I received a sample of Dr. Hauschka Cleansing Clay Mask in the 'Daily Face Care Kit for Oil Skin' that I bought from the website. I wanted to see how the products would work for my skin before splashing out on the full size products. It came in a little sachet that would be suitable for one use.


A little bit about my skin:

My skin can get very oily during the daytime, and I have recently been having problems with 'under the skin' spots on my forehead and cheek area. I have a few blackheads on my nose and chin and my skin can be very sensitive to any form of exfoliation.


Why I chose this product/About the product:

I was really looking forward to trying this mask from the Face Care Kit, especially as you cannot buy the individual trial sachets from the website. Buying this kit is essentially the only way you can 'try' the product before buying the full size. On the website, the mask is said to be for normal to oily skin types, and is described to 'absorb excess sebum and impurities', to be 'deep cleansing and disinfecting' and that 'the tightening action of the clay drying on your face pulls the impurities out of your pores'. I thought, Perfect!, this will hopefully help suck out any nasty impurities that seem to be causing so much mayhem with my skin.
This mask will set you back a hefty £24.00 for a 90g jar, or £18.75 for a refill. This price, which is expensive for me considering I usually spend around £6.00 on a face mask, is what really pushed me to try the trial size first.


The ingredients:

Loess
Fine clay of mixed composition known as "Heilerde", which means "Healing Earth". Clays are naturally occurring, finely ground rocks composed of various minerals. Most clays are deposited from water and found near river banks and deltas or ocean beds. Loess is deposited from airborne dust. Clays are detoxifying and have a "drawing" action due to their electrically charged particles. Traditionally, clay has been used for its healing, detoxifying and germicidal actions.

Tropaeolum Majus Extract
Also known as the common garden nasturtium, the whole plant is infused with a spicy, warming quality. Nasturtium is native to South America where the fresh leaves are placed on inflamed wounds and eaten fresh as a spring tonic. Recent research shows an oil extract of the leaves effective against viruses, bacteria and yeasts and in strengthening the immune system.

Hamamelis Virginiana (Witch Hazel) Extract
The bark and leaves from biodynamic Witch Hazel are used for their anti-inflammatory properties. The essences are very widely used in the preparations and Witch Hazel has a long established tradition of use in skin care.


How do you use it?

The website includes lots and lots of handy tips and information on how to get the best out of your mask and how to use it properly. The instuctions for use are as followed:
-Problem skin should have the mask treatment once a week, and the mask treatment should follow a steam treatment using Facial Steam Bath.
Mix the mask before the steam treatment so that you can apply it immediately afterwards.
-Mix one heaped teaspoon of powder to about one and a half teaspoons of water to create a soft paste.
Apply the mask to your skin using a mask brush or your fingers, avoiding the immediate eye area.
-Sensitive skin should leave the mask on for 3-5 minutes; dry and normal skin should leave it on for 5-10 minutes; oily and impure skin should leave it on for 10-15 minutes.
-Remove the mask with lots of warm water, then splash with cool water. Apply Facial Toner or Clarifying Toner, and your usual moisturiser.

How did it work?

I followed the step-by-step instruction manual that came with my kit. It told me to cleanse and tone as usual, use the Facial Steam Bath to steam my skin for 5 minutes to soften the skin and loosen any impurities, then apply the mask. I prepared the mask beforehand, mixing it with around 2 teaspoons of water and a tiny splash of the Clarifying Toner, also instructed by the manual. I think I put a bit too much water in as upon application the mask was quite runny, but I managed to get it on okay. The mask was a brown colour and didn't smell of anything in particular, maybe just a slightly bit herby. One sachet was enough to cover the whole of my face quite thickly. Instead of leaving the mask to 'dry' like I usually would, it is recommended to keep it moist throughout the whole process. The good thing was that it didn't dry up as quickly as other masks usually do so I didn't have to worry about it too much, but I did have to slightly dampen some areas with warm water to keep it moist as recommended. I thought this would be a messy process but the mask simply absorbed the water again and didn't 'fall' off like I was expecting it to.

After the 15 minutes were up I went to wash my mask off, expecting it to be the messy affair that most masks involve. How wrong I was! Using warm water to splash my face, the mask came off immediately with ease. Usually I have a lot left around my hair line and jaw line, but this just seemed to wash off straight away. I dried my face and immediately inspected myself in the mirror (lol!). The lumps and bumps were noticeably reduced, two of the more visible spots had significantly calmed down - the redness was gone and they had dried up a lot. My skin felt lovely and soft, and overall looked a lot more radiant. The next day after using it, my skin continued to look clear, and no breakouts occurred.

Overall I would say this is a nice mask, and definitely gave me some nice results, but nothing amazing stood out for me to want to jump at the chance of paying £24.00 for a full size jar. I know that I would end up trying to just use it once a month to save on the price! I would, however, definitely buy the Daily Face Care Kit again, as I now like the whole range due to trying this kit and the sample of this mask is definitely and added bonus! I think acne prone skin would see great results with this mask, it calmed my sensitive skin and kept it clear.