I’m super duper excited about this product – yes, granted it’s not the newest in the market, but I do think that there hasn’t been enough hype about it. This is da bomb. As in one of the mothership bombs of masks. If you are planning to get a face mask and have some extra buckeroos to spare, I highly, highly, highlyyyyyy (you get my point) recommend that you get this.
Fresh Black Tea Instant Perfecting Mask – $129
Fresh Black Tea Instant Perfecting Mask – $129
I say…
- It comes in a relatively heavy glass (?) jar which is often cool to the touch – I’m guessing this is to maintain the integrity of the product and make sure it doesn’t absorb or retain too much heat.
- The scent is a fence-sitter – I like all things natural, so its scent of cucumber and roses comes across as refreshing to me. To my momma, who loves her scented products, this just came elicited comments of “sour” and “eeeee what’s this”.
- Now the texture is quite different – the brand says it’s a “whipped cream” texture, but it’s not really as light as that. Instead, it’s like really, really, really finely-ground ingredients mixed into a gel-cream, which has some weight to it. It doesn’t feel heavy on the skin though.
- Application technique: Apply a layer to your skin (not too thick and not too thin). Do not rub it into the skin – it is not meant to be absorbed. Leave it on for a recommended 10 minutes. Personally, I like to leave it on as long as possible to maximise the value, so I go for a 20-30 minute stretch. Once you’re done, wipe it gently with a tissue (the mask will not be thoroughly absorbed into the skin so there’s always residue). Rinse with water.
- I’ve heard of some other beauty editors who use it as an overnight sleeping mask – you can try this method if you like?
- When it’s applied, there’s a really cool sensation – not so much tingling, but just cooling – and is perfect for usage in hot climates.
- After removal, when you rinse with cold water, the cooling sensation is further amplified. Me likey.
- Now here comes the awesome part – your skin will immediately become smoother and firmer. Like mageeeek. I kid you not – I first tried this out at Fresh’s Black Tea event several weeks back, and after just 10 minutes of usage on my hand, I could feel a significant difference in my skin. Other journalists in the room were also suitably impressed!
- I’ve applied it every other day on my skin, and I’ve really seen a noticeable different in my skin clarity and radiance.
- It does not whiten or make your skin fairer – but it does plump up your skin’s firmness.
- Beauty tip: Before applying this mask, I usually exfoliate with Dermalogica’s Daily Microexfoliant (to rid surface dead skin cells) and do a clarifying mud mask with Kiehl’s Deep Pore Cleansing Masque (to deep cleanse the pores). Sometimes I get lazy and combine both steps with Kose Infinity’s Deep Clear Mask, which is an exfoliating clarifying mud mask.
- The biggest downside to this is its price tag – holy moly, it really is quite expensive at $129 for this little tub which doesn’t last all that long – as you can see, I’m about 40% through it and I’ve barely used it for 10x.
- On the other hand, my Sulwhasoo Overnight Revitalizing Mask is still going strong at about 40% left after I started using it in mid-2012 (ohemgee, has it been that long?!). It retails for about SGD$55-60 and also gives me good skin whilst I slumber like a sloth.
I really do like this mask, but the price tag can be a little offputting, even for a beauty junkie like me. If someone owes you a favour or a present, I say it’s time to call in the favour and ask for this item. Sock it to them goooood – the emotional blackmail / Puss in Boots big-eyed look I mean :D
