Why you should use face masks for beautiful skin

Since ancient times, humans have used clay and rainwater or river water to apply to their face and body to keep warm and protect their skin from UV rays.

The mask has since become a favourite of famous women throughout history, from Cleopatra, Marie Antoinette, Yang Guifei all the way to Empress Dowager Cixi, who all had their own recipes for beauty masks. The so-called Masking Effect refers to the 'dramatic' improvement of the skin after applying a mask.

Why is a mask so helpful to the skin? As the skin is temporarily isolated from the outside world by the mask, it prevents the skin's temperature from radiating out, causing the surface temperature to rise, which opens the pores and expels excess oil from them. The skin is instantly rejuvenated.

Nowadays, due to the advancement of technology in beauty care products, there are different functions and uses for face masks. Although masks have been integrated into the skin care regime of women in many countries, they are still classified as a 'special care' item, and are not always considered as necessary by many. However, the instantaneous change in your skin after applying a mask shall make it worth a try. So when you feel like your skin needs a little boost, why not apply a mask to give it a boost?

Mask application tips

Here are five small reminders for you when you are applying mask:

1. Face masks should not be applied every day. Highly concentrated essence ingredients if used frequently will make the skin's keratin metabolism abnormal, losing the original water retention capability from your skin, and causing emergence of wrinkles.
2. Unless the mask is advertised as a sleeping mask to sleep with, it is counterproductive to leave it on for too long as the moisture of both the sheet mask and the clay mask dries up.
3. A mask should usually only be applied for 15-20 minutes, but if you feel your skin is "very tired" or particularly dry you can leave it on for an extra 5-10 minutes, but make sure you don't leave it on your face for more than 30 minutes.
4. The correct order of mask application should be cleansing - applying mask – removing mask – applying essence – applying lotion or moisturiser
5. You should not talk on the phone or laugh when applying the mask, ideally you should lie down face up, so that the skin can fully absorb the nutrients in the mask.