Burt's Bees Pore-Refining Mask Review

I am somewhat lazy when it comes to fussy skincare regime but sometimes when the mood strikes me, I would go to the extra mile and do weekend beauty facials with my husband. I usually do his face first and then I do mine. Since both of us have enlarged pores (I think mine is the worst!), I decided to try out Burt's Bees Pore-Refining Mask as it got great reviews over the Internet.  

Burt's Bees Pore-Refining Mask

Product Description: Burt's Bees Pore-Refining Mask with French green clay (formerly known as Green Goddess Clay Mask) deeply cleanses pores and draws out impurities while remineralizing and refining the skin's texture. An assortment of carefully selected powdered herbs stimulate, nourish and renew your complexion leaving you radiant and glowing. It is 100% natural. Warning: Your face may appear flushed after using this mask, due to increased circulation on the surface of your skin. This effect will subside in 10-20 minutes. Patch test before using.

Directions: Add enough water* to 1 tablespoon powdered mask to create a thin paste. Apply to face, avoiding the eye area, and rinse off with warm water after 5-10 minutes.

* Water can be substituted by using:

- carrot juice for mature skin

- tomato juice for troubled skin

- green tea or grapefruit juice for oily skin

Packaging: The mask comes in a clear glass jar with a grey lid. The top of the lid is imprinted with the letter Burt's and two bees which I find very simple and cute. The glass jar is boxed in a purple cardboard box made from recycled board printed with product information, directions and ingredients all around it. The jar weighs 1 oz (28 g) and it comes with a small plastic spatula.

Burt's Bees Pore-Refining Mask unboxed.

Ingredients: French green clay, bentonite (natural clay), fragrance, mentha piperita (peppermint) leaf, shavegrass herb, calendula officinalis flower, rosemarinus officinalis (rosemary) leaf, salvia officinalis (sage) leaf.

List of ingredients printed on the box.

Texture: The mask has very fine, dry powdered texture in a light muddy green colour. When it is mixed with water, the fine powdery particles becomes a thin paste and the colour turns into a dark greenish muddy clay. The mask feels very cool when applied on the face. It dries quite quickly and my face felt really tight as the mask dries. The cool minty feeling stays as the mask dries on my face. The dried mask rinses off very easily with water. You know when some masks is quite hard to get off and had to be wiped a few times to clean it off but this mask just needed a light swipe with cotton pad and it's off. My skin felt cool while rinsing off with water and still felt cool afterwards for a few minutes. My skin does not feel tight but the skin around the mouth area got a bit dry so I may need to use a light moisturizer. This mask is really great in lifting off sebum from skin without striping the skin dry.

 The greenish-mud coloured powdered clay mask.

A few scoops of powdered mask.

 The dry mask mixed with water and applied thinly.

The mask in dried condition.

Scent: The mask has a nice herbal minty scent that is not too strong. There's also a tad citrusy scent too. I really love it (anything minty is great to me! Hehe..).

Verdict: I really like the tingle of mint in the product and the fact that it did not make my skin itch. I didn't find my pores to be refined because they seem to look just the same as before I use the mask. But then maybe that is because my pores are large to begin with.

I think this products has been discontinued because I could not find it anymore at Burt's Bees or Drugstore's website.

Bought mine at the price of $6.99 (RM34.54) from Drugstore with the help of sgDrugstore from Lowyat Forum.

TheFaceShop's Black Head Ex Nose Clay Mask Review

When my sister was in Korea on a short course, I gave her a list of things to buy based on great reviews I read on the Internet. One of the things I wanted her to find was a tube of White Mud Nose Pack from TheFaceShop since there are quite a number of raving reviews about the product. Alas for me, she was not able to find it so she bought a similar type of product which is the Black Head Ex Nose Clay Mask. I am not sure how much it costs and my sister had forgotten how much she paid for it.

The Black Head Ex Nose Clay Mask comes in a soft white plastic tube weighing 50 g with a black screw on cap. The label is printed directly onto the plastic tube. The product info and list of ingredients (I assume they are list of ingredients) are printed on the back also directly onto the tube.

The tube of mask.

I have no idea what's printed on the back of the tube.

The nozzle sports a small hole for the gunk to flow out when the tube is squeezed.

The clay mask's texture is very thick, gooey and sticky. It is muddish white in colour. It got quite messy when applied over my nose because of the gooey-ness and the stickiness of the gunk. The clay mask had a nice astringent scent to it which does not bug me because it is not too overpowering. What I liked about it is that is has a cooling effect on the skin. I needed to wait 15-20 minutes for the whole thing to dry and be ready to be peeled off my skin. Peeling the dried mask off my skin as quite easy and not painful at all. I can see some whiteheads got pulled off together with the dried mask.

 A dollop of clay mask.

 The mask spread evenly.

 

 The mask drying. (Please excuse the red marks beside the drying patch of mask. I had been testing the other type of masks and scratched them off - hence the redness.)

The mask peeled off. I think the patch of skin looked a bit fairer.

If compared to the White Mud Mask, I found that the white mud mask had a slightly thicker consistency in texture. The white mud mask also peels of easier than the white mud but in terms of pulling out the white heads and blackheads, I think the clay mask did a slightly better job at it.

My verdict: I think the Black Head Ex Nose Clay Mask performed slightly better than the White Mud. My only logical conclusion is that maybe it's because the clay mask's paste clings harder to the skin when dried if compared to the white mud mask even though the latter has a thicker consistency. In terms of good value for money, I think I would repurchase the Clay Mask again in future if the mood strikes me.

TheFaceShop's White Mud Nose Pack Review

I had read great reviews about the White Mud Nose Pack with some reviewers posting pictures of how the nose pack got rid of their white heads and blackheads at one go. So naturally I got very intrigued and wanted to try it out. Based on some reviewers, the product is only sold in the US so when my sister went on a course-trip to Korea (where TheFaceShop originated), I asked her to please scout the stores and get me one. Alas, she came back empty handed but she did buy a Black Head EX Nose Clay Mask. Last weekend, on a quick shopping stop I had with my sister at the Pavilion Bukit Bintang, we stumbled upon the White Mud Nose Pack at TheFaceShop's outlet there and I squeeled, 'Hey! I've been looking for this!'. I picked up a tube smiling to the counter.

The White Mud Nose Pack is a slap-the-gunk-on-your-face-and-let-it-dry-then-peel-it-off type of product. It is formulated with White Mud and Burdock extract and aims to clean and clarify pores.To use, just spread  the white mud paste all over nose area and leave on for 10-15 minutes. When completely dry, slowly peel from the bottom up and finish with a toner.

The White Mud Nose Pack comes in a soft white coloured plastic tube with a screw-on cap. The mud chocolate coloured label with the name of the product printed on it gives a soft contra to the white coloured tube. Quite nice to look at, really. The label  pasted on the back of the tube is packed with information and list of ingredients.

 

Ingredients: Water, PVP, SD Alcohol 40-B, Polyninyl Alcohol, Titanium Dioxide, Sodium Magnesium Silicate, Butylene Glycol, PEG-100 Stearate, Sodium Citrate, Methylparaben, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract, Glycyrrhiza Glabra (Licorice) Root Extract, Illite/Water/Propylene Glycol/Arctium Butylparaben/Ethlyparaben/Propylparaben/Biotin Artemisa Princess Leaf Extract, Citric Acid, Fragrance, Allantoin.

The list of ingredients on the back of the tube.

The white cap unscrews open revealing a small hole in the opening for the mud paste to flow out of the tube.

White mud paste comes out from here.

The nose pack mask is basically a very sticky and gooey white gunk. It has a sticky texture and it sticks to my fingers as I spread it over my nose. The residue that got stuck to my fingers is quite difficult to wash off with water. I had to scrub them off with my fingernails! I guess that is because the mask is made to have a rubbery texture when dried to help it cling to the skin.

 

A blob white mud gunk.

Spread out evenly.

All dried and ready to be peeled off.

The White Mud Nose Pack has a flowery smell almost like rose water. The scent is tolerable and does not  bother me at all. It took about 15 minutes to dry completely. Peeling the dried paste off my skin is done easily without any pain. The nose pack did took out some white heads. I actually tried the product after I had scrubbed my face so the effect of the white heads coming out is not that great. I think I have to try it on my husband since he has a lot of white heads on the nose.

Verdict: I have mixed feeling about this product at the time being. It is quite messy to apply but peels off easy taking out some white heads along with it. At the moment, I don't think I would repurchase this again since there may be some better options out there in the market.

Price: RM19.90 at TheFaceShop outlets anywhere. I bought mine at the Pavillion Bukit Bintang.

Phillips Milk of Magnesia Review

I used to have a normal skin with occasional breakouts but a few years back my skin started to become very oily and the occasional breakouts turn to quite not so occasional anymore. So products that promises to control oil, prevent breakouts and diminishes enlarged pores always attracts me. I have tried several products and none seem to work. In the end I turned to the power of Google and did some searching on products that is supposed to be great on oily skin and I found information on the usage of Phillips of Magnesia on skin.

Phillips Milk of Magnesia is actually magnesium in liquid form that helps to neutralize excess stomach acid. It is also considered to one of the more gentle laxatives. Milk of magnesia can treat both indigestion and constipation. You must be wondering why the heck did I put this medicinal laxative liquid under my cosmetic review, right? Well, apparently I had read reviews on the Internet that milk of magnesia works wonders on oily skin. Many women uses the liquid for a makeup primer and some others uses it as a way to help control their oily skin and blemishes. It is also said to be great in tightening pores. So this is a definite must try for me.

A bottle of Phillips Milk of Magnesia.

Phillips Milk of Magnesia (MOM) comes in a blue plastic bottle complete with a white screw-on cap plus an additional measuring plastic cup. It weighs a whopping 12 fl oz (355 ml). There is a plastic safety seal at the bottle neck to ensure freshness of the medicinal liquid inside.

The safety seal still intact.

The blue bottle and the measuring cup.

The list of active ingredients: magnesium hydroxide.
List of inactive ingredient: purified water, sodium hypochlorite.

The bottle is opened by just a twist. The opening of the mouth is quite large giving a good access to the liquid inside.

Laxative anyone?

The texture of the magnesium milk is quite runny and looks just like milk. It does not have any smell. Just like any laxative/antacid medicine, the bottle needs to be shaken well before we can use/consume the medicinal liquid. The same goes for this milk of magnesia. Here's what it looks like:

Milky substance for the stomach and face.

Since it is liquid based, it spreads easily but if put too much on face, it could get drippy. Here's how the milk of magnesia looked like spread onto the back of my hands:

Here's how it looked like dried:

Applying the milk of magnesia on my skin is easy. It goes on clear while it is still wet but it will turn into a chalky white mask while it is drying if put too much. Lots of women use this as a makeup base to control their oily skin under their makeup. As for me, I just use this as a mask. There is a tightening effect felt as the milky substance is drying. My skin did felt a bit itchy initially but the feeling went away after a few minutes when the liquid had completely dried.

I had tried using a thick layer as an overnight mask and my skin was matte the next morning after I woke up! It don't think it will leave any whitish residue on my pillow but I covered my pillow with a towel just in case. I also had tried using a very thin layer on my skin for day wear and I found that it indeed helped my skin stay matte for half the day. The milk of magnesia can be washed off using a wet washcloth but for me, I just  rub my skin it gently with water until all the dried milky substance is gone, then I follow up with my daily cleanser. I had to make sure that there is no dried particles left blocking my pores to avoid from my skin breaking out.

Since the bottle of MOM is quite large and I didn't want to contaminate the whole content inside the bottle, I poured out some of the MOM into a smaller bottle for my daily use.

My small bottle of MOM.

My verdict: I love this Phillips Milk of Magnesia as a mask to control my oil. In terms of oil controlling effect I think this is the best product that I've used so far. I only need to use a little bit of liquid for my whole face so the big bottle will last for quite some time.

You can read about Phillips Milk of Magnesia as a face care for oily skin here.
You can find more information about the product from Phillips' Relief official website.
I bought mine from Drugstore.com with the help from Ryan sgDrugstore@Lowyat Forum for RM43.64 excluding postage.

Beautee 3D Mask Review - Green Apple Oily & Acne Mask

Facial mask is a must for beauty buffs everywhere. I don't really consider myself a beauty buff (maybe just a buff? ha! ha!) but I do sometimes use masks in my beauty routine (usually over the weekend). My sister and I decided that we'd like to try out masks from Beautee and end up purchasing quite a number of them. So this time around, I would like to do a review on Beautee 3D Mask.

Yup. I bought four masks (charcoal, green apple, green pea and gold powder) along with two soothing solution.

There are eleven types of Beautee 3D Mask:

Charcoal - For all skin type, specially for oily and purifying skin. Moisturizes skin, stimulate tissue regeneration and detoxifies skin to facilitate toxic elimination.

Coffee - For all skin type. Revitalizes and refreshing while restoring vitality of skin cells and moisturizes skin.

Gold Powder - For all skin type, except Hyper-Sensitive skin. Rejuvenate cell and skin suppleness and elasticity, helps reduce wrinkles, fine lines and anti-aging. Gives you a smooth and fair complexion.

Green Apple - For oily and pimpled skin. Removes excess fat, revitalize blood, ease nerves, clear acne and lighten pigmentation. Desensitized irritant and soothes inflammation. Has antiseptic effect on acne and helps prevent further breakout.

Green Pea - For oily and acne skin. Purify and remove excessive oil formation within skin layer, reducing accumulation of sebum secretion (to prevent the clogging of skin pores) and provides sufficient moisture to skin.

Lily - For dry, dull and loose skin. Firming and reducing wrinkles. Drastically improves hydration and elasticity. Helps reduce the sign of aging and gives a healthy glow.

Lavender - For all skin type, specially for sensitive and irritated skin. Soothing, cooling, moisturizing effects soften and calming epidermis. Provide the skin softening, healing and anti-inflammatory. Builds a healthier, lighter and smoother relaxed skin.

Oat - For dull, dehydrated and loose skin. Restoring skin elasticity. Keeping skin soft and smooth.

Soybean - For all skin type, specially for pigmentation skin. Effective for eliminating pigmentation, freckles and black spots. Leaving skin fresh and healthy resulting in lightened and delicate skin.

Redbean - For sensitive, dry and irritated skin. Supplying moisture directly to the tissues. Being an excellent Hydrator and UV light absorber. Provides the skin softening, healing and anti-inflammatory. Give soothing effect to skin.

Vegefiber - For all skin type. Highly effective in removing dirt and impurities. Enables to penetrate deep into skin layer in cleansing away unwanted wastes and dead old skin cells which causes blockage of skin pores. Paving the functions of detoxifying and purifying.

These masks comes in the form of powder and have to be mixed either with Beautee Mask Solution or mineral water. You can actually use purified tap water but don't use water straight out from the tap because tap water contains chlorine.

There are three types of solutions offered by Beautee:

Lifting Solution - For dull, dehydrated and loose skin. Creates natural glow and healthy radiant for mature skin. Enhance mask to achieve smoothing and moisturizing effect.

Whitening Solution - For all skin type, specially for skin with pigmentation. Promotes fairer and whitening effect, fairer to skin. Enhance mask to achieve rejuvenate and combat skin pigmentation.

Soothing Solution - For all skin type, specially for sensitive and irritated skin. Normalizes the suppleness of skin, calms irritation and inflammation. Enhances the mask to achieve soothing effects of the skin.

Each package of mask costs RM7 and the solutions also costs RM7.

For my first time trying the mask, I opted to try the Green Apple mask since my face is having a breakout party time. To use the mask, you would have to mix 1 1/2 spoon of the powder with 2 1/2 spoon of the solution/mineral water/purified tap water. I wasn't sure of the size of the spoon needed so I used a Baskin Robins spoon since I deemed it as having the most ideal size (not too big and not too small).

Scooping out the powder

The soothing solution is a nice looking greenish liquid and is quite thick. The colour makes me think of kiwi or lime jelly.

So, now I am scooping out the solution onto the powder mask.

Scooping out the solution

Here's what the concoction looks like before the powder and the solution is mixed together:

Here's what the mask looks like after the powder and the solution had been mixed together:

The next step is to apply the mask evenly on the face. There are some bits and pieces of particles (herbs/apples? I am not really sure) in the mask.

 The almost evenly spread mask on my skin (can you see the bits and pieces of particles?)

This is how the mask looks like whilst it is half-drying on my skin:

The bits and pieces of particles are more evident now

The mask is supposed to be left to dry on your skin for about 20 minutes. But seeing that by the time my 20 minutes are almost up, the mask is still partially dry (I guess I put too much on my skin) so I let it sit for another 20 minutes. Peeling the mask off is not that difficult except for the parts where the mask was spread on thinly and over the borderline of my hair/eyebrows. Over those patches I had to scratch my face gently to get it out. As for the rest, the mask was quite easy to peel off.

After the mask is peeled off, the instruction says that we have to gently rinse our face with water. I'm not sure about the removing of excess fat part (as mentioned on the package) but my skin did felt clean and less irritated. After a few hours my skin did not get oily as it usually did on non-mask-wearing days. I guess it does control the oil secretion for a bit.

Is this a repeat buy for me? Well, I am not really sure because I am quite lazy when it comes to peeling off the mask after it has dried out. Maybe after I have finished all the other masks I might ponder upon the decision to buy or not to buy again.