hear anything from the company

[itsfi]

@lmaster, they got back to me and just said that it is bio-cellulose. I have a set of bio-cellulose masks set aside for use so that'll be a good point of reference for me to compare another one of these masks with the various bio-cellulous ones I have. We shall see.

[lmaster]

@itsfi alrighty then!! Lol biocellulose it is 😆

[itsfi]

Lol @lmaster! We shall see. I still think it’s very similar to a hydrogel mask. 🤷🏻‍♀️ 

[Shosh85]

R is for rice 🍚 

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Leaders Labotica Skin Soft Mask ~ Rice

Material: Thin cotton

Serum: Clear, watery

Scent: sort of a mix of baby powder and floral, but it was light and not too noticeable while the mask was on.

Fit: Just a little too long at the chin

Wear Time: About a half hour.

Tack: Very light and lasted less than 10 minutes

Results: My face was noticeably brighter and felt soft and smooth and comfortably hydrated.

I wouldn't say this is a favorite, but it did sure do a great job brightening! I'd definitely use again, but the scent is what's holding me back from repurchasing.

[eshoe]

Hmmm when I read your scent description it was easy to determine this would be a pass, @Shosh85. Baby powder and oil are a couple of notes I will happily pass!

[Shosh85]

@eshoe  I'm pretty sure I haven't smelled anything like it before. Definitely not my favorite and not what I would expect from a rice mask, but at least it was light! 

[lmaster]

@Shosh85 baby powder and floral 🤔 I'm very curious

[Shosh85]

@lmaster  Yeah, it definitely had a unique scent! 

[itsfi]

@Shosh85, great review set up. I love the thin material on these Labotica sheet masks! ❤️ I also really like rice as a brightening ingredient. 😍 It's been a while since I used this one; will have to try it again to see about the scent - the combination of baby powder and floral isn't something my nose generally likes so I understand that being  a 'no' for you with this mask.