Innisfree Tea Tree Hydro Gel Mask review
I have been really pro hydrogels recently. It might already be well known that I am not a big fan of sheet masks yet keep using them due to their benefits to my dehydrated skin. Hydrogels are like magical sheet masks that eliminate most of the issues I have with the traditional wet cloth masks.
I remember the first time Mother used a hydrogel mask.
It was rather adorable.
It was a high end lace one too and it must have felt glorious since her face lit up and immediately told me to order her 20 of the same kind before she even took the thing of. If you haven't tried a Hydrogel mask yet I definitely recommend it. They are great.
Unfortunately they are also more expensive and the cheaper ones can be questionable to be honest.
This one seems to be in the latter category. I just want to come out saying how it is. This is the worst hydrogel mask I have tried so far (not that I have used so many though). That being said if I would find these for a decent price I would still buy them.
Why?
Well, because to me even a crappier hydrogel is better than a mediocre cloth mask.
Let me proceed to explain why this mask was on the lower end of my expectations to begin with.
These masks are on the cheap end of the hydrogel price spectrum (2.75$ on Innisfrees website but they can be found cheaper elsewhere for around 1-2$) and as far as I know only Etude House has a cheaper hydrogel for sale. So obviously I wanted to know how the cheapest of the cheap fare against higher end gel masks.
When I was preparing my package from my lovely sponsor Kosmeshop I immediately added this mask to the order upon spotting it in their line up. They now have added fancier looking gel masks to their line up which I will likely get next time to be able to compare them properly.
When I got the package I punctured the mask like the clumsy person I am. I managed to cut through tape, cardboard, bubble wrap and make a hole in the mask. Of course I used it immediately but had just enough time to lay the mask down on the holey side so it had just enough time to leak a bunch of essence.
Yeah, those are the adventures I have in my spare time in case you were interested.
I simply mention this incident since I can not for a fact say how much essence was in the package before the puncturing incident.
When I took out the mask there was no more extra essence left. The sheets itself were nice and saturated though, so it did not affect the whole masking experience.
Like most hydrogels the mask comes split up in two pieces which are then wrapped in sheets of plastic so that the masks wont stick to each other. Some hydrogels can be almost as hard to handle as wet rice paper but due to its thicker type this mask was easy to handle.
If you looked at it closely, it had kind of like a mesh in the middle which was noticeable on one side of the sheet. It was not very rough and you can only tell if touched gently with your finger tips.
The size was a little awkward for me, my face is tiny but my mouth is big which makes sheet masks fit a little odd on me sometimes. The nose part was a little long (which seems to be a trend recently) but it can be easily trimmed if necessary. Not something I did this time since it didn't bother me at all.
Even though the fit was not like a second skin (which is not rare with hydrogels) it was still more comfortable than most cloth masks. I think the reason for that, is that the mask was on the thicker side and not the most pliable of materials.
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| I would certainly not call this second skin like |
The scent was super subtle and skincarey. I enjoyed the experience of having this mask on my face which is quite important to me since I dont want to be suffering while masking of course.
My skin was mediocrely hydrated and more even than before. A result that virtually almost any sheet mask will give you (hence I almost never review them since I find them all so meh) but with the exception of having a more pleasant wear time.
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| The super impressive B&A. About as amazing of a change after using lots of moisturizer and essence. |
Thus we have come to the reason why I would still buy this mask. I can get the same result as with any cheap cloth mask yet have a more enjoyable experience while doing so. Sans wetness dripping down my neck and the constant feeling of possibly drowning in essence in the process.
I think this might be a good mask for cheapos like me, hydrogel beginners who are daunted by having to spend 5$ on a new and mysterious mask type or anyone who would like to try out something new.
Ingredients: Here
Rating: 1.Blegh 2. Pff 3. Meh 4. Oohh 5. Awwyeah 6. Wooha
Available at Kosmeshop.
Disclaimer: This product was sent to me for review purposes. That fact does not alter my review or opinion in any matter. For more information read my Disclaimer page
