Simply put, it did nothing! (Simple Kind to Skin Deep Cleansing Face Mask)

Member Name: bamamo

Product:	Simple Kind to Skin Deep Cleansing Face Mask
Date:	17/07/09 (54 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Mess-free, affordable

Disadvantages: I didn't see any real improvement.

In an effort to take skincare more seriously (which, to be fair, would mean doing ANYTHING AT ALL, I'm lazy), I bought this mask a couple of months ago to add in once or twice a week whilst in the bath. After all, everyone needs a bit of pampering now and again and a face mask is an excellent way to do just that.

I've used several masks in the past, mostly fairly cheap ones in the single-use sachets, which can get messy and I went to Boots specifically looking for a mask in a tube which I would keep me going for a while. I chose Simple because their products have a reputation for being pretty good, affordable and, as the name and packaging of this product states, kind to skin.

My skin is prone to extreme dryness, though usually not in the summer, so I'm generally a little wary of products which claim to be "kind" to skin, as that can occasionally translate as "does nothing to skin". Looking at the ingredients, I was a little suspicious. While the product description mentions natural clay and seaweed extract and a neutral pH, the ingredients don't sound all that natural. As far as I'm concerned, there is nothing simple-sounding about "2-Bromo-2-Nitropropane-1,3-Diol".

Still, I started working the mask into my routine. The results? Well, I can't say there are any of particular note.

Firstly let's talk about using the mask. I use it about twice a week (at this stage just to use it up since I've bought it now) and, as instructed, slather over my face and leave on for three minutes. It comes out of the tube rather like a cream cleanser and, as predicted, is mess-free. So there's one plus point. Once on the skin, however, it doesn't harden at all like most masks, which usually makes me feel as if I haven't applied enough. Although I usually use it in the bath, when I've applied in front of a mirror I've noticed that no matter how much it FEELS like this is all over my skin, it looks streaky and patchy on my face because due to the formulation it's not that easy to cover every inch.

I'm not saying that face masks SHOULD make the skin feel tight as they harden, but this has been my experience in general, and when I've removed these masks my skin has felt wonderful, soft and smooth with all the dead skin washed away with the hard mask. As this mask doesn't harden, and essentially sits on the face for three minutes, I find it difficult to see how it is working any magic at all.

So the three minutes up, when I go to rinse my face I find that a) it's pretty hard to rinse this off thoroughly, again due to the formulation and b) my skin feels not that different from when I put it on.

I will say that my nose felt a bit smoother, and the pores slightly more refined, but the softness of my skin itself was not particularly improved, and my skin didn't feel as though it had been thoroughly deep cleansed. Nor did it look brighter, as promised.

It is worth mentioning that I don't suffer a lot from spots or blackheads, so I wasn't expecting the mask to do major repair work, but I was expecting SOMETHING. The first time I used this, I actually did get a couple of spots immediately afterwards. So maybe this is deep-down dirt being drawn out, but I'm not sure this is a particularly desirable side-effect for people who actually suffer from spots or acne on a regular basis.

The mask is available from Boots, Superdrug and Tesco in a 75ml tube or 15ml sachet. I don't remember how much I paid for my tube, and am having trouble finding it online, but I believe it was somewhere around the £3-4 mark. It has lasted a long time, but I won't be rebuying. If anyone knows of a really good mask in a tube/tub, let me know what it is!

Summary: Unfortunately this did absolutely nothing for my skin so I definitely won't repurchase!