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. 

Masks #9 - Face, Hands & Feet!

In early September, one of my very best friends got married and I trudged up to Edmonton to be a part of the celebration. This is one of the once in a blue moon occasions that I would put on make up and nail polishes. So I brought up some masks with me to use and to make sure I have no dry patches. We all know how makeup loves to accentuate dry patches. ^__-

Dr.Morita Hyaluronic Acid Essence Mask

This is a Taiwanese mask I picked up at the local Chinese supermarket. I read a review somewhere saying the brand is pretty good, and I am a sucker for Hyaluronic Acid so of course I have to buy it. I can't remember the exact price, but it was under $15 for a box of 10 silk masks. Yes.. They are silk masks! They don't advertise it as silk mask except for one little blurb under the "24 hours continuous hydration" on the front. I actually didn't see it until I looked at the above image while typing. Oops..

 Ingredients: As per the package. 

Water, Dipropylene Glycol, Glycosyl Trehalose/Hydrogenated Starch Hydrolysate (Trehalose), Xanthan gum, Methylparaben, Phenoxyethanol, D-Panthenol, Hydrolyzed Collagen, Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid, Luffa Cylindrica Root Extract, Cucumis Sativus Extract, Glycyrrhiza Glabra (Licorice) Root Extract, PEG-40 Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Sodium Hyaluronate, Algae Extract Ceramide 3; Ceramide 6 II; Ceramide 1; Phylosphingosine; Cholesterol; Sodium Lauroyl Lactylate; Carbomer; Xanthan Gum, Fragrance

CosDNA Analysis

It looks like only Carbomer may cause some irritations, but it's on a scale of 1 so it shouldn't be too bad. 

On a side note, I find it funny how they don't have the full ingredients list in Chinese but rather just the star ingredients. But in English, they list out everything. Must be the FDA rules or something so they can sell it outside of Taiwan. 

That mask was in clear runny essence that is just like water. It doesn't have any strong discernible scent so that is always a plus in my book. The mask is drenched but is not dripping everywhere.

What I love about the mask is that it's got long flaps around the jaw area, such so that it reaches my ears. Yay!! That has always been my problem with masks. I don't have enough to reach there and I feel bad for those patches of skin. Never get any love. Well, not anymore! Dr.Morita to the rescue! :P There was also enough essence for me to spread on my neck too!

**I took a picture of the pearl paper instead of the mask as it was really late by the time I took it off and I couldn't sneak into the bathroom without waking up my friend's family. So this photo I took of the pearl paper while I was putting it on will suffice.**

In the spirit of Halloween, I looked like some kind of masked creature with the pearl paper. XD

I took the mask off after 30 minutes as it was starting to dry in spots and I don't want reverse osmosis to occur. My cheeks feels fine to the touch but my forehead was a bit sticky. Took quite a bit of time before it was all absorbed in and the stickiness went away.

As for result, my skin felt supple and soft. Though the next morning, the CC cream I applied drew my attention to a few dry spots on my cheeks. So I guess this mask isn't as moisturizing as it's advertised to be?

All in all, I wouldn't mind buying this mask again. It have no offensive scent, it reaches to my ears and it's relatively cheap for a local purchase of silk mask. *I am looking at you Lovemore! Same price for half the amount and similar results*


Pure Smile Portion Pack Hand Pearl

This was a mask I got from Memebox, from back in the day. I haven't really thought about it until I started to pack. I don't usually do hand masks as I can't even watch a show without doing something with my hands. So I thought what the hey, might as well look nice for my friend's special day.

 Ingredients: It's all in Korean and I am just not up to translating ingredients right now. 

This is essentially a mask in glove form with an exterior liner to prevent the essence from leaking. Unfortunately for me, it leaked anyways. From the back of the package, it seems like the two gloves are supposed to be attached and you cut them apart when you are ready to use them. But mine was already separated when I took them out of the package, so some essence leaked out. 

As you can see from above, it's just a thin white plastic outer shell with a soft mesh inside. The essence has a thick consistency, almost like a gel, such that it would stay put inside the mask, most of the time. The mask has a perfume smell that reminds me of a shampoo I used to have a long long time ago. But it's not intolerable or anything like that. Just drove me crazy for a while because I can't recall exactly what it reminded me of. 

**Insert face between my hands and pretend I am doing a two handed Kabe-Don. Kekekekeke ^0^  **

Source: nakashima3 Deviantart

Kekeke, jokes aside. I don't think this mask is made for those with big hands. It looks big but as you can see, my hand fill up about 90% of the mask, and I got small hands. So if you got a bigger hand, this may not be for you. 

I had the mask on for about 30 minutes before I had enough of not being able to move my hands or touch the phone screen. My hands were very moisturized and feels softer and supple. My cuticles looked so much happier too! It didn't leave any weird oily feeling on my hand so that's a plus. Though I do recommend doing this before bed and go straight to sleep afterwards. I went to wash my hands, and I can feel some of that essence washing away.. T___T

**My freshly moisturized hands are doing double Kabe-Don to the review.. Kekeke ^0^**

I liked this mask but being a person who loves to use her hands, I don't think I can sit through another 30 minutes of not doing anything with my hands. I wouldn't buy it again but if I am gifted some and have a special occasion coming up, I wouldn't mind forcing myself through it again.

Holika Holika  Baby Silky Foot Mask Sheet

**WARNING: You will see feet.. My gross feet to be exact. So if you are squeamish about these kind of things, please skip!!*

I also did a foot mask at the same time. This is from a Memebox, again. I linked the Canadian Holika Holika website above but I think these are pretty easy to find. They are even on Amazon. So just look on your favourite e-tailers' site and see if it's available.

 Ingredients: As per the website. 

Water, dimethicone, butylene glycol, glycerin, alcohol, minderal oil, cetyl ethythexanoate, betaine, tocopheryl acetate, urea, butyrospermum parkii (shea) butter, mentha piperita (peppermint) extract, trehalose, carica papaya (papaya) fruit extract, sodium hyaluronate, chamomilla recutita (matricaria) flower extract, aloe barbadensis leaf juice, persea gratissima (avocado) oil, olea europasea (olive) fruit oil, honey extract, punica granatum fruit extract, milk protein extract, salicylic acid, cyclopentasiloxane, cetearyl glucoside, polycrylate-13, polyisobutene, cetearyl alcohol, glyceryl stearate, peg-100 stearate, polysorbate 20, polyglyceryl-3 methylglucose distearate, acrylates/c10-20 alkyl acrylate crosspolymer, triethanolamine, disodium edta, phenoxyethanol, methylparaben, propylparaben, fragrance

**Seriously, feet pictures coming up. Abort if you are squeamish!!**

Look Ma! I am a butterfly!!! 

These booties came still attached, thankfully. All I needed to do was tear it down the center along the perforate line. This is similar to the hand masks. A plastic outer shell with softer mesh inner shell and the essence between the two shells. 

The essence has a strong smell to it. When it first hit my nose, it was very floral, then it became chemical very quickly. I think it must be the alcohol. There wasn't too much essence floating in the mask, but just enough for it to stick to my feet. 

I just wish there was some tape to hold it. So the openings aren't wide open and I can't do anything besides sit with my feet planted to the ground. <- that is my number one reason why I don't do feet masks. I like to sit with cross legged since my legs are too short to reach the ground most of the time. 

I have size 6 feet, and you can see there's quite a bit of room left at the heel area. So I would imagine this would be good for anyone up to size 8 or 9??? 

Before the mask, you can see my feet are pretty dry, especially around the heel area. I don't like to moisturize my feet because the greasy lotion feeling grosses me out and makes me feel uncomfortable all night. Yes yes I know, I should moisturize anyways. I am trying to. Slowly.. 

I left the mask on for two hours since I figured my feet need that extra moisture. Despite having the openings wide open, the mask was still really moist afterwards. Don't forget to massage all those extra essence into your dry areas before taking your feet out.

I found my feet to be feeling moist moisturized. No necessarily softer, that needs more work than just a single use mask. But it felt moisturized and it didn't make my feet feel oily or anything. It did good enough work given what it has to work with. I am happy with the results.

That being said, I'll probably not repurchase this. I just don't like hands and feet masks that prevent me from moving around. I'll use them if I am gifted them but I won't go out of my way to buy them. 

Battle of Snail Lip Treatments

Okay, I totally lied with the title. It's not really a battle of the snail lip treatments. I already know which won. Well actually, my skin told me which one is the winner. 

The battle is between Pure Smile Snail Lip Treatment in Milk and Pureplus+ Honey Bee Lip Treatment. I received the Pureplus+ item from the Dry & Sensitive box from Memebox, when they used to do international shipping. I ordered the Pure Smile from BonjourHK in September. 

I don't break out often. Pretty much only hormonal breakouts or whenever I don't take care of my body or cleanse properly. Though the breakouts go away as soon as I correct the problem. Occasionally, I do react to products but very rarely. Unfortunately I reacted to the Pureplus Lip Treatment. I didn't want to believe it. How could a lip balm cause me to break out? So I tried and tried but every time I break out on my upper lip, so it looked like I have cold sores.

I seen people rave about how great the Pure Smile's lip treatment is. I think that Pureplus copied Pure Smile as the packaging looked very similar. I wanted to give Pure Smile a try as I like their hand cream a lot. But due to the reaction with Pureplus, I was understandably hesitant. But for some reason last month, I suddenly decided I HAVE to have it after seeing another review on the lip treatment.

I chose the lip treatment in milk flavour as I loved the milk flavour hand cream from the same line but despised the honey flavour. I found the honey flavour to have a very soapy smell. Pureplus+ honey has the same soapy smell. Yuck. I have tried it on a few times, as a thick overnight treatment and a thin lip gloss for the day. I haven't broken out AT ALL from it! It tingles when I first apply it so I had feared it will cause me to break out but nope. My lips are fine. So now I wonder.. What's the difference between these two that would have caused my skin to react so badly to it.

Okay, let's just talk about performance for a minute here. I looked through my notes for the Pureplus+ and I wrote I liked its effect besides the breakouts. The lip treatment stung a little but it stays on through the night. Though when I washed it off in the morning, it feels like I was washing off petroleum jelly off my lips. It got rid of all of the dry skin on my lips. Left my lips soft and moisturized.

As for Pure Smile, it also stayed on through the night. But when I washed it off, it had a less petroleum jelly feeling but that may be because I didn't apply as thick of a layer. It didn't take off much of the dry skin on my lips but I didn't have much. It made my lips feel so smooth and soft.

I would say performance wise both did well. But Pure Smile is a bit more accessible as you can find it on eBay, TesterKorea and other e-retailers. Whereas Pureplus+ is so hard to find, I can only find a Q0010 listing.

Now back to the ingredients. 

I already threw out my packaging for Pureplus+ when I opened the packaging as I didn't think it would cause irritation so I looked on the interweb. Thankfully Veritazy posted a picture of the back of her packaging so I was able to grab the ingredients. Unfortunately, her version is milk whereas mine was honey. But the basic ingredients should be similar. 

Of course I didn't think much when I got my Pure Smile and threw out the packaging as well. So I got the ingredients for the honey version that Fanserviced graciously put into CosDNA. **Actually I double checked and it seems like I didn't throw out the package yet. Though BonjourHK sends them with original Japanese packaging so I have even less resources to translate that. So we are sticking with the ingredient list inputted by Fanserviced.**

Funny how I got the ingredients list for Pureplu+ in milk and Pure Smile in honey, when in reality, my products were Pureplus+ in honey and Pure Smile in milk. I am really hoping the basic ingredients are similar, just the fragrance that makes it different. 

I translated the list by using Google Translate and the Lioele dictionary. I think that is the correct translation of the Pureplu+ ingredients, but if you see any errors, please leave a message and let me know!

Image source: https://veritazy.files.wordpress.com/2014/12/image81.jpg

폴리부텐 (Polybutene), 플리이소부텐 (Polyisobutene), 카프릴릭/ 카프릭트리글리세라이드 (Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride), 미네랄오일 (mineral Oil), 풀리글리세릴-2트리ol소스테아레이트 (Polyglyceryl-2 triisostearate), 옥틸도데칸을 (Octyldodecanol), 스쿠알란 (Squalane), 디이소스테아릴말레이트(Di-isostearyl malate), 포도씨오일(Grapeseed oil), 쉐어버터(Shea Butter), 마카다미아씨오일 (Macadamia Seed Oil), 페닐트리메치콘(Phenyl Trimethicone), 실리카디메칠실릴레이트(Silica Dimethyl Silylate), 페트롤라풀(Petrolatum), 라놀린(Lanolin), 소르비탄세스퀴올리에이트(Sorbitan Sesquioleate), 마이카(Mica/Sericite), 디메치콘(Dimethicone), 향료 (Fragrance), 싫리카(Silica), 부틸파라벤(Butylparaben), 알란토인(Allantoin), 토코페릴아세테이트(Tocopheryl Acetate), 석시노일아텔로클라겐(Succinoyl Atelocollagen), 소듐하이알루로네이트(Sodium Hyaluronate), 우유단백질추출물(Milk Protein Extract), 하이드롤라이즈드콜라겐(Hydrolyzed Collagen), 달팽이점액여과물(Snail Secretion Filtrate)

Okay, down to the comparison. 

Pureplus+ Milk Bebe Lip Treatment

Pure Smile Snail Lip Treatment in Honey

Polybutene Polyisobutene Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride Mineral oil Polyglyceryl-2 triisostearate Octyldodecanol Squalane Di-isostearyl malate Grapeseed oil Shea butter Macadamia seed oil Phenyl Trimethicone Silica Dimethyl Silylate Petrolatum Lanolin Sorbitan Sesquioleate Mica Dimethicone Fragrance Silica Butylparaben Allantoin Tocopheryl Acetate Succinoyl Atelocollagen Sodium Hyaluronate Milk Protein Extract Hydrolyzed Collagen Snail Secretion Filtrate

Polybutene Polyisobutene Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride Mineral Oil Polyglyceryl-2 triisosterate Octyldodecanol Squalene Diisostearyl malate Vitis Vinifera seed oil/Grapeseed oil Shea butter Macadamia ternifolia seed oil Snail secretion filtrate Honey Anemarrhena Asphodeloides Root Extract Succinoyl Atelocollagen Allantoin Lanolin Tocopheryl acetate Sodium Hyaluronate Sorbitan sesquioleate Silica Dimethyl Silylate Petrolatum Mica Dimethicone Silica Acetyl Hexapeptide-3 Phenyl trimethicone Butylparaben Fragrances

**The CosDNA for Pure Smile Snail Lip Treatment in Honey is in thanks to Fanserviced** 

Hmm, the ingredient list between the two products are almost the same. The only differences are the milk protein extract, hydrolyzed collagen, honey, Anemarrhena Asphodeloides Root Extract, and Acetyl Hexapeptide-3. 

The milk protein extract and honey are obviously due to their different flavours so those can be ignored. 

CosDNA listed the Hydrolyzed Collagen as antistatic, moisturizer, and emollient. So it's just should only have moisturizing properties. Same goes to Acetyl Hexapeptide-3. It is listed as a moisturizer. So the two have the same function and shouldn't have caused the breakouts. 

CosDNA simply listed Anemarrhena Asphodeloides Root Extract as plant extract. But good ole' Wikipedia has listed that the plant has anti-inflammatory properties among others, so this may be what prevented breakouts. 

After comparing the ingredient list, I have three theories. 

1) Anemarrhena Asphodeloides root extract in the Pure Smile lip treatment has anti-inflammatory properties and could have prevented the breakouts. 

2) The order of ingredients are the same until Macadamia See Oil. The different order of ingredients may indicate different concentration of the ingredients. Squalane and Dimethicone both has a 1 for acne triggers. Squalane sits at the same spot for both product, but Dimethicone is much higher on the Pureplus+ ingredient list than Pure Smile. So perhaps Pureplus+ used a lot more Dimethicone in their lip treatment and that's why I break out from it. 

3) I am extremely unlucky and got a contaminated product. 

I am not sure what caused Pureplus+ to break out on my upper lip area, but it does. I'll stick with my Pure Smile and be happy that I learned how to look up ingredients in Korean. ^_^ 

Double Zero Pizza

My friends and I decided to visit the Double Zero Pizza located in downtown Cow town. I wasn't too impressed with the food and the poor service we received made me not want to go back again.

We ordered the fried purple potatoes, calamari and mushroom pizza.

I believe the purple potatoes are pan fried. Not the kind of fried I was thinking of but I guess that's what we get for assuming fried means deep fried. The potato itself was okay, there wasn't much flavour to it. Most of the flavour came from the orange sauce. Let me tell you, it looks like there was lots of sauce, but there really wasn't. The potatoes actually lead to my first problem with our waitress, which I'll go into detail below.

The calamari was good when piping hot but once it's cooled down, it's hard to ignore how salty the coating was. That being said. The calamari itself was soft and tender. Not chewy at all. The tomato sauce that came with it was really light but you can really taste the fresh tomatoes in it. My favourite dish out of all three dishes. 

The pizza was good and bad. It was good as it was quite yummy. It made me forget I was eating a vegetarian pizza.  The thick cut mushrooms on top really made me think I was eating a tender meaty pizza. The bad is that the crust was so dry! There was so much of it too! It made me have a humongous craving for a big bowl of marinara sauce to dip into. Some people, like my friend, likes it this way but it was just too dry for me. So you been warned. If you love crunchy crust that takes a bit of a chew, this is the pizza for you. 

Now my problems with the waitress and why I refuse to go back again.

1) I poured quite a bit of the chili oil on top of the potato and was joking with Mogie about how it looks like a rock and a butt from certain angles. That  is when the waitress, who was cleaning the next table, turned around and told me "the chili oil is for the pizza". She realized her mistake a minute later and said "well it can go on top of anything I guess" or something to that affect. 

Yes.. I really drowned the poor potato in chili oil. 

Yes the chili oil is intended for the pizza but there was no written rule saying it's strictly for the pizza. As a customer I feel like I should be able to decide what I want to put it on. I just happen to really like spicy food. Sigh. 

2) Double Zero serve their water in large swing top glass water bottles, which is then poured into individual cups at the table. Due to the crust being so dry, we went through the water half way through the pizza. The empty bottle was then placed on the corner of the table, where the waitress can see when she walks by. Unfortunately she failed to see it until everything has been cleared from our table. That's fine, she probably just didn't notice. My problem was what she did with refilling our glasses. 

Two of our glasses were empty, and the third glass was half empty. Instead of giving us a fresh bottle, she gave us water from a bottle leftover from another table. The water was not even enough for all of us. Instead, the two empty glasses were filled halfway and that was it for us. I get it, it's not good to waste resources, even water. But it's just not a good feeling when I can tell it's leftover from another table and I can't even get a full glass to ease my thirst. 

3) My biggest issue with our waitress is with how she dealt with the cash. Our total came to $34.65 and we gave her $50 and asked for the change. We were given $15 and our waitress walked away. I was annoyed and told my friend she didn't give us the full change.  I thought it was $1.35 change but it's really $0.35. Yah I know, great at subtraction there. My friend spoke with the waitress and she showed us it's only $0.35 and said "I didn't have change so I just gave back the $15. Do you need the $0.35 back?" 

By her tone, I can tell she was thinking we were picky, difficult beyotches for such a nominal amount. But it's the principal of it. She should have come over and said "hey guys, I don't have change for the $0.35, would you mind if I just gave you the $15 back?" Had she let us know instead of just dropping off the $15 and walked off, I wouldn't have been as upset. 

I have worked in the front of a restaurant for years. I always made sure I give the customer the exact change. It's not up to me to decide if I deserve that $0.35. If they decide they don't want to give me anything, it's their decision. The only time I would have kept the $0.35 is if the customer told me to just give back $15. We didn't. We said the change. Change means everything left over, not just what you have on hand. If you have no change, go break some of your $5 at the bar. Don't assume the change is yours just because you don't want to break your bills. 

The waitress did ask us if we are okay with everything as we are leaving. But the damage has been done. Just her way of handling everything ruined the whole experience for me. The food was not good enough to me to put up with bad customer service. 

Masks #8 - Hydrogels

So I had a small stash of hydrogel masks that I just haven't tried at all. I decided to try them after I fell in love with my SNP hydrogel eye patches. Boyyyy did that lead to some crazy hydrogel shopping spree.. Hehe...

Memebox Mememask

I got the Mememask in one of my boxes, back when they still shipped internationally, as an apology gift for delaying shipping or something. Anyways, if you are in the States, Korea or China you will be able to get one from the respective Memebox website. Unfortunately for us internationals, I have no idea where to get them. Maybe request them from TesterKorea?

Anyways, I held off on using the Mememask as Memebox and I did not part ways on a friendly note. But once I started on hydrogels I had to give it a go.

 Ingredients: As per the package. 

Water, Butylene Glycol, Glycerin, Niacinamide, Cprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Ceratonia Siliqua Gum, Chondrus Crispus (Carrageenan), Polyacrylate-13, Polyisobutene, Polysorbate 20, Phenyl Trimethicone, Cellulose Gum, Phenoxyethnaol, PEG-60 Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Ethylhexylglycerin, Sodium Polyacrylate, Adenosine, Disodium EDTA, Fragrance, Polglutamic Acid, 1,2-Hexanediol, Chamomilia Recutita (Matricaria) Flower Water, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract, Argania Spinosa Kernel Oil, Adanosonia Digitata Seed Extract, Potassium Hydroxide. 

As soon as I opened the package, I get a big punch of ginger and then a light floral smell. Thankfully it wasn't too bothersome and I can continue to use it. 

This mask, like most hydrogels, comes in two parts. Each piece is sandwiched between two sheets of pearl paper to prevent it from sticking together and making it easier for the user to remove and apply the mask. Though I think it just causes so much excess garbage and is ineffective. My mask slipped in the packaging so when I took it out, it was already half way out. I ended up just taking off both backings and applied it using a mirror. 

The mask felt thin and wet to the touch but it wasn't dripping in essence. There wasn't much left in the package once I took out the mask. 

There was no clear instruction as to which side of the mask I am supposed to apply against my skin. Though I can tel there was a smooth side and a mesh side. So I just put the smooth side side against my face, since it's most likely where all the essence is. 

The mask fits my face well, there was slight overlapping around the cheek area and there could be more for the jawline. But once I smoothed it out, the mask stayed put. It didn't budge at all. That I am impressed with. 

After about 20 minutes, the mask felt thinner to the touch. I took it off after 45 minutes as it started to feel dry in the upper lip and jawline area. I can tell it was time to take it off by the touch of the mask. It is no longer wet and soft to touch, but rather plasticky. Once I took it off, there wasn't much extra essence on my face except for the forehead. Guess that area needs more time to absorb it all in. My face doesn't feel sticky to the touch which is a plus. My face felt tighter and my skin tone looked brighter. 

I liked how the Mememask stayed on my face and it does make my skin feel moisturized. But it takes too much effort to buy one unless you are in China, Korea or United States. So I probably won't buy this in the future. 


Sally's Box Delight Ceramide Hydrogel Mask 

I believe I got this hydrogel mask in a pack of 3 from one of the Thanksgiving boxes from Memebox. It includes Ceramide, Panthenol and Collagen. I have linked it to SokoGlam! above as TK has it listed as $6 for a single mask, whereas its official website only has it listed as $3.50. Yikes, that mark up.. I wonder if it's a $2.50 domestic shipping fee that they included in the price. *This is where I have a problem with TK, they often include domestic shipping fee in the list price. So if you were to buy enough products from the same brand to get free domestic shipping, TK would still charge you that domestic shipping fee on each product.. Those shipping fee on each item are then pure profit to them... That's why it may be better in those instances to go with a buying service instead. *

 Ingredients: As per the package. 

Water, Glycerin, Butylene Glycol, Caprylic/Capric Triglycerides, Citrus Paradisi (Grapefruit) Fruit Extract, Ceratonia Siliqua Gum, Chondrus crispus (Carrageenan), Cellulose Gum, Sodium Polyacrylate, Hydrogenated Polydecene, Polysorbate 20, Mannan, Octyldodecanol, Trideceth-6, Portulaca Grandiflora Extract, Rosemarinus Officinalis (Rosemary) Leaf Extract, Mentha Piperita (Peppermint) Leaf Extract, Lavendula Angustifolia (Lavender) Extract, Chamomilla Recutita (Metricaria) FLower Extract, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract, Paeonia Albiflora Root Extract, Jasminum Officinate (Jasmine) Extract, Mentha Viridis (Spearmint) Extract, Scutellaria Baicalensis Root Extract, Hydrogenated Lecithin, Allantoin, Ceramide 3 (1.25mg), Sodium Hyaluronate, 1,2-Hexanediol, Caprylyl Glycol, Disodium EDTA, Phenoxyethanol, Fragrance, CI 19140, CL 15985

Um dos the last two ingredients mean they are colours???????

My skin was feeling crappy that day and I didn't want to use something hydrating but rather something to calm it down. Since this one is supposed to turn my exhausted skin into healthy skin, I thought I would give it a try. 

First impression was HOLY COW THIS THING STINKS! It's a very chemical smell that penetrated my nose as soon as I opened it. It is less strong after you take it out but it lingers. In fact, it lingered on my skin after I took it off. I would say it smells like cheap perfume that uses a lot of alcohol, like this Playboy perfume my friend got from Walmart. Just yuck. 

The mask comes in two pieces, similar to the Mememask, it has two plastic backings. I followed the instruction, removed the thicker plastic first. Placed the mask on my face using the thinner piece as a guidance on where the mask is sitting. Though, that's dependent on if your mask slipped out of its backings. I would just remove them both and use a mirror. So much easier. Especially when dealing with hydrogels with a mesh to hold its shape. 

The mask didn't fit my face properly. I moved it a few times but it just won't sit properly. I tried to move the jaw area as far down as I can but then the chin area pops up. The mask didn't reach my forehead, leaving about a finger's width of skin exposed. As well as my jawline, there was about two fingers' width of exposed skin. BUT.. there was SO much on the nose.. It seriously folded over and covered my nose so I couldn't even breathe without the flap covering my nostrils.  It looked like I had snots coming out of my nose. Yuck. I had to flip it up just so I can breathe. 

Excuse the close up of my face, but this is how ridiculously long the nose piece was. 

I took it off after 45 minutes. I just couldn't handle it anymore. The essence sunk is slowly, taking about another 30 minutes to fully sink in and stop feeling sticky. That smell was STILL on my skin. Yuck. 


My skin was noticeably bouncier after everything sunk in. The next morning, my skin looked plumper, pores looked smaller and my skin appeared to be more even. I was impressed with the results! However, due to its smell, CRAZY long nose piece, and the fact that it's hard to find, I will not be repurchase it. 

Innisfree Berry Hydro Gel Mask 

 So I got this mask during my whole "I NEED more hydrogels in my life!" purchase from TK. I decided to try it the night I got it home from the post office as Innisfree was having a half off shipping event that week. I wanted to see if I liked it enough to warrant a haul from Innisfree. *spoiler alert* I didn't.

 Ingredients: As per the package. 

Water, Glycerin, Butylene Glycol, Caprylic/Capric Triglycerides, Citrus Paradisi (Grapefruit) Fruit Extract, Ceratonia Siliqua Gum, Chondrus crispus (Carrageenan), Cellulose Gum, Sodium Polyacrylate, Hydrogenated Polydecene, Polysorbate 20, Mannan, Octyldodecanol, Trideceth-6, Portulaca Grandiflora Extract, Rosemarinus Officinalis (Rosemary) Leaf Extract, Mentha Piperita (Peppermint) Leaf Extract, Lavendula Angustifolia (Lavender) Extract, Chamomilla Recutita (Metricaria) FLower Extract, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract, Paeonia Albiflora Root Extract, Jasminum Officinate (Jasmine) Extract, Mentha Viridis (Spearmint) Extract, Scutellaria Baicalensis Root Extract, Hydrogenated Lecithin, Allantoin, Ceramide 3 (1.25mg), Sodium Hyaluronate, 1,2-Hexanediol, Caprylyl Glycol, Disodium EDTA, Phenoxyethanol, Fragrance, CI 19140, CL 15985

The mask has a very light floral smell, kind of a generic skincare smell. I don't know how to describe it besides generic. It was not dripping in essence or anything but enough to keep the mask moist. 

I found the mask to be kind of stiff, it doesn't hug my face as well as the others. I think that was the general consensus online as well regarding how stiff it was. The fit wasn't the best, my jawline was pretty exposed. 

I had this big angry bump on my face and the essence actually stung it when I put it on. It took a few minutes before it stopped stinging. I can't remember exactly how long I had it on because it was kind of late and I just wanted to sleep. But I know it was over 30 minutes. I took it off after the edges started to dry and I can feel the mesh on the surface. There was no excess essence on my skin but my skin feels a little sticky. 

As for results, I honestly cannot remember. It moisturized my skin as any masks will do. But I most likely didn't see any results or else I would have written it down or it's stuck in my mind. All that I can remember is that it didn't impress me at all and put me off from buying any hydrogels during Innisfree's sale.

Skinfood Marine Food Gel Mask in Oyster 

I got these from TK but I think it's cheaper if you get it from Jolse as you only pay $1.40 more for shipping. They just released this line of hydrogel masks a few months ago, and there are few flavours in this line. However, there is no discernible difference between each flavour's purpose. All of them has the same blurb on the back. I know, I compared all five flavours together. 

Ingredients: Unfortunately it's all in Korean and Google Translate didn't help :( 

When I opened the package, no smell wafted out of it. I stuck my nose right in there and took a big whiff. It has a faint perfume smell that I would say it's something I smelled quite often in skincare. But since it was light it wasn't too bothersome. 

This mask came with a stiff pearl paper and a thinner softer pearl paper. So it's a similar deal withe the other hydrogels and Lovemore silk masks. Just take off the stiffer one and use the softer one as a guide to where the hydrogel is sitting on your face. Or if you are like me, it's may be easier to just remove all the backings and use a mirror to put it on. These are mesh too so they won't tear that easily if you move them around on your face.

The fit was...... I honestly think my face isn't suited for hydrogel masks. It's pretty good with sheet masks, but with hydrogels I keep on having problems. The upper portion's fit was okay but it didn't reach all the way to my hairline. So a part of my forehead was exposed. The lower portion... I have so much problem with lower portion of hydrogels. It barely reached my jawline. I tried to move it around and push it down so it would cover it, but that just caused it to tent up. The upper lip area also falls off nonstop. I ended up busting out the silicone mask cover from Daiso in an attempt to help keep it in. That didn't help at all, the upper area kept on falling out of the mask cover and just want to part ways with my face. 

Because I had the silicone mask cover on, I had the mask on for a REALLY long time. I had it on for an hour with the silicone cover. The mask was still super moist despite being on the thin side. So I left it on for another hour without cover and it was still super moist to the touch! Wow.. But by that time it was almost 2AM and I had to sleep. So I took it off and just went to bed with a sticky face. 

By next morning and I was pleasantly surprised when I looked in my mirror. My skin was bright and I had nice even skin tone. The little breakouts on my forehead was much calmer. My skin felt super bouncy to the touch. I couldn't stop playing with my cheeks. 

I don't like the fit of these masks but I quite like the result! I will have to save these for when I have 3 to 4 hours to spare so all of the essence can sink into my skin. Or when my skin is just really need that extra punch of moisture. Will definitely repurchase these. 

*side note* Using the silicone cover made me wonder how much of the essence on masks does our skin really absorb and how much is be evaporated??? 

Tonymoly Intense Care Fugu Collagen Hydro Gel Mask 

So I got this from a H Mart in Vancouver when I was there on vacation. I just really wanted a hydrogel mask so my lovely friend took me to H Mart and waited patiently while I picked out a mask. I was deciding between the Aquaporin which cost about $4 or the Fugu Collagen one. But I knew I had the Aquaporin one coming from TK so I decided to go with the more expensive Fugu Collagen one. It was hella expensive!! $9 after GST + PST. Just wow.. Thankfully RRS has it cheaper but once you factor in shipping and currency exchange it is not much difference. 

 Ingredients: As per the package. 

Water, Glycerin, Butylene Glycol, Chondrus Crispus (Carrageenan), Ceratonia, Siliqua Gum, Disodium EDTA, Betaine, Cellulose Gum, Polysorbate 20, Polyacrylate-14, Olive Oil Glycereth-8 Esters, Mineral Oil, Dimethicone, Citric Acid, Sodium Citrate, Paeonia Suffruticosa Root Extract, Methylparaben, Hydrolyzed Collagen, Soluble Collagen (100ppm), Sodium Polyacrylate, Pearl Extract, Laminara Japonica Extract, Laminarla Digitata Extract, Sea Water, Squalene, Fragrance, Cl 42090

Uh oh, it's got mineral oil in the ingredient list. It's halfway down the list but if your skin doesn't like having mineral oil I would probably avoid this mask. :( I like that it's got two types of collagen and three types of seaweed in there.. But my main question is.. WHERE IS THE FUGU?! I can't see it in the ingredient list. The ones with scientific names that look like it may be fugu turns out to be seaweed.... T__T **I know it's fugu collagen and there are two kinds of collagen in the ingredient list. But that doesn't tell me specifically it came from fugu you know.. :(**

The mask is a two piece gel mask that is sitting in a really thick essence and has no discernible smell to it. Yay for no smell. But I think because of the thick essence, it kept on slipping off my face so I couldn't do much besides laying down.

The mask has two different textures/sides. One side is slightly rough and you can see the grid pattern while the other side is soft and squishy. I assumed the rough side is the outside and placed the squishy side to my face.

Excuse the quality. I had to take it on my friend's bathroom counter. :P 

The mask was really short around my chin and jawline. After 30 minutes or so as it was starting to dry out above the lips. But there was still quite a bit of essence on my cheeks and the mask itself. So I just took off the bottom part and left the top mask on for another 30 minutes. Even then there was still a lot of essence on the mask itself so I just put it on my decolletage

The mask left my face feeling super sticky that wouldn't go away for a while. Though my face does look brighter and my pores appear to be smaller. The next day my face felt like there was a layer of moisture sitting on top of it. Such that when I try to pinch my skin, I can feel that layer of moister/something against my fingertips instead of my skin. It was weird but nice.

I wouldn't buy this mask again. Not at $9CAD and gotta admit, I am kind of sad it doesn't have any fugu extracts in there... :(

That's all the hydrogels I have tried in the last couple of months. I got quite a few more to try so I will post them sporadically. :P