💕😌 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💗

[lmaster]

Oh no @eshoe sorry you looked sickly!! Scent also sounds intriguing

[eshoe]

Ha yea not a good look for me but worthy of noting in case anyone needs a brightening mask, @lmaster!

[missjeanie]

@eshoe hahahaha... curry??? Not what I was expecting.  You're reminding me that I have a pixi sleeping mask to crack open! 

[eshoe]

I wasn’t expecting it either, @missjeanie! I am very curious what the others are like. It was probably just a fresh, clean scent (where the ‘pool’ comes in), or maybe remnants of the Pixi mask stuck in my mind😉

[heartsmyface]

@eshoe  Curry dinner!!?  I wasn’t t expecting to read that.  And then the pool?   I’m trying to imagine what eating curry in a pool would smell like😅.  I like that it’s super brightening!  

[eshoe]

Yeah it doesn’t sound very appealing, @heartsmyface 😆 Blame it on a week without sugar! 

I do think you would enjoy the brightening effect. Reminded me of the When Snow Song. Not that anyone wants to be thinking of snow right now...it is awful how cold it is getting. Hope you are staying warm!

[quspork]

Ha, now a curry-scented mask would definitely be an interesting one, @eshoe!

[eshoe]

I think my senses have lost their senses, @quspork 😂 

[itsfi]

Following @Shosh85's lead, I started off the week yesterday with an H for honey 🍯, one of my favorite hydrators. 💛 This one also nets a check in the "Masks Good Enough To Eat" box. 😉 I did take a little taste and, it didn't really taste like anything; It was a little disappointing (though not unexpected) that it didn't taste like honey; but at least it didn't make me wince. Love the theme @heartsmyface ❤️ I'll have to see if I have any other masks that are good enough to eat.  Paired the sheet mask with some other honey centered goodies, all of which I've used before and love. That Briogeo Don't Despair, Repair Honey Hair Mask is a favorite; I've stocked up but I wouldn't be sad if they made it a permanent part of their lineup. Sooo good. 

 

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Material, Essence/Serum & Scent: The scent on the goopy, amber honey hued, jelly-like essence saturating the bio-gradable cotton cellulose of the Dr. Ceuracle Vita Propolis Antioxidant Mask reminds me a little of the Secret Key Banana Honey Mask, though the scent on this Dr. Ceuracle mask is less fruity, sweet and pronounced than the Secret Key (psssst, @Shosh85).

Fit & Adherence: The fit on this mask is overly large for my face shape as there is quite a bit of extra material all around the perimeter, which means it will be suitable for many face shapes and sizes. The size and shape of the holes for the eyes, nose and mouth are near perfect, with the only adjustment needed being a slight incision to the bottom inner corners of the eye holes to ensure that none of the essence would get too close to my eyes or worse, into my eyes. 

Adherence is wonderful - the mask wore comfortably for the half hour that I had on the mask and I felt like my skin was being nourished the entire tie. Such a lovely feeling. Ahhhh. There's plenty of essence too so I could have easily left the mask on for an additional 15-20 minutes, possibly longer, without it coming close to drying out. 

Claims, Performance & Results: The mask claims to brighten, moisturize, and with its antioxidant ingredients, protect the skin from signs of aging and pollution (i.e., anti-polluaging). Hard to speak to the latter anti-polluaging claim with one use (and I'm not entirely sure how I would even fact check that claim - something to think about...), but it really hits the mark when it comes to brightening and moisturizing. Immediately after removing the mask and pressing in the excess essence to help it fully absorb, my skin looked and felt hydrated, moisturized, plump and dewy, with no noticeable tacky or sticky feeling. This morning, after my skin had time to really take in all the goodness from the essence, my skin looked happy - refreshed, brightened and with no dryness or flakes; just soft, clear, supple skin that looked and felt nourished (which for me, means hydrated and moisturized).

Overall Thoughts:  I'm a big fan of honey so most honey masks start off on a good note. This one continued to be praiseworthy.  A definitely repurchase. 💛🍯💛🍯 

[eshoe]

Hurrah for another honey mask love, @itsfi! Looks like you are making some progress with the lip (gloss?) on the left, too 🙂

[itsfi]

@eshoe, yep; working my way through some lip balms and oils; easy to go through them quickly in the winter.

[lmaster]

@itsfi ohhhh jelly like essence?? Sounds great!

[itsfi]

@lmaster, it was very nice. My skin was happily hydrated after using this one.

[Shosh85]

@itsfi  Mmmm, one of my most favorite themes! 🍯 I really love that lip oil and have wondered about the sleeping mask - do you like it? I thought I remember you saying there was one product from the Milk & Honey line you didn't like? 🤔

[itsfi]

@Shosh85, my face, lips and hair have yet to be upset when I decide to mask with a honey theme. lol. 💛🍯 So I'm going to keep on doing it whenever I have the chance. 😉 Excellent memory, Shosh! From this A'Pieu line, I've used the lip scrub, lip oil and lip sleeping mask. The lip oil is by far my favorite of the three products. The lip scrub is the one I like the least. It comes in a tube form, which I like for its hygienic qualities but at least the tube I had, the scrubbies were so fine, too fine; but even so, I'd hardly get any in the product when I did manage to get some out of the opening. I am finding that I like lip scrubs in jars better. I use one of the mini spatulas from another product to scoop out the scrub. Now, the lip sleeping mask has grown on me. I've realized that I tend to be very gentle with my products and with the lip sleeping mask (and any lip product in this type of container, I just need to dig my fingers in and scoop it out; or, use a mini spatula.

[heartsmyface]

@itsfi   Oh yum!!!  All those honey products look so good! I’m nearing the end of my second last bear mask.  Haha, i must really love it if i’m stressing over it when I have hair masks bursting out of the cupboards.  :). 
Also I’ve been masking and taking photos all week  but haven’t been getting on long enough to do reviews.  I wanna get back to posting here.  I miss you all.  

[itsfi]

I know! Those cupboards really need to hold more, don't they @heartsmyface?! Hahaha! The Briogeo honey bear hair mask is just so good. 🍯 Love it! Love the scent. Love how soft and nourished my hair feels after using it. Love the cute packaging. Love it all!  💖 After the initial launch, I hoped Briogeo would at least consider bringing it back in a holiday set. Now I'm really hoping they make it a permanent part of their collection. 🤞

Miss you tons, hearts!! 🤗 Awesome that you've been masking and taking photos. 😍 We'll be right here whenever you have time to post! Stay warm!!! 

[WinglessOne]

Been using mostly tried & trues this year as I attempt to mask more in the AM than PM. But this morning, I finally tried the Uzme Coffee Mask. 

Oh hey, this is on theme for the week! 😄

Notes: 

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Claims: Improves wrinkles, redness, dark circles. Provides high level of hydration. Brightens skin tone. Lifts skin. Removes cellulite* and suppresses acne. 

*🙄 because: 

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Whenever a topical skincare product claims to get rid of cellulite, my bs alarm blares. Cellulite is normal and I wish people/companies/society would stop demonizing it. But when it comes to cellulite removal, a sheet mask cannot do that, no matter how caffeinated it is. I'm sure Korea's marketing standards/laws aren't the same as the US's, though plenty of American companies also bombard shoppers with false advertising and total bs claims—I mean, look no further than all the "skin detox" and "clean beauty" marketing (and no, I'm not happy about Uzme's "parabens are bad" marketing). Buuuuut anyway. 

Ingredients: Instead of water, this serum uses birch sap as its base. This sap is a good hydrator that's loaded with amino acids. Trehalose, sodium hyaluronate, and glycerin should boost this mask’s hydration ability despite the fairly high presence of alcohol (which is probably here as a preservative). Coffee seed extract and caffeine are present, as well as my wonderfully calming friends licorice root, allantoin, and green tea. Plenty of antioxidant sources there. 

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Betula Platyphylla Japonica Juice, Glycerin, PEG/PPG-17/6 Copolymer, Alcohol, Butylene Glycol, Propylene Glycol, Coffea Arabica (Coffee) Seed Extract, Sodium Hyaluronate, 1,2-Hexanediol, Carbomer, Arginine, Betaine, Triethanolamine, PEG-60 Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate, Trehalose, Caffeine, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract, Disodium EDTA, Allantoin, Fragrance 

Performance: The cupra sheet was stained brown by syrupy coffee serum and kinda reminded me of an undyed coffee filter. It had a comfy near-perfect fit: no snipping required, wide enough to cover my whole jaw, and it stayed put. The creamed coffee scent was strong throughout my session, which ended at 25 minutes when I felt the sheet start to dry up. I still had plenty of residual serum on my face and spent 2 minutes massaging it into my skin. Then I squeezed a small bit of serum out of the sheet and applied that where my skin’s usually driest, as well as my neck. I had moderate tack and no pilling. 

Results: Bouncy and plumply hydrated skin with a bright healthy (but not dewy) glow. My face also felt very tight, which made yawning or even raising my eyebrows an annoying experience. A spritz of my usual hydrating mist immediately followed by moisturizer was enough to break that cast, thank goodness. For the next couple hours, I smelled coffee whenever I turned my head. I’m a coffeeholic so it didn’t bother me, but anyone who uses this mask had better love that scent. 😂 

I'll use this mask a second time before trying to rate it on the wine tasting scale. It's better than average, so that puts it at least somewhere in the high 80s. I also need to compare it to a few other coffee masks. 

I have one more of this mask and am tempted to buy more, though I’m supposed to be on a sheet mask no-buy (I have over 500 sheet masks… I stopped counting around 510, and I didn’t even include all my backup boxes/packs of Abib and Peripera masks). This is the kind of mask I can see myself using on zombified mornings: it makes my skin look alive and the scent helps defuzz my brain. But I do need to use it again before passing final judgment. 

I see Uzme also makes a coffee mist… hmm, that wouldn’t count against my mask no-buy. (Note to self!) 

[eshoe]

Hmmmm kinda wish you didn't mention the coffee mist, @WinglessOne. My list for my post-no buy continues to grow! 

Aside from the bold marketing claims, it sounds like a pleasant-enough mask. I am slightly concerned about the use of steroids (spec. glucocorticoid) in masks, though. No that they are in this particular one, but it is something I think about whenever suspect ingredients are brought up. Different standards may also translate to omitted ingredients, so who really knows.

[WinglessOne]

@eshoe  Heh, the mist would be even easier/faster for me to use in the morning than a sheet mask, so I'll probably buy it soon. I've found only one English translation of its ingredients and I hope it's accurate, because the Korean language ingredients in Uzme's marketing images seems wrong for the mask and possibly the mist, which is very odd. Their 3rd product is a coffee scrub, and I suspect they repeated the scrub's ingredients for the mask and mist—and I know the ingredients they list (in marketing info) for the mask is wrong. Huh. Anyway, I'll let you know how the mist works out once I have it. 🙂 

As an occasional hydrocortisone user, I'm not super concerned about steroids. But I don't recommend overusing them. Even hydrocortisone can cause irritation and other side effects if overused, which is why I reserve it for my reddest itchiest inflammation flares that aren't alleviated by antihistamine pills. Off the top of my head, I can't remember using or seeing a sheet mask that contains a glucocorticoid. Anything sold in the US that contains a glucocorticoid should list it as an ingredient. 

[eshoe]

I will let you know if I try it, @WinglessOne. I still have not tried the Youth To The People Adaptogen Soothe + Hydrate Activated Mist with Peptides 4 oz/ 118 mL. If you have a recommendation for best soothing mist, I would love to know. I looked at the Dr. Jart+ Cicapair™ Tiger Grass Calming Mist 1.69 oz/ 50 mL an option, but haven’t heard anything about it. I *think* I may have seen a CosRx mist as well in one of your hauls? Anyhow, I want to have something on hand for the next time I mess up my skin. Because it’s bound to happen.

Occasional use doesn’t bother me either, but I have wondered if it’s a hidden ingredient in more masks. In which case, there is potential for overuse with daily masking. Who knows🤷🏻‍♀️