Is your skin getting its deserved treatments? Let's take a look at some of my favourite Sheet Mask

Sheet masks are my best friend in my skincare routine. They provide added moisture, reduce wrinkles and fine lines, provide plumpness, firm your skin, minimize pores, give your skin that glow, and lots of different good stuff! Especially winter is around the corner and your skin will always welcome some extra moisture!

No matter how lazy you are, how much you don't believe in the million steps Korean skincare regimen, or how satisfied you are with your skin already, your skin deserves some TLC once in a while!

Today I'm going to review some of my favourite masks, what ingredients to look for when selecting your masks, and what the special ingredients are good for.

Before I begin, let me tell you how I use sheet masks:

• Cleanse face

• Apply any type of booster (ie. Sulwhasoo First Care Serum, Missha Time Revolution The First Treatment Essence, etc. Boosters are used to prepare your skin for the products you are applying after to absorb better)

• Apply any type of non-alcoholic toner

• Place sheet mask on face and leave it on for 45 minutes or until all absorbed

• Remove mask

• Pat face with wet hands to remove stickiness (optional)

• Pat face dry with clean towel

One tip to identify a "good" mask before you even look into ingredients or brand, is that the amount of serum it includes in the pack. The good masks usually include 20ml and up of serum per pack. Anything not close to this amount will dry very fast on your skin and your skin may not feel any difference after.

Let's take a look at my favourite masks:

My Beauty Diary (various kinds) - 23ml

From top left clockwise: Hyaluronic Acid Moisturizing Mask, Caviar Mask, Collagen Firming Mask, Imperial Bird's Nest Mask, Apple Polyphenol Mask

This brand is what I use for my "every-other-day" mask.in my regular routine. This is a very popular brand from Taiwan that can be found at Pacific Mall, T&T Supermarket, Sasa.com, etc. They are affordable and you get your money's worth and good for the everyday masking needs.

The mask inside the package is a 1 piece cloth sheet mask. The cloth is thick and does not have tiny little holes throughout the cloth. This mask really takes at least 45 minutes to absorb all into the skin. Only a light fragrance that you can barely smell after a minute you put it on. The results are amazing, my skin feels moisturized and plump after.

The Hyaluronic Acid Moisturizing Mask is good for intense moisturization. The Caviar Mask is good for elasticity, firmness, and luster. The Collagen Firming Mask is good for intense plumpness. The Imperial Bird's Nest Mask is good for ultra nourishing hydration. And the Apple Polyphenol Mask is good for oil control and pore constringing.

These masks contain various plant and fruit extracts, hyaluronic acids, ginseng extracts, calendula flower extracts, witch hazel, etc. These are all very good ingredients to be found on good masks. Remember to check where on the ingredient list are your preferred ingredient listed at, the higher on the list the more the serum contains that ingredient.

A lot of masks claim they have this "X" ingredient but if you check the ingredient list it may be at close to the bottom, meaning there might only be a drop of that in the full 23 ml of serum, so that's not good.

Nature Republic Aqua Collagen Solution Marine Hydro Gel Mask - 21ml

Seriously, this is the longest name of a mask I've ever seen lol. You can only buy these online on Korean skincare stores, ebay, amazon, yesstyle.ca, and maybe Pacific Mall. This mask I only use once every 2 weeks to a month depending on when I want to give my skin a little extra treat, because they are quite pricey, around $6 CDN and up for each.

This mask contains collagen that strengthens the skin's elasticity, phytosphingosine which is obtained from yeast fermentation to deliver intense hydration, as well as Aquaphycol LD, which is extracted from marine algae, that will boost radiance.

Inside the package there are 2 pieces of masks that form 1 full mask. They are wrapped by a clear plastic sheet that keeps the masks in place and wet. Usually only pricier masks have that plastic sheet. I usually put the bottom part on first, which covers my chin and bottom cheeks right to the bottom of my nose, then I put on the top part which covers my forehead and down right to the nose.

The texture of the gel mask is very jello-like and soft. Because of the gel texture, the mask seems to stick on my face forever and still feel moist after 45 minutes, but it is really done by then, so no need to put more than 45 minutes.

The result is that extra glow it gives my skin that makes me love this mask. My skin feels very soft after using it. If you can afford it, you can use this as often as you like.

Kose (various types) - 22ml

From left: Q10 Mask, Pearl Mask

This brand is from Japan, very popular and can be bought in Pacific Mall, yesstyle.ca, ebay, and other online stores. They are sold in Japan inside local pharmacies and is in a very affordable range.

The package include 1 cloth mask with tiny holes on the cloth. It is very thin and light. The packing is all in Japanese so I can only tell you a few things about it. It states that they are made with natural hot springs water, fragrance free, and mineral oil free.

Q10 is a very good ingredient for any skincare product. It is a vitamin-like, fat-soluble substance present in all human cell that is responsible for cell protection. Best used for reducing UV damage and stimulating healthy collagen production.

On the other hand, pearl powder promotes the regeneration of new skin cells, increases collagen levels that help to firm and smooth the skin and improve the skin's radiance. This is a very ancient way that Egyptians and Chinese are believed to have used for their skincare practices, by crushing pearls into powder and applying it on their faces.

The mask is very thin, so it absorbs faster than the other masks I've used. Usually 30 minutes and it is fully absorbed. Don't be fooled by this though, this mask makes me skin soft and plump as well. It is very affordable however I bought them from Japan therefore I got them with a good price. I'm not sure how much they charge if you buy them online.

SkinPeptoxyl (various types) - 32ml

From left to right: Instant Hydra-Boosting Bio-Cellulose Mask - Sodium Hyluronate, Instant Brightening Bio-Cellulose Mask - Ascorbyl Glucoside

This mask is very pricey, it is more than $8 CDN per mask. I bought these at Sasa in Hong Kong. I'm not sure where else you can buy them. But these are really good and I only use them once in a while when I need that special umph before a special occasion event.

However, this brand is a US brand, so maybe amazon and ebay and perhaps some online stores may sell them.

The cloth of the mask is very thick, wrapped in between 2 cloths (1 on top 1 on bottom) to keep the mask wet with serums. Again, only pricey masks have this. The 2 thin cloths that you don't put on your face are soaked with serum as well, I usually use those to rub my hands and feet and elbows etc so I don't waste the serum. I leave these masks on for at least 45 minutes.

The Instant Hydra-boosting Mask is made by a nano level organic fabric that ensures deep penetraion of effectie ingredients into the dermal layer. It has a strong ability to retain moisture and provide plumpness.

Notable ingredients in this mask are Fig Fruit Extract, which moisturizes, Sodium Hyaluronate which is highly moisturizing, Cactus Extract which is firming and enhances elasticity.

The result of this mask is ultra moisturizing, makes my skin plump and glowy. My face don't feel much stickiness and I don't need to pat my face with water. Everything seemed to have absorbed into my skin.

The Instant Brightening Mask is also made by a nano level organic fabric that ensures deep penetration of effective ingredients into the dermal layer. It enhances microcirculation, inhibits the formation of melanin, diminishes dark spots and prevents aging.

Notable ingredients in this mask are Ascorbyl Glucoside, a highly stable form of vitamin C which brightens and diminishes dark spots, Licorice Root Extract that renews skin, Sake Yeast Extract which prevents pigmentation and appearance of freckles, and Arbutin, which dissolves hyper pigmentation for radiant skin.

The results of this mask is indeed brightening, my skin is soft and plump as well. And I also don't need to pat my face with water afterwards.

I feel very luxurious from unpacking this mask to putting it on my face, I definitely recommend this mask for those special occasion days!

It's Skin Syn-Ake Revital Mask Sheet - 22ml

This brand is a very popular brand from Korea. You can buy this mask at most online Korea skincare stores, ebay, amazon, etc. I got this mask from my mom who recently visited Korea.

The main ingredient in this mask that got me to buy it is dipeptide diaminobutyroyl benzylamide diacetate, also known as Syn-Ake, which is a synthetic snake venom, that reduces wrinkles and fine lines, and studies even claim that it works like botox!

There are lots of products in Korea that contain this ingredient in their anti-aging line and is very popular.

The pack include 1 cloth sheet mask that is thick. When I put it on, my face has a tingly feeling throughout the entire 45 minutes. I thought my skin would for sure be red by the time I remove it.

After 45 minutes, not only did my skin not go red, my skin was VERY VERY soft, I almost felt like I'm touching a baby's skin after!!! I'm not kidding. This is my new favourite mask and will definitely use it every 2 weeks as a special treat for my skin.

I'm also going to try other products with Syn-Ake ingredient in it moving forward for my anti-aging treatments. Studies have shown that this ingredient really help with anti-aging and reducing wrinkles and fine lines. A must have for women over 30!

There are a lot more sheet masks that I haven't tried and I'm not saying these are the best masks for everyone. These are just my favourite out of the millions of masks that I've tried and with ingredients that are good for the skin.

Will you start using sheet mask regularly after reading this? I hope so.:)

#sheetmasks #synake #masks #beautydiary #itsskin #naturerepublic