Here's my totally unproven but completely sensible (at least to me) mask coda:

Sheet masks push nutrients into the skin. I'd like to wear one every day but the more accurate description of my sheet mask schedule is close to never.

Clay masks pull toxins out of the skin. I'd like to do it just once a week since most of them tend to pull out sebum and moisture along with the toxins. While I am abundant in the former, I lack the latter so I can't overdo (sadly.)

I don't know what the dermas say about the frequency of mask use so do take my word with a grain of salt, if you take it all. The most important thing is: if you're deviating from the clinical recommendation, you must know your skin and take baby steps.

And I happen to be very intimate with the fact that I came home with immutably horrible skin.

I came home from my New Year's vacation with such bad skin so  I wasn't sure if this was the right time to try Camaru Naturals' Amazonian Clay Face Mask* . If I detoxed with a clay mask, I could exacerbate the dryness and irritation. On the other hand, it's been around a month and I saw no improvement despite piling on the moisturizer. Lots of it.

Camaru Naturals Amazonian Clay Face Mask

Since I'm such a rebel, y'all know I detoxed anyway.




I got my spa headband on and quickly got to work! I simply spread the mask around my face, avoiding the eyes, lips and hairline. The texture was a bit goopy; easily spreadable but not enough to dribble down my neck nor make a mess in the unsealed jar.

Blogger note: please forgive the cheesy, overly emotional expression. I couldn't take a decent picture because my eyes were being wonky bitches and every shot I took looking directly at camera had me horribly cross-eyed. Thus the sad, looking-faraway face :(




The mask itself is a graphite-to-charcoal gray color. There are specks of darker sand and specks that shimmered in the light, which I guess would be the clay? At the very least, my second most intelligent guess is that those are some rich minerals. The mask has a distinct vegetable leafy smell that fades of in a couple of seconds. I found it relaxing and wish it didn't fade off!





The instructions say to leave on for 10-15 minutes and since my face is on the dry side, I set my timer to just ten minutes. I passed the time by playing some games. If I had a leatherette donut pillow I'd probably try to nap a bit... if I also had a leatherette bed. Alas, stains are the enemy here so I had to remain seated.




When my ten minutes were up, the mask had dried and stiffened but it didn't settle into a peel-off sticker. It was more like actual mud, as in wet soil that crusted and sat atop my face. It wasn't even a thin, cracky shell. I quite liked that. I wasn't in the mood to peel off my nose and cheek hairs.




I scooped thermos water cooled down with tap water (oooh, elaborate!) and splashed it over my face, just like they do in commercials. I'd have tried to hack it using merely tap water, but I've learned enough by now to know that you don't mess with instructions that call for warm water. 




Honestly, it was a joy to wash off. Warm water revived the goopy texture though it was now runnier. I felt like I was rubbing slime on my face and gross as it may sound, it felt sooo soothing! It wasn't difficult to remove and by the end of it, I felt absolutely no tightness on my face! My cheeks were immediately so soft (and treatments usually take multiple uses before I notice that kind of plumpness.)

My face felt really clean and I was glad it didn't irritate my condition. In fact, I think it even helped me absorb moisturizer since I was left with such clean, detoxified skin.


RECAP:



I loved the texture. It didn't run down my face yet I was able to easily (and quickly) spread it all over. I've done clay masks that were so runny, they ran down my neck, even all the way down my flat chest(!) The opposite texture is an overly thick paste that, while mess-free, takes a bit of patience to evenly spread. Both of them aren't any good. This is my first experience with a mid-way texture and I'll be looking for it in other clay masks!

It's pain-free and easy to remove. In fact, the residue of the mask is really soothing and I took my time taking it off! I might have tried to rub the slime on my cheeks even after I'd watered it down, but nobody can say for certain.




I'm not going to play blind to justify an otherwise on-a-roll rave. I know that I still have specks of redness, bumps and patches of skin remaining. I even broke out near my lip. So why continue the positive review? My face had been in the "before" state of angry irritation for weeks in spite of diligent and abundant moisturization. I tried sleeping earlier. I tried drinking a lot of water. Nothing changed.

In the after picture, the raised red bits were flattened down and there's less skin flaking about. There's also a handful of bumps remaining as opposed to a shit ton in my "before" picture. And this is the day after I did the clay mask, so rest your "water hides irritations" objections.

My whole skin just seems calmer, if that even makes sense. It made me a little bit insecure, but ever since my skin went from FUG to SMUG, I'm back to my crazy ole self!

The change may seem marginal, but it's only my first use. I think the mask took my skin off that funk and it's gotten back to being flawless since that mask sesh! (P.S. It's now even better than the "after" picture.) The results are 1000% motivating me to maintain this as a weekly habit!


You may visit Camaru Naturals through their Facebook page, Camaru Naturals.

*This sample was provided for editorial consideration. (Thank you Ms. Ruth!)  I was not prodded into a positive review; I was not compensated. The narration is true-to-experience and all perceived benefits are sincere impressions.