The Mask

I love a good mask, the facial mask kind. It not only makes your skin feel good and your face look better, it scares the husband off so you can have some time to yourself.

Ok, seriously...I've tried many a mask from spas to walmart and they've all been ok. But again most of them have a bunch of chemicals in them. I like the ones like Burts Bees has where you have to mix it with water and then put it on your face. Those seem to work really well for my skin.

A while ago, Elementals began selling masks. I was of course interested as I always am when an Indie etailer sells something new and different. So, I bought her Anti Acne Willow & Tea Tree Peel Off Facial Mask. Even though I'm 35 (yes a woman honestly telling her age), I still get zits and blackheads. I know, it sucks but what are you going to do. Anyway, so I'm always looking for something to help my pores (some are large and I hate that too but genetics and years of abuse has cursed me to suffer). I really like this mask. It comes in a zippy bag so you can seal it up when you're done. It's a powder and you just add water and mix it around and then smooth it on your face. It's a grey color and that's good because it's not as intense as those green ones, yet it still scares the husband off lol. In about 10-15 minutes, it's all dry and ready for peeling! Don't go beyond that 15 minutes though or you will have a hard time peeling it off and will have to resort to warm water and a washcloth. It usually peels off in nice big chunks, I have yet to be able to get it off in one piece but so what. It's cool to see your skin imprint on the reverse side when you peel it off...I know ewwwww, you think I'm gross and that's ok. I can live with that.

After I peel as much as I can off then I basically rinse with warm water till it's all off (hint: avoid getting it in your eyebrows...it's not easy to get out of hair). My skin feels tightened and refreshed. It leaves no oily residue and yet it doesn't dry my face out either. The Willow leaves in the mask have a natural saliycilic acid, which is the most common ingredient in anit-acne medications now. It also has the tea tree oil which is great at getting rid of oily skin and is also anti-bacterial.

It costs about $5.50 for a 2 ounce pouch (I've gotten a few uses out of it and still have some more). There are several other types of masks for different skin issues. There's an anti-aging one, one for rosacea and even for feet and legs. Go on over to Elementals and take a look at the masks. I haven't seen any facial masks on any other Indie etailer site yet so it's worth a look.

The Desert that Doesn't Dry You Out

A couple of weeks ago I bought, on a whim, some Facial Cleaning Pads at my local Trader Joe's. These pads are made by a company called Desert Essence and claim to contain Natural Tea Tree Oil.

They cost me about $4.99 and that's not too bad. I usually by like Noxema or Clean N Clear pads and they cost almost as much.

What impressed me is that these pads really really clean my face. I usually use them in the morning when I get up and the stuff these pads peel off my face is amazing. Considering I wash my face every night before bed, you'd think my face would be still clean in the morning. I'm telling you these pads are taking dirt and oil off my face and it's dark looking stuff. Gross man.

Anyway, not only do they work very well but they do not dry my face out like the other "acne" type cleansing pads. Sometimes is best not to use the harsher stuff because they tend to dry your skin out and cause more breakouts (I know go figure right?).

Looking over the ingredients..there's Witch Hazel, organic grain alcohol (not too bad I guess), tea tree oil, organic chamomile oil, organic lavender oil, organic lemongrass oil, golden seal extract, neem oil and other, surprisingly, natural ingredients.

So, it cleans up your skin really well..check. It does not dry out your skin...check. It contains more natural ingredients then I have ever seen in a facial cleansing pad...check. Needless to say, I will more than likely continue to use these pads. I visited their website, and you can too by clicking on this post's title, and they have tons of other personal care products. I did a store search and they are in all kinds of different stores including the Vitamin Shoppe. So I plan on checking it out and seeing what other products I might find.