Seeing the newly launched Sephora CollectionRubber Mask ($8, available here) was a pleasant surprise – it’s a type of face mask I’ve always wanted to try but not necessarily spend tons of money on. It’s a big deal in the world of K-beauty and now every brand has some version of it but with a single-use mask starting at $15? No thank you!
So I turned to one of my favourite brands when it comes to trying out some innovative launch at a fraction of the price.
One of the most underrated affordable beauty brand has got to be the Sephora Collection, which I have written about and reviewed many times throughout the last few years.
With products starting at as little as $4 and a bunch of dupes for their higher-end counterparts, the Sephora Collection range is my little splurge when I want to try out something new but don’t want to spend hundreds of dollars on it or when I want a little pick me up without going out to do a full haul. Plus, at the rate they’re churning out new products, there’s always something to try out for everyone!
Sephora Collection Rubber Mask – The Details
There are two versions of the Sephora CollectionRubber Mask available: Goji Berry and Coconut. They come in this little pail packaging, but don’t let the size in the photos or website fool you – the pail itself isn’t any taller than a credit card.
The mask comes in a powder form, and the idea is that you use a bit of water to make a paste and apply it on your face. It can get messy pretty quickly but I’ve learned a few things over trying this out that will hopefully save you from the mess and grief of having to throw out the unused product.
Firstly, I like the idea of this pail packaging – it’s great that you can use it as a container to make the mix and there’s even a helpful measuring chart on the side to help you measure out how much water to add. That means, you don’t need any additional tools or cleaning up – very convenient! I like that the pail is also easily recyclable but can be repurposed if necessary if you like decanting products! There is a little spoon included on the inside of the lid that you can use to mix the product.
How to use the Sephora Collection Rubber Mask
But before you get excited and start with this mask-making, please read on to read my experience because this ended up being on of those products I wouldn’t recommend to use per instruction!
Before you go further, do yourself a favour and get a small container (I like to repurpose old mask jars so I went ahead and used the Fresh Rose Mask container I had saved) and if you have one, a mask applicator ($7, available here). I got my mask applicator from Amazon for $7 and it comes in a set of 3. It’s a fantastic tool to have if you like to use face masks on a regular basis – it makes the experience more luxurious, hygienic and waste less product in the long run.
I recommend scooping out about half to start out with into a smaller container. Then add a bit of water to make a paste. Add the water slowly, and keep mixing until you get a runny paste – almost cake batter-like in mixture but not too runny. Ideally it should be quite thick as well otherwise, you’ll end up with a very runny liquid mask on the skin. I’ve taken a picture of the consistency I went with to show you.
Use the mask applicator to apply the mixture on your face. The coconut was very cooling on the skin and I really enjoyed that cooling sensation. You want to layer the mixture that it’s thick enough to eventually peel – so I recommend making sure the mixture is opaque on your skin. The mask will harden as it dries, and my coconut one changed into this skin-like prosthetic skin colour which looked kind of creepy. Here’s a shot of it!
Tips for Using the Sephora Collection Rubber Mask
There is a little bit more powder than necessary to make the mask for the full-face. I think Sephora intended for this to be a one-use mask but many reviews indicated they ended up with a lot more than anticipated and not knowing it ahead of time, meant they had to throw out the unused portion as the mask hardens as it dries, meaning that you can’t save it for later use.
The mask smells fantastic too – can’t go wrong with coconut or goji berry. I didn’t end up using the spoon as it was too small to apply with – parts of my skin got dry before I finished applying to the other side which is why having the mask applicator helped. I didn’t apply this with my fingers as I imagine it’s going to be fairly messy. Once you have it on the face, leave it on for 5 minutes or until it hardens. Don’t leave it for too long otherwise it dries out and get cracky as you can see in the above image where I applied it over the lips and the neck.
Unfortunately, my mask didn’t peel off cleanly – parts of it got really dry and even the rubbery part peeled off in flakes. I couldn’t get the mask to peel in one even layer so I ended up washing my face completely. It’s unfortunate that this seems to be a common experience, despite the fact that I had layered the mask thick enough for it to harden. At the end, instead of having one clean mask, I ended up washing down much of it which I then had to clean up to prevent the sink from clogging up.
The Sephora Collection Rubber Mask is a great way to try out the rubber mask trend even it didn’t work out completely. I think I’m changing up the water/powder ratio next time to see if I can get a better result. Ultimately, it was fun to do, but not so much fun after the application. I definitely want to play around some more with this product and see if I can get a better result next time. I’ll keep you updated if it ends up being a success!
Have you tried rubber masks before? What would you suggest I do differently?