
- Enriched with Eucalyptus Extract
- Creamy texture
- Works deep into your pores
- Does not dry out the skin
- Creates matte-looking skin
- Relaxing fragrance
Price: €11.99
Face masks are usually reminiscent of childhood sleepovers and pampering sessions after a hard day. However, including face masks in your skincare routine can help give your skin that needed extra boost. Using a face mask regularly can help to target your skin concerns, with some face masks giving instant results. This piece will advise you on the benefits of using facial masks regularly, and how to include them in your routine.
Click on a link to jump to that section:
The key benefits of using face masks and why you should consider including them in your skincare routine.
Read the specific benefits of choosing gel masks and sheet masks.
Read our guide to the benefits of popular homemade face mask ingredients, such as lemon and honey.
While you may use a cleanser to rid your skin of bacteria, oils and impurities, it is important to consider a deeper cleanse. A good cleanser doesn’t always reach beneath the outer layer of skin to extract the dirt, whereas a good face mask will. It is recommended to include a face mask in your routine a couple of times a week, as with all skincare products, a one-time application won’t provide a permanent fix.
Recommended cleansing face mask
Price: €11.99
Face masks are commonly used to hydrate the skin. When you apply a face mask, the mask acts as a barrier between your skin and the air. This is because it blocks the loss of water from your skin to the air (through natural evaporation) during the use of the mask and instead helps the hydrating ingredients penetrate deeper into your dermis layer. Using hydrating masks is particularly beneficial when applied to dry skin or dehydrated skin.
Recommended hydrating mask
Price: €4.00
While pores play an important role in keeping our skin healthy by releasing toxins and keeping us cool, their appearance on our face can be very annoying. Using a clay mask can dry out the sebum which sits underneath the pores, therefore, helping to reduce and refine their size.
Recommended pore minimising face mask
Price: €11.99
It can be quite frustrating if your skin suffers from redness or dark spots, particularly if you find it difficult to find a product to reduce these problem areas. Some masks that contain calming ingredients such as chamomile, jojoba oil and aloe vera can help reduce redness and even out skin tone.
Recommended face mask for reducing redness
Price: €3.00
The best mask to use to protect your skin from anti-ageing and to reduce fine wrinkles would be an overnight hydrating mask. Look for masks that include ingredients such as Vitamin E, Collagen, Niacinamide, Hyaluronic Acid, Vitamin C and Alpha Lipoic Acid.
Recommended anti-ageing face masks
Price: €18.00
Oily skin is usually caused by the overproduction of excess sebum, which is the natural oil that protects and hydrates our skin. This overproduction is often caused by hormones; therefore, no product will outright ‘fix’ this problem. The good news is a good face mask can help decrease oily skin by absorbing the oils and improving the natural hydration and moisture, meaning that your skin will be less likely to overproduce oils. The best ingredients to use are oil-absorbing such as clay or charcoal; however, it is important to moisturise after use.
Recommended mask for oil control
Price: €2.00
Now we’ve discussed some key active ingredients in face masks and how they can help skin concerns, let’s look at two popular kinds of masks:
Sheet Masks are an easy way to add serums into your skincare routine and would benefit any skin type. The sheet itself creates a seal on your skin just like other face masks. In sheet masks, the moisture and vitamins from the serum used on the sheet can’t escape and have to soak into your skin.
Gel Masks are perfect for dry and sensitive skin. By nature, the masks are often cooling and soothing and of course, hydrating. Most often, the key ingredients in a gel mask will be collagen and antioxidants, which help skin recovery.
There are many recipes online for creating your own face mask. It’s always best to use the mask on the day you have made it for the ingredients to be most effective.
Using a face mask doesn’t have to take up your entire evening or be a special occasion, as most face masks only need to be applied for 15 minutes. There may be ample time in your evening or morning routine to include a face mask application. Here are some ways you can make face mask applications part of your lifestyle:
When you use a face mask, it is important to always apply to them a cleansed, clean face. You should also always moisturise after using face masks to prevent them from drying out the skin.
You can find out how often to use face masks in our guide.
Your first search for the perfect mask may come back with expensive brands, but it is important to do a little research into the products and whether a cheaper brand can offer the same ingredients.
Remember that expensive doesn’t always mean better quality and quite often products bought on a lower budget can achieve the same results as its premium counterpart.
For example it is entirely possible to get quality face masks, of all varieties under £10. You can narrow your search down by skin concern, ingredients and type of mask.
The best face mask for glowing skin would be ultra-hydrating and contain a blend of vitamin C type ingredients. This can come in the form of a sheet mask, clay mask or an overnight mask.
You can read our guide to choosing a face mask for your skin type and condition here.
If you are worried about your skin, you can visit a dermatologist who can help you identify your problem areas.
You should be using a face mask in your skincare routine at least once a week. Depending on your skin type and the type of mask, this can also be increased to a couple of times a week. If the mask is hydrating, you can generally use it more often than a mask that can potentially dry your skin out.
Read our guide to how often you should use a face mask here.
You can use more than one face mask in a day, as long as the properties in the masks are very different. For example, don’t use two clay masks as this would dry your skin out.
Always follow the advice on the packaging. You will find most masks suggest 15 minutes is a perfect time, except for overnight masks of course.