💕😌 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💗

[elleb810]

@faeriegirl  

The Olaplex is great!

[Kim888]

Loving some winter-y masks for pampering this holiday season 

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I could not resist picking up the Trader Joe’s Peppermint Clay mask. This packaging totally looks like it came from Victoria secret pink circa 2005ish haha. Anyways, I found it had a light peppermint scent and was easy and smooth to apply. It did dry down very quickly quickly. When washing off, it has some scrubbing beads in it. This was a bit too drying for my dry skin; my skin felt quite tight after using it. I will probably use the rest on my body only.  

and I also used the Snow Magic version of the When masks. Like their other masks, this is a bio-cell gel feeling mask. It had a light citrus-y scent and felt cooling on. After my skin felt hydrated, but I don’t think this absorbed as well as other versions of the mask. 

 

[lmaster]

I totally thought that was a VS mask @Kim888 sorry to hear this version wasn't the best for you

[eshoe]

@Kim888 after a drying mask it would be nice to have a nourishing one! I just really want to know…when are there so many clay masks? Are the majority of maskers seeking out detox masks? I constantly find myself combing through pages of detox/pore-cleansing masks, and only a few hydrating ones. Brightening/glow masks seem to take up a small portion of space, but it is mostly clay masks. No need to respond, I am just thinking out loud about a question that has been on my mind for awhile now.

[Kim888]

@eshoe that is such a good point! I think it's so easy to get sucked into the allure of the idea of "detox" - like oooh maybe suddenly this mask will get rid of all normal clogged pores or something, but clearly that's not true haha 

[eshoe]

Oh yes, that makes sense @Kim888. I wonder if when most people think of hydration, they think of moisturizer. Masks are for clearing 🤷🏻‍♀️

[Shosh85]

@Kim888  I was considering buying that TJ's one, so I appreciate your thoughts on it! I bet it would work great as a body scrub though! 😃 I totally get the Victoria Secret vibe!

I really like a lot of the When masks, but this one didn't make it in my favorites. Sorry to hear it was unimpressive for you too 

[quspork]

Too bad about the dryness with the TJ mask, @Kim888.

[itsfi]

Good to know about the Trader Joe's mask @Kim888. My face winced when I read it was drying for you. My skin leans dry or very dry this time of the year so this sounds like a pass to me. The light peppermint scent sounds refreshing though. 

[Samtian]

I've finally gotten around to trying the SEPHORA COLLECTION Clean Face Mask Strawberry  It was a cold and miserable experience haha. I'm going to have to retry this in the summer when my house isn't so cold. It fit on my face well enough and I had left it on for about 15 minutes. My skin was red after but in the morning it looked fine. Can't say I noticed any nourishing but my skin did look a little smoother. I did notice a strawberry candy smell but not while wearing it. 

[quspork]

I'm sorry your experience was lackluster, @Samtian. The coldness can definitely be a bit much this time of year! I'm glad to hear the redness didn't stick around too long afterwards though. 

[itsfi]

Oh no @Samtian; I'm sorry to hear this left your skin red. 😣 I think time of the year, weather conditions, temperatures, etc. affect how a mask performs. This time of year, I will occasionally take a sheet mask with me in the shower, set it in the caddy and then use it after coming out of the shower, when the warm water and steam have made it less cool / cold.

[Samtian]

@itsfi That is smart!

[Kim888]

@Samtian @Oh no! It’s totally that time of year where in like I want the hydration but I don’t want a super cold face haha 

[lmaster]

@Samtian here's a hack for you,, heat up a bowl of water in the microwave and let the mask package sit in it for a couple of minutes,,b it'll be nice and warm

[Samtian]

@lmaster Ooh that is genius, thank you!

[sister13]

Oohhh, great idea! @lmaster 

[lmaster]

@sister13 I can't stand the cold at all,,, if I didn't figure this out,, I would never mask from October through March 🤣

[Shosh85]

@Samtian  Yeah, I mask everyday, and still can't use to that initial shock of cold to the face. Haha! 🥶 Glad the redness was only temporary!

[Samtian]

@Shosh85 Thank you! Haha the cold is horrible!

[itsfi]

Using X as the Roman numeral X (or 10) seems to work for fitting in with the letter of the week part of the challenge. This time, instead of 10 days, it's 10 minutes, as in masks meant to be worn for 10 minutes. 

Sheet Mask (discontinued):   

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"Slippery little suckers" is what I consider the best way to describe hydrogel masks in general and the Glow Recipe Watermelon Glow Jelly Sheet Mask in particular. This mask has been discontinued for a while; I found this one when going through a box I had set aside containing products from old sub boxes. While the mask is still slippery like I remember, it's less so, likely due to the age of the product. The yummy watermelon jolly rancher scent is still present in this light pink, 2-piece jelly hydrogel mask, though, as to be expected, the scent is much less pronounced. Cooling, hydrating, and soothing are all claims made by the mask, along with brightening and depuffing. I didn't notice any depuffing. Hydration and brightening were on the light side, but the cooling and soothing claims are on point and, if this mask were still around, I'd recomend it for use after a day in the sun or just after a long day.

Wash off Mask:  

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3 forms of clay (French green clay (kaolin), white clay (kaolin) and volcanic clay (bentonite), together with niacinamide and BHA form the nucleus of the gentle, creamy, clay-scented  Youth To The People Superclay Purify + Clear Power Mask with Niacinamide 2.0 oz/ 60 mL, which has a pretty smoky-periwinkle-tinted-charcoal-grey hue. Because my skin leans more dehydrated and dry this time of the year, using this all over my face is a no go for me and I'm even a bit hesitant to use it along my T-zone which, save for my nose and jawline, leans somewhat "normal". Since the mask claims to purify pores, clear skin, absorb excess oil and mattify, I limited its application to the recommended 10 minutes on my nose and my jawline. During this time, I experience some dry down with the mask but it never feels drying or tight. Rinse off is fairly easy, either with lukewarm water and a washcloth or just lukewarm water alone. Results were fine - the pores on my nose didn't shrink (not sure I expected them to) but they looked a little more clear, decongestedand. Likewise, the smidge of clogged pores and texture along my jawline were smoothed out. My current go to clay mask is the innisfree Pore Clearing Clay Mask 3.38 oz/ 100 mL; while this YTTP clay mask is nice, I find the Innisfree more effective at purifying and smoothing my skin.

Hair Mask:  

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The claim of Olaplex No. 8 Bond Intense Moisture Mask 3.3 oz/ 100 mL to transform dull, lifeless hair in 10 minutes seemed a bit ambitious to me, but as a fan of their products, especially their shampoo and conditioner, I was willing to give it a try, especially since I was able to get a hold of this deluxe sample as a promo gwp. Olaplex No. 8 has that same scent found in other Olaplex products - I'll refer to it as the signature Olaplex scent. A little of this product goes a long way - it has a thinner leaning (though not thin or runny) consistency and can be worked through my strands with general ease to detangle hair. Instructions call for applying No. 8 mid-length to the ends, which is fine by me as that is generally how and where I apply hair masks. I washed out the product 10 minutes later and after towel drying my hair, I let it air dry before calling it a night. This morning, my hair feels soft and smooth, with the usual errant frizzies all simmered down. My initial impression of the No. 8 Moisture Mask is that I like it. That said, I'm not sure how much I like it over any of my current favorite hair masks. Time will tell with that, which is fine by me as I have a plethora of hair masks to make my way through before picking up any more.