Masks #11- I may have a problem with hoarding masks...

I really do.. I am so afraid to count my mask count right now. I had it in two large containers and that has already exploded into stacking boxes upon boxes on top of the containers..    ｡ﾟ(*´□`)ﾟ｡

But I have to say. There are a couple of masks in this post that I really like!!! Like enough that I am considering breaking my no-buy to get some more while it's still on free shipping.. I am so weak.. (╯︵╰,)

Leaders Aqua Ringer Skin Clinic Mask 

A photo posted by @addictedtocrafts12 on Oct 21, 2015 at 10:26pm PDT

This mask.. *swoons* I am SO tempted to buy more.. ヽ(*≧ω≦)ﾉ Maybe.. Just ONE more box??? It usually is around $30 per box but Interpark has it for sale at $14 including shipping. Due to our crappy Canadian dollar, it works out to be closer to $20/box. Still a saving of $10!!!! I should buy another box.. Shouldn't I????

Okay, backing away from the craziness for now and back to the mask itself.

Ingredients: Sorry it's all in Korean. No translation right now. 

The mask is soaked in a clear, runny syrup like essence that has a very strong fragrance. It's floral, sweet, and kind of shampoo like. I would say it smells similar to The Body Shop's Moringa line. The smell does occasionally waft into my nose, but it isn't strong enough to give me a headache. Those who are sensitive to smell, you may want to avoid it or try one mask before investing in a whole box.

There was a bit of an optical illusion with the essence. It looked like there was quite a bit of essence left in the package so I tipped it over to pour it out. I got.. Nothing.. So I stuck my entire hand in there and managed to scoop some out. Guess all that syrupy essence just grabbed onto the mask.

My biggest surprise for this mask was the fit.. This was my note to self while putting on the mask "fit is AMAZING". I kid you not, I actually put down all caps in my notes as my first impression. It fits my face like a glove. Like the much adored LoveMore (not by me but many others) and My Scheming silk masks. It hugs my skin so closely that even with flash, I had trouble telling I had a mask on. The only way I can tell is the little folds around the jaw line. This mask goes all the way up to my hair line and the nose flap covers my little piggy nose perfectly. Down side is that it's similar to most masks, where it doesn't reach all the way to my ears on my chubby face. T__T You can see clearly there's quite a bit of space between where the mask ends and where my ears are.

I had the mask on, without a cover, for 30 minutes before the semi-translucent mask started to turn opaque. The leftover essence made my skin feel sticky to the touch. For some reason that night, I decided that was the end of my routine. I don't need anything else. So I basically had toner, Cosrx Blackhead Power liquid and mask and went to bed. NOTHING ELSE. Yup, I was so smart that night. But then again, it was still pretty warm out so it wasn't pertinent to use too much products.

The next morning, I woke up with non-sticky face. So either the essence has been fully absorbed by my skin or it's been wiped off on my pillow case. Either way, my skin felt really smooth and hydrated. I can't believe how hydrated my skin felt despite using only 3 products in late October. The warm weather plays a factor, but the fact that I can get away with it is still a big surprise. I am absolutely loving this mask and I REALLY want to buy another box or two to stock up. σ(≧ε≦ｏ)

My Scheming 7-in-1 Brightening Essence Silk Facial Mask 

This was one of the masks in the Brightening and Clarifying Mask book I purchased from Beautius. They suggested using the brightening masks in the mask book for three days in a row before trying the Donkey Milk mask. Sadly I kind of stopped after the second brightening mask. No reason other than I got too tired on the third night and just went straight to bed instead.

 Ingredients: As per the package. 

Water, PEG-60 Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Sodium Hyaluronate, Paraffinum Liquidum/Sodium Polyacrylate, Sasa Veitchi Leaf Extract, Nelumbo Nucifera Flower Extract, Propylene Glycol, Tranexamic Acid, Glycerin, Arbutin, Acetyl Tyrosine, Saxifraga Sarmentosa Extract, Paeonia Suffruticosa Root Extract, Aminopropyl Ascorbyl Phosphate, Scutellaria Baicalensis Root Extract, Glutathione, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, PEG-120 Jojoba Speciosa Flower Extract, Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate, Urea, Polyoxyethylenated Alkyphenol/Methylisothiazolinone, Fragrance

CosDNA

Nothing triggering with this mask! Yay! Glad to see Sodium Hyaluronate is third on the ingredient list. ^__^

The mask sits in clear essence that has a very faint smell, but I can't pinpoint exactly what it smells like besides it's a little plant like. This mask, typical of a Taiwanese mask, was DRIPPING in essence. I squeezed some out prior to taking it out and it was still dripping everywhere. （￣□￣；）

It comes with only one pearl paper. The instruction said to use the pearl paper to place the mask on to your face before removing it and adjust the mask. But as you can see from the picture above, the pearl paper is kind of stiff , causing it to not sit properly on my face. I ended up taking the pearl paper off and used a mirror to put on the mask. I prefer it this way but often end up being the mask rolled up on my face and I have to remove it completely and reapply. (*´ω｀*)

These are silk masks, just like the LoveMore masks. I mentioned it before and will mention it again. They cost half the price of the LoveMore masks. If you look on BGO, the Taiwanese price for the My Scheming Mask and LoveMore is both $299 NTD/~$12 CAD per box. Except My Scheming offers 10 per box instead of 5 per box. They are more readily available through e-tailers than LoveMore, though LoveMore has gained more traction online. For Canadians who has a T&T in their city, My Scheming is more accessible as I believe T&T is still carrying them and often have sales. The price per box is usually around $13.99 CAD, which works out to be cheaper than online as our Canadian Dollar is doing so bad right now. So I recommend checking out your local T&T before placing an order online.

Okay, little rant about pricing over, back to the mask.

 (｡・//ε//・｡) 

True to a silk mask, it hugs my skin very well. There are some folds, as you can see above, but they are primarily due to the fact that there was no slit along the jawline. I am loving the fact that it's a little bit oval and longer on the sides, just so it can reach my ears!!! I always appreciate that little extra bit of mask.

I had the mask on uncovered for 30 minutes before taking it off. My little problem with this mask is that it dries inconsistently. The upper lip area dries out the fastest, which I kind of understand as it's the smallest piece. But my left eyebrow dried out faster than the rest of my face... So weird, just the left eye brow area.

Anyways, results wise, I noticed my cheeks are less red and my skin tone is evened out. My skin looks brighter to me, but I am not too sure.. ԅ[ •́ ﹏ •̀ ]و Using brightening products on a pale skin makes it hard to tell the results.

My Scheming Mandelic Acid Brightening Mask 

Another silk mask from the Mask Book. As you can tell from the packaging, Mandelic acid is derived from almonds. According to Wikipedia, it is often used as a component of a chemical exfoliants. 

 Ingredients: As per the package. 

Water, Polyoxyethylenated Alkylphenol/Polyoxyethylenated Sorbitan Monolaurate, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Glycerin, PEG-60 Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Urea, PEG-120 Jojoba ESters, Tranexamic Acid, Sodium Hyaluronate, Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate, Xanthan Gum, Propylene Glycol, Paraffinum Liquidum/Sodium Polyacrylate, Prunus Speciosa Flower Extract, Mandelic Acid, Prunus Domestic Fruit Extract, Nelumbo Nucifera Flower Extract, Sasa Veitchii Leaf Extract, Liluk Candidum Bulb Extract, Iodopropynyl Butylcarbamate, Methylisothisazolinone, Fragrance

CosDNA

This is after being squeezed while in the package, it's still dripping on me. 

The mask is very similar to the 7-in-1 Brightening Mask above. The mask was dripping wet despite being squeezed before taken out. It has a very sweet note to it, but also a chemical base note. I am assuming it is partially due to the fact that they are from almonds? Artificial almond flavouring often has a sweet almond flavour that leaves a chemical aftertaste. 

Similar to the 7-in-1 Brightening mask, it hugs my skin so well that it looks like I am wearing nothing at all on my face. I did end up taking it off after 35 minutes due to the same reason. It started to get really dry in certain areas of my face. 

My face appeared to be brighter, though like I said above, sometimes it's hard to tell due to my pale skin. (Yes I am bragging ✧٩(ˊωˋ*)و✧) But I know it calmed down the flush on my cheeks. My only complaint is that it's not moisturizing enough despite having Sodium Hyaluronate. But I am just picky, this is a brightening mask, not a moisturizing mask. 

LoveMore Black Pearls True White Mask Sheet

I decided to give LoveMore silk masks another try before I write it off completely. Considering how I already tried out two brightening masks for this post, I thought why not try the whitening one frrom LoveMore.

 Ingredients: As per the package. 

Hydrolyzed Pearl, Ganoderma Lucidum (Mushroom) Extract, Royal Jelly, Polygonum Multiflorum Extract, Locinera Caprifolium (Honeysuckle) Flower Extract, Ubiquinone, Chlorphenesin,Methylparaben, Xanthan Gu, Hydroxylethyl  Urea, Glycerin, Hyaluronic Acid Oligomer,Tranexamic Acid, Fragrance, Water

I am so happy to see pearl as first ingredient on the list! Though I do wonder if Taiwan have the same ingredients listing rules as Canada. So for now, I will assume they use a similar listing rule as us. Even if it's just to fool my self for a bit.  I do like the ingredients list. Pearl, honeysuckle, ganoderma, royal jelly, polygonum multiflorum, and hyaluronic acid. A couple of those ingredients are probably foreign to those who aren't Asian. But Ganoderma and Polygonum multiflorum are viewed as having anti-aging properties in Chinese culture. So in addition to brightening, the ingredients is supposed to provide anti-aging properties. 

The mask was sitting in clear essence that have no prominent smell to it. If I sniff really hard, it has a kind of a chemical note to it. 

As with the other LoveMore masks, there was a bit extra mask on my forehead, little small around the mouth area (as you can see with the curled upper lip area above), and a little long on the nose (hence the flipped nose piece). Other than that, it hugged my face very well, and it does extend pretty close to my ears. 

I wore the mask with the Daiso silicone mask cover for 25 minutes before taking it off. Afterwards, I left the mask on for another 20 minutes. There was some extra essence on my face that sunk in quickly and does not feel sticky to the touch. With this mask, I did find my face to be noticeably brighter but it was not as moisturized as I would have liked. I think this "flavour" of LoveMore silk masks is on the "to keep" list. (*^▽^*)

When comparing the result of the brightening masks between My Scheming and LoveMore, I find that LoveMore produce a better result. But economically, I would choose My Scheming simply because it is cheaper and its result is not that bad compared to the price.  Though if I am honest, I have no idea why I buy brightening products when I can barely tell any difference. [ •́ ‸ •̀ ]

LJH Vital Firming Hydrogel 

**Cannot link to HKC Plaza as their website is currently down**

I was introduced to this mask by Fanserviced. She had a review of it on her Instagram and I just had to get it!!! I ordered it from HKC Plaza for $4/mask including shipping. Unfortunately due to stupid Canada Post, I didn't receive it until a month and a half later. So after all that waiting, I just HAD to try it on rightaway!!! 

Ingredients: Sorry it's all in Korean. No translation right now. 

The hydrogel has a very sweet smell to it, kind of like lychee. Unfortunately, it did turn into a chemical/stale cigarette smell right afterwards. Thankfully it's faint enough that I can disregard it after a few minutes.

Typical of hydrogel masks, this mask comes in two pieces. It is one of the thinnest hydrogels I tried so far. It doesn't have mesh to hold it together. It's similar to the Foodaholic Pearl Shining Hydrogel mask where it's just two pieces of gelatinous essence, but much less delicate.

The pieces comes all folded together. The upper and lower pieces are separated by a single piece of translucent "pearl paper"**.  Each piece is also backed with a texturized pearl paper. I don't think I took it off correctly. ∑(O_O；) 
**I refer to all the backings as "pearl paper" regardless of their translucency or thickness**

I separated the two pieces first by removing them from the smooth of pearl paper, and then I removed the texturized pearl paper. I think the proper way is to remove the texturized pearl paper first, then remove the mask from the smooth piece of pearl paper. 

Why would I say I removed it wrong? Well, there's a reason why there is a smooth and a texturized pearl paper. The mask has two different sides. The texturized side goes against the texturized pearl paper and smooth side goes with the smooth pearl paper. If you read Fanserviced's review, you'll know that the texturized side goes against your skin. It's quite an ingenious idea. Those little pattern creates grip so it sits on your skin regardless of your movements. I love hydrogels but hate when they are so slippery I have to lay down to prevent them from falling off my face. So this "put it on and forget it's on" kind of hydrogel is great!!! Ｏ(≧▽≦)Ｏ

Sorry for using texturized SO freaking much but I don't know what to call that pattern. Waffle cone? Honeycomb?

The hydrogel felt thin and delicate to the touch but I find that I can easily adjust it without causing any tears. It fits my face quite well. There was a bit of tenting around the jawline so I feel like a slit there would be beneficial. Though because it's a hydrogel, it is bound to be less flexible than a regular sheet mask. My other complaint would be that the mouth hole is too big. It extended well past the corner of my mouth. So I kind of feel like I got the outline of a clown's mouth on my face.

Even though it stayed on my face very well, I chose to use the Daiso silicone mask cover. Not for the movements but for any evaporation of the precious essence. This is a $4 mask (close to $5 in CAD), so I want to make sure all that darn essence goes into my face and not into the air.

I accidentally left it on with the mask cover for 70 minutes as I must have been busy playing some kind of game. The exposed area, aka the upper lip and nose area, was dried up by then. So I simply shifted those areas so they no longer touch my skin and continued with my masking for another 15 minutes. After which, the mask started to feel thinner so I removed it. There was no extra essence left on my skin to be patted in. Though my face felt very smooth and soft to the touch.

I was ready to love this and cry for my poor wallet. But alas, a day later, my skin started to show signs of rebellion. ｡ﾟ(*´□`)ﾟ｡I started to break out, and I haven't introduced anything new since I tried the mask. So unfortunately, the mask was just too much for my skin. I need to spend time translating the ingredients and see what is causing my skin to react from it.

Overall Thoughts

Overall, I definitely will try to stock up on the Leaders Aquaringer mask if I can.. I just can't right now due to being on a no-buy. I would restock on My Scheming silk masks, but probably not the brightening ones as I don't think I need it. As for LoveMore, I will keep trying all the flavours I got but most likely won't pick it up again. The LJH I had high hopes for, I really enjoyed it but won't pick it up since it is pretty expensive and caused a reaction with my skin. 

Haul

Oh man.. I really shouldn't buy so much things, but I do.. *stands up* Hi.. I am Alex, and I am a shopaholic.. I buy too much things and takes my sweet time in using them up. 

Some of these hauls goes all the way back to August, but took its sweet time getting to me.. 

#1: Skin18 Freebies: 

First up, my Skin18 freebie order from middle of August. This package took FOREVER to get to me. As in a month an a half!! It was shipped out August 17, I didn't receive it till October 8th. The package also came to me all ripped up. Thanks so much Canada Post!!! *sarcasm right there*

A photo posted by @addictedtocrafts12 on Oct 8, 2015 at 11:58am PDT

I ordered quite a bit of freebies again.. Looks like some of the freebies are still available for grabs if anyone wants to try them out. I find the shipping charge to be reasonable, works out to be about a $1 per mask. Skin18 has advised they are providing tracking numbers to all their orders so now it shouldn't take over a month to deliver. *We can only hope with Canada Post* 

I also ordered one of Etude House's Skin Note hydrogels as it was the cheapest I can find and I didn't have to pay any additional shipping. I honestly was so tired from waiting for it to arrive that I just put it with the rest of my masks and never looked at it again. 

Though I just want to say the customer service at Skin18 has been great. They filed for lost package for me when I haven't received my first freebie package in a month and promptly sent a replacement to me. They were willing to just let me return the replacement package to them, meaning they lost out on the postage paid. *Not gonna lie, I am glad they wanted it back, I don't think I want to have any more of those hydrogels* Once they received the returned package, they even sent an email thanking me and offering extra samples in my future order as their way of saying thank you for my trouble. 

#2: Mask Genie's Oriental Pouch #2 - LoveMore Edition Restock 

This was bought back in June (wow, that was so long ago), but Genie had trouble restocking some of the masks so that caused delays, and the fact that I accidentally had it shipped to my parents' address. I didn't receive this package until a long while after it's arrived. Luckily I couldn't wait and placed my BGO order of Lovemore masks right after ordering the pouch and was not waiting anxiously for this. 

The pouch comes with 10 LoveMore silk masks. But because I already had a few of the flavours, I picked out the duplicates and left it for my mom to try. I can't remember what those duplicate flavours are, sorry! But these are the ones I got left. I am curious to try the top row as they seem to be a different series than the two that's readily available at the moment. 

#3: Beautius Haul 

A photo posted by @addictedtocrafts12 on Oct 6, 2015 at 7:35pm PDT

Beautius is a new beauty website based out of Hong Kong. Their shipping is really reasonable! $2.99 - $4.99 depending where you are in the world. The shipping is super fast too! 7 calendar days for it to arrive in my mail box!

I ordered the My Scheming Facial Mask Book in Brightening and two Freeset Donkey Milk mask in whitening. The rest are just samples~~ So much samples!! I even got a handwritten note from Tracey, the founder. It was incredibly sweet! I think I will definitely shop more from them if I see anything else I want...Or when our sucky CAD goes back to close to par with USD so everything doesn't cost so much more than our US counterpart. 

They also have this points system where you get specific amounts per item you order, and you get some more for reviews! They are quite diligent in giving out those points! I just posted them on IG and a couple of minutes later, *poof*, I got an email advising me I got points for review! So nice!! 

I love the My Scheming Masks! They are silk masks like Lovemore but cost half as much and produce better results in my opinion. I may have ordered another of the book from eBay. 

#4: Dowaja Haul

A photo posted by @addictedtocrafts12 on Oct 14, 2015 at 11:19am PDT

Excuse me while I cry in the corner for a little bit...

Okay, I am okay. I am just sad that Dowaja has closed up shop! They were SOO good to communicate with! I didn't mind the fees they charged at all! I may have been considering putting in another haul when they announced they are stopping service. 

Okay, back on topic. Back in Chuseok, Shara Shara Korea had a sale where you get the Honey Bomb + Berry Bomb for $30 including free domestic shipping. I originally wanted the Aqua Bomb because I have an obsession with anything promising moisture and it was only $15! Sadly they were out of stock and Dowaja suggested this set instead. So I decided to get it. 

Dowaja kept me informed when they had a delay in shipping due to the amounts of the same items ordered. They even helped me keep shipping down by taking out one of the freebie hydrogel masks so I can make it under 1000g. Hey I don't mind sharing the products if it means saving me some money in shipping!

I have already started using the Berry Bomb and will do up a post about it. Sadly... I don't think this All In One Ampoule is for me. I broke out and I suspect the AIO was the cause of it. Which is odd since my skin can take anything I throw at it. So I will do more testing with it once my skin is adjusted to the winter weather and is back to its normal happy self. 

#5: TesterKorea Haul 

A photo posted by @addictedtocrafts12 on Oct 16, 2015 at 8:34pm PDT

This order was purely to get the samples of Banila & Co's Miss Flower & Mr.Honey Cream. I requested this and a day or two, TK delivered and had it in stock! 

I also ordered some of the Cosrx Acne patches as I had some bad reactions and had no spot treatments on hand. I had the infamous Benton snail essence on hand but since it started to develop a long string within the essence, I been afraid to use it. Spoiler alert! I love these patches! Wish they weren't so expensive! I may have ordered some more from Jolse as they worked out to be about $3 per patch including shipping.

The masks are purely ordered to max out the shipping weight and to add to my ever growing mask collection. 

TK was quite generous with the samples this time. I got two boxes of the Skinfood vial trial sets and a packet of foil samples! So much samples for such a small haul. Compared to my measly one pack of foil samples for $70+ haul.. T____T 

#6 Bonjour HK Haul

 I mentioned in my Battle of the Lip Treatment, I placed my BonjourHK order primarily for the Pure Smile lip treatment and the LJH Propolis Ampoule. I haven't tried out the ampoule yet but I have been using the DHC cleansing oil. It will be in an upcoming post against Banila & Co's Clean It Zero. ^__-

The only downside was that I thought I was getting the Cinderella bottle as it was the picture shown on the English website. But I got the three princesses version instead. Oh well... I also thought it was bigger than the actual size. But that's okay, I can finish it faster this way.

#7: HKCPlaza

A photo posted by @addictedtocrafts12 on Oct 15, 2015 at 7:45pm PDT

This was also a package that took its sweet time. It was ordered on August 27 and I didn't receive it until October 15. Thanks again Canada Post!!! *Shakes fist*

I ordered the LJH hydrogel masks after Fanserviced's rave about it. It wasn't bad, as the masks were $4 each including shipping. I believe HKC Plaza has raised it back to normal price, which is around $7. Maybe it's best for my wallet that my skin doesn't like it.

#8: eBay 

A photo posted by @addictedtocrafts12 on Oct 15, 2015 at 7:52pm PDT

After trying the My Scheming brightening masks I bought from Beautius, I decided to buy the Book of Facial Masks in moisturizing. Beautius didn't carry it at the time so I ordered it from a Taiwanese eBay store. It cost the same as Beauitus with free shipping. No samples except for one little tea packet.. T__T

I received it in two weeks and I haven't tried any yet due to my skin acting up. But I will post reviews once my skin is back to normal. I have high hopes for this mask as the brightening ones were really good!

#9: Interpark Hauls:

A photo posted by @addictedtocrafts12 on Oct 20, 2015 at 6:15pm PDT

A photo posted by @addictedtocrafts12 on Oct 23, 2015 at 7:51pm PDT

Interpark has lots of free shipping items at a discount. I ordered the BIG sized Banila & Co Clean It Zero and it arrived within two weeks. It appeared to be authentic so I decided to order more.

Unfortunately they only allow one free shipping item per order so I placed three different orders. They were all shipped separately but all arrived within 2 weeks!

I ordered the Leaders Aquaringer Skin Clinic Mask, which is almost like a silk mask. It's wonderful! I am so tempted to order more! There is also the Mediheal N.M.F Aquaring mask and the ReEn Yungo Hair Treatment/shampoo. I haven't tried the Mediheal mask but I have started using the Yungo treatment. So far I like it despite it's herbal smell!! Yes.. Eventually there will be a post.

#10: Secret Key Mystery Box

A photo posted by @addictedtocrafts12 on Oct 28, 2015 at 5:29pm PDT

Last but not least, I got my Secret Key mystery box last week. I placed it in the end of September but unfortunate for me, Canada Post decided to treat it as an unregistered parcel so it took a month once again.

I chose the anti-aging as I thought I would like to try their 24K Gold line. But honestly, I can probably buy the items cheaper from Jolse. Oh well. I like the surprise factor. :) 

That's all I got! I know, SO much things but SO little time!! I am taking it easy because my skin acted out so I want to get it back to normal before forcing new things on it. I am also on a NO BUY until the new year. In the mean time, I will force myself to finish up the posts I have planned. ^_^

Masks #10 - A little of everything

Skinfood Glacier Water Gel Mask

I bought this mask at the end of 2014 when Sasa had a shipping sale where it is free shipping with no minimum purchase limit. I been hoarding it and treasuring it for no good reason. These are so hard to find now. They are not listed on most sites and outrageously priced on eBay unless you buy it in 10 pieces. Memebox does sell it at a reasonable price but considering it's US only, that's not helpful for the rest of us. So no links to any sites. Sorry!

 Ingredients: It's all in Korean and I am not translating it. But it looks like someone already put in the effort of translating and putting it for analysis on CosDNA. Please look below for the full ingredients list.

CosDNA Analysis

It looks like the most offensive ingredients are Algin and Chondrus Crispus. They are pretty high up there as acne and irritant triggers. So if you got sensitive skin, I would avoid it.

The mask was drenched in a watery essence, which promptly dripped everywhere as soon as I took it out. I think for hydrogels I prefer if the essence were thicker. It's not like you can squeeze hydrogels like you could with cotton sheet masks. So the only option is let it drip everywhere while you are trying to put it on. Not cool.

As for smell wise, there wasn't any strong prominent scents. Just a little herbal like and a bit chemical smelling.

Like the other hydrogels, it comes wedged between two clear backings so the user can separate them with ease. It also comes in two pieces, a top piece and bottom piece. The top piece fit my face okay, a little long on the nose but I just flipped the nose piece up. The bottom piece fit horribly! I couldn't get the left side to fit my face properly without causing lots of tenting. I eventually gave up and just left a "tent city" on my chin.

The mask is quite thin, I would say thinner than the Innisfree one I tried. I accidentally scrapped it with my nails and I could feel the plastic mesh despite my short nails.

I had it on for an hour withe Daiso mask cover and another 25 minutes without the cover. I still had some extra essence after I took it off, but those sunk in quickly and was not sticky at all.

It made my face softer and look even toned. It also calmed down a few of my little bumps. But I wouldn't repurchase. It doesn't fit my face well and it is so hard to find. I can buy other ones with much more ease.

**I took pictures with the dried mask but it looked scary as heck so let's not scary people even though it's almost Halloween**

Foodaholic Pearl Shining Hydrogel Mask 

This is the mask that I ordered from Skin18 during their free masks promotion. That whole ordeal was just painful. Not Skin18's fault, they were great. They sent replacement package and offered me more samples in the future for returning the extra package. But just Canada Post is very frustrating as they have become more and more unreliable and holding my package hostage for more than a month. But that's whole other issue that cannot be solved because they are Crown Corporations and no matter how much we complain they aren't going to change their ways.

 Ingredients: As per the package. 

DJ Water, Glycerin, Butylene Glycol, Sodium Hyaluronate, Disodium EDTA, Hydrolyzed Collagen, Locust Bean GUm, Arrageenan, Guargum, Agar, Potassium Chloride, Methylparaben, Propylparaben, Phenoxyethanol, PEG-60 Hydrogenated Caster oil, Ubiquinone, Ceramide-3, Lecithin, Arbutin, Panthenol, Accharomyces, Ferment Filtrate, rh-Oligopeptide-1, Pearl Extract (28mg), Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Synthetic Fluorphlogopite, Titanium Dioxide, Fragrance

Ummmm. WHAT THE HELL IS DJ WATER??  What is that? Water molecules that also DJ in their spare time? Or water that's been spit out or sweat out by DJs?

Secondly, there is so much spelling and spacing errors. I get English is not their first language.. But still...

Ok, honestly, as soon as I tore it open I regretted it. THAT SMELL!!! The smell just comes bursting out as soon as it's open, and assault your nose and would not leave at all!! It's this extremely strong sweet floral perfume smell. I think it should be okay at a much MUCH lower dosage. But this is STRONG! I feel like fragrance should be the 3rd or 4th ingredients in the ingredients list because it is STRONG.

The mask is sitting in a little puddle of gold coloured essence, and the mask itself is also gold coloured. (I am trying to be polite, but let's face it, it's more of a urine colour.) The mask is in two pieces and sits between a white pearl paper and a clear plastic backing.

As for the mask its self, it's very delicate. It is essentially gelatinous essence cut into the shape of a mask. It does not have the mesh material in the center to retain its shape. The ingredients list includes Agar, which I am sure is what's holding its shape.

That being said, the mask is so delicate, it can rip very easily. I accidentally ripped it a little bit when I took it off and that just started the mask's disintegration into little pieces. Definitely use caution with this mask.

This mask is also different in that the eye cut outs and the mouth cut out is included with the mask. So I think the production must have been cut out the holes and slap two pieces of backing on it and package.

The mask didn't fit me well. The mouth hole was outrageously big, fit for a clown. I had to do a lot of rearranging to make it sit properly. There was just so much issues and I had to keep adjusting until it sat properly. Though once I am happy with its position, the mask didn't move at all

I took it off after 30 minutes because I couldn't stand the smell any longer. The mask was still very moist but I know some has been absorbed since it felt thinner to the touch. I was surprised my face didn't feel sticky after I removed the mask.

Result wise, I didn't see much difference. I would not purchase again, or use even if it's free. It's interesting how it's just like a mask made from jello, but it's so delicate and didn't sit right. The results and that horribly strong smell just deter me from ever using it again. And to think I still got a few of these hydrogels sitting in my basket... I gotta go through this a few more time.. T____T

A'Pieu Sweet Melon Sheet Mask

Now we are moving from hydrogels back to the normal sheet masks. These I bought off of TK as they were 3 for $1! That is so cheap!! I had to try it. Unfortunately TK has sold out of it, but you can request it and see if they will restock it.

Otherwise I can only find it on W2Beauty for $8.48, which works out to be $2.82 per mask instead of $0.33/mask + shipping. I don't particularly support this e-tailer as I don't particularly agree with their mark up. But that's my opinion.  I know some people like W2Beauty and orders from them frequently. Please make your own judgement after doing some research.

 Ingredients: It's all in Korean and I am not up to translating it.

The mask was drenched in a clear essence that has this sweet melon smell, just like those sweet melon flavoured drinks. It does have a slight chemical scent afterwards but the sweet melon smell is so good! The mask was drenched in the essence by the way. Which I was happy to see.

The mask is made of a heavy cotton, which I was surprised to see for something that is only $0.33. I couldn't tear it apart despite pulling hard at it. I have no complaints about the mask at all! It fit my round face perfectly, it reaches all the way up to my hairline and my ears. No skin left exposed. It does take a little bit to smooth out but it fits perfectly!!

I had the mask on for an hour with the Daiso silicone mask cover for an hour before I removed it. Then I left the mask on for another 15 minutes. There was lots of essence on my skin, all sunk in within 5 minutes.

My skin felt a little tighter afterwards, so maybe the mask is supposed to have anti-aging properties? My skin looked pretty plump and more moisturized.

I definitely would repurchase this in the future, as long as someone else start carrying it at a resonable price, or if TK restock it again. I am hoping they would carry the banana one too! I just love how thick the mask is and how it fit my face perfectly.

Sidmool Waterfull Pure Essence Mask Sheet

I got this to try as it was on sale on TK for $0.50. It looks like TK stopped selling it and I can't find it anywhere else.

 Ingredients: It's all in Korean and I am not translating it. But it looks like someone already put in the effort of translating and putting it for analysis on CosDNA. Please look below for the full ingredients list.

CosDNA Analysis

The mask was in a clear essence that has a very chemical smell, kind of reminds me of bandages. But it's fairly faint so it doesn't bother me much when I had it on. It looked like there would be quite a bit of essence left but nope. Optical illusion~~~

The mask has the eye flaps still attached. So you would have the option to flip it up to close your eyes and relax.

I am not sure if I put it on crookedly, or my face is uneven or something is wrong with the mask. But I have much less coverage around my right jaw than the left jaw. Other than that, it covered the rest of my face well.

I took it off after 30 minutes as the upper lip area became dried out. I still had lots of essence on my face which absorbed in quickly. My face felt more moisturized afterwards so it does its job.

I like the fit of the mask and it's pretty cheap, even at full price of $1. But I wouldn't actively seek out this mask. If I stumble upon it, I'll buy some, if not, I can find others at similar price and have the same effect.

Purederm Rice Bran Collagen Mask

I was surprised to see this at Daiso in Vancouver! It was $3.00 but if I remembered correctly, it was also 2 for $3. I heard good reviews about Purederm so I got it to try. 

 Ingredients: As per the package. 

Water (Aqua), Glycerin, PEG/PPG-17/6 Copolymer, Oryza Saliva (Rice) Bran Extract, Natto Gum, PEG-14M, Hydroxyethylcellulose, Panthenol, Xanthan Gum, Disodium EDTA, Allantoin, Erythritol, Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate, PEG-60 Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Tocopheryl Acetate, Chlorphenesin, Methylparaben, Phenoxyethanol, Fragrance (Parfum)

The rice was in a clear essence but it wasn't drenched. Once I took the mask out, there was no more essence left in the package. The essence has no scent at all so that was really nice, especially since rice shouldn't have much scents anyways. 

The mask looks so cute! The line of the eye flap looks like it's smiling at you! The mask fits fine, I need more on my jaw line but the other parts are okay. I had it on for 20 minute as it was starting to get dry around the mouth area. But the mask is actually still pretty moist. There was quite a bit of essence left on my face which took another 20 minutes to fully sink in and not feel sticky to the touch. 

My skin looks even and it feels like there's a layer of moisture on my skin when I touch it. I don't know how to describe it. I don't dislike it, but it's kind of a weird feeling. My face was still super moisturized the next day. 

I would totally buy this mask again! I can see why people like this brand! But of course, I wouldn't go out of my way to buy it, but if I see it on sale, I'll buy it.