There is no doubt that face masks are now part and parcel of routine skincare in many parts of the world, and for good reason.
Wearing a face mask always feels nice and there is a certain feeling of luxury that comes with them. Everybody wants to try them and there are of course many who feel these masks have helped them have better, healthier, and more beautiful skin.
But despite this, there is always this pertinent question. Do face masks actually work?
Well, it’s really hard to give you a direct answer. On one hand, there is a huge number of people who use masks on a day to day basis and they invest a lot of money on these products. You can argue that they wouldn’t do that if they didn’t see the benefits.
But there are of course others who feel that despite the massive positive press associated with face masks, they still don’t live up to their expectations. It’s an ongoing debate, to be honest, and I guess different people tend to have different experiences. As you can imagine, there are so many different types of masks. From the more popular clay mask to sheet and crème masks, there is a product for everybody out there.
We have even seen some clay masks, apparently from a volcano in Iceland meant to tighten up the pores and remove any impurities. Well, if you are still not sure whether you should invest on a clay face mask, keep on reading.
We will be offering you a world of helpful information that will help you better understand these products and how they work. We will also show you a few tips to help you make the most of them.
Clay Masks Are Not All the Same
Before we even go further, it is important to make it clear that clay masks are not the same. This is a crucial factor to keep in mind because it will determine the kind of experience you have with these masks. In other words, whether or not a face clay mask works for you entirely depends on whether you are using a good high-quality product or not.
Besides, people have different skin types or issues. It’s not uncommon to see one mask working for you and failing to deliver the same results for another person. This is probably the reason why there are so many brands in the market today. Just do a simple Google search and you will be bombarded by thousands of products and there is a chance that probably one or two of them would work for you.
However, my rule is to always choose products that do not have side effects. I understand that it may take time to find a mask that works. But even if I don’t find that perfect product, I still don’t want to buy something that makes my skin worse than it is. Natural masks made from clay and water only as their main ingredients are therefore highly recommended.
Nonetheless, to prolong the life of these products, manufacturers sometimes add some preservatives in there too. It is also possible that the manufacturer will add a binding agent to keep the clay and the water tightly glued together and some fragrance too. While these additional ingredients are needed to enhance the value, in some cases they could cause more harm than good.
Pre-hydrated masks have some issues too. Mixing up clay with water and packaging seems like an easy thing right? Well, this moisture could create the perfect habitat for bacteria, something that could end up messing up your skin in the long run. So, what is the solution here? If you don’t want to take any chances, go for all-natural products that are not pre-rehydrated.
There are so many clay masks out there that allow you to hydrate them only when you want to use them. Some of these products don’t have synthetic fillers or preservatives and this can be a huge plus, especially for people with sensitive skin types.
How Do Clay Masks Work?
So, let’s now get to the intricate workings of clay masks and why they are a big deal and if they actually work. Most people who apply these masks regularly can attest to the fact that the effects are felt almost instantly. The moment that clay hits your skin, you will feel something changing under your skin.
The primary purpose of them is to remove impurities, oils, and other debris from your pores. Pores are incredibly vital in enhancing the proper circulation of oxygen in your skin and should, therefore, be in prime condition. A clay face mask can help you with this.
However, keep in mind that you won’t see any visible results immediately after the first application. You might feel something happening, but you won’t be able to see any difference yet.
It takes a few weeks of regular application for results to start visibly manifesting themselves. In most cases, people who apply quality all-natural clay masks will have more vibrant glowing skin. You are also likely to see a huge improvement in your complexion.
I know the idea of using clay masks might seem like a chic and trendy new way to treat skin using natural ingredients. But don’t kid yourself, this is not something new. They have been used from ancient civilizations as skincare regimens. The fact that they remain popular to this date goes to show how effective they can be if used right.
Top Skincare Benefits of Clay Masks
As we have already mentioned, clay masks have benefits as long as you are using the right product. It would, therefore, be recommended to include them in your skincare regimen and see how they work.
Nonetheless, there are of course several benefits to expect should you decide to use these products. These benefits won’t come right away, but trust me, they will eventually.
We did some research and came up with seven top benefits.
1. Improve the Texture of Your Skin
Clay is a highly porous material and will, therefore, absorb a lot of oils from your skin easily. Due to its porous nature, clay may also prove very effective in absorbing small dirt particles and other impurities.
This will help improve skin texture, leaving it looking soft and smoother than ever before. Clay is also a natural exfoliant for people with a sensitive skin type.
2. Minimize Pores on Your Skin
Clay can help to remove excess oil from your skin pores as well as help get rid of other debris including normal pollution and dead skin.
This will not only minimize the appearance of pores but it ensures they are clean, leading to proper circulation. Next time you wear a clay mask, be sure to check it after you remove it.
You will notice some black specks forming around the mask. These are normally the oils and the debris that clay removes from the pores of your skin.
3. Improve Your Skin Tone
Clay will help maintain the optimum performance of your skin pores. This ensures that there is proper circulation of oxygen and other nutrients to every part of your skin.
The circulation is important in maintaining that radiant vibrant skin that you are looking for, and applying it around the face and the neck will help reduce the appearance of swelling and puffiness.
4. Possible Treatment for Acne
The negative ionic composition of clay might help to bind with harmful bacteria that could cause blemishes. This makes it a possible effective treatment for acne. What makes it a great choice is the fact that it’s a natural product.
We know that there are many acne treatments out there, but they come with a lot of side effects that leave your skin feeling worse than before. Clay, on the other hand, is the exact opposite. It has no side effects whatsoever.
5. Skin Detoxification
Clay can be a great detoxifying agent for your skin. Normally, this muddy substance will have a negative ionic charge once it’s fully hydrated.
This means that it can bind into positive ions or free radicals that are known to cause inflammations.
In some cases, these free radicals can accelerate the process of aging, leading to the appearance of wrinkles and other blemishes.
6. Cleanse
Clay is a gentle cleanse that will ultimately help remove toxins, dead skin cells, excess oil, and bacteria.
You don’t need expensive chemical products to cleanse your skin. A clay mask, regardless of how basic it is, does a better job than many of these conventional skincare products.
7. Get Rid of Excessive Oils in Your Skin
The porous nature of a clay mask will help absorb excess oils from your skin. Our skin produces oil naturally, but in some cases, some factors may accelerate this production.
For example, the skin will produce more oil during hot days. Stress has also been linked to excessive skin oil.
The problem with too much oil is that it clogs the pores, leading to blemishes. Applying clay regularly may help get rid of all this oil.
Types of Clay to Use on Your Skin
Clay is a broad categorization of a soil type and believe me, not all clay works in taking care of your skin.
There are four major clay types to consider:
- French Green: This clay is normally green in color and as you’d probably guess, it’s from France. It gets its green appearance from decomposed plant matter. It is often recommended for people with acne-prone skin and would also work well as a cleanser.
- Bentonite: Often referred to as the healing clay, this soil offers incredible skin healing properties. It’s composed naturally of volcanic ash and comes with several natural mineral compounds like sodium, magnesium, and others.
- Kaolin: This is probably one of the gentlest clays out there. It is also mild but can be a very powerful exfoliating and cleansing agent.
- Rhassoul: If you are looking for clay to soften up your skin, this is your perfect product. It helps to rid the skin of impurities and improving circulation as well.
Customizing Your Clay Mask
We have noted somewhere above that you are better off using a powder mask than a pre-hydrated one simply because of the risk of bacteria associated with the latter.
But before using the powder mask, you may want to learn a few tricks to customize it to your current skincare needs.
- In case you want to make your mask more effective as a skin-softening agent, I would recommend that you add some raw honey into the mix before applying.
- As for people who want to create that cooling and probiotic mask, add some yogurt in there before applying.
- To make a deeply moisturizing mask, mix up the clay with 1-2 pumps of facial oil and apply
- Finally, if you want to use the mask to remove impurities, antioxidants, bacteria, and other inflammatory agents, add a vile of green tea into the clay before applying it to your skin.
Conclusion
Clay masks work, and if you can just get quality all-natural products, you will enjoy the benefits offered by using them.
There are also ways to customize your mask to better reflect the goals you want to achieve with your skin and we have mentioned them above.
Ultimately, the most important thing is to take your time while buying a clay mask just to be sure there are no added compounds in there that could harm your skin.