I love this omg I'm about to order my 3rd bottle actually.
My recommendation is to tip the bottle upside down before you use it so more of the flower flakes will spread before you use it. If you don't it'll all come out in the first couple of uses and be completely gone by the half way point.
I use this stuff twice a week. It's helped shrink my pores drastically and it makes my skin feel sooooooo soft and look so glowy. I can't use the rest of their line anymore because it's too drying for my skin type but their mask will always be an HG of mine.
EDIT: this does NOT help remove dead skin. It does even out your skin a bit though. Tbh if anything I use it after I exfoliate to add some moisture into my skin
APRILSKIN | REAL CALENDULA PEEL OFF MASK
Easily persuaded by Instagram ads, the APRILSKIN Real Calendula Peel Off Pack has been haunting me. Being the skincare junkie, I hunted this down for a while and here are my thoughts on this mask.
So who is APRILSKIN?
APRILSKIN was founded in 2014 and is a Korean cosmetic and skincare brand that focuses on
healthy skin using naturally derived ingredients. I have stumbled across this brand a view times seeing the Turn Up Colour Cream and BB Cushions. From this Real Calendula range, there are three products:
Peel Off Pack, Moisture Essence and Peeling Pad.
What we know
The peel-off pack contains 2,000ppm of
original calendula flower to clarify and soothe your skin. The floral ingredients inside and flower oil help moisturise skin at the same time. It also claims to remove dead skin cells and controls sebum. Sounds very appealing to me.
How to use
- Shake well
- Apply on clean skin
- Use an even layer
- Wait 30 mins
- Peel and rinse off
Does it work?
The consistency is quite running and can be a handful to apply which is why I
recommend using a silicone brush to evenly distribute the product. I do apply more to my t-zone area but not enough to drip off.
I have used this mask over a month now and about once or twice a week. On the first go, I did not apply enough so when I went to remove the mask I did not see much of an effect but noticed my skin felt a lot smoother and more matte compared to my naturally oily skin.
I continue to use this pack when I have breakouts but not on open spots and it helps reduce the redness and sensitivity on my skin while restoring moisture and removing dead skin cells that are around my non-active spots.
When I remove the mask, I use an upward/towards the centre motion and peel it off slowly so the mask can lift off any impurities - for me that is excess sebum and whiteheads. I wouldn't say this is a painful mask but if it gets on your hairs it does hurt when you peel it off and it even takes off a few facial hairs. My most noticeable areas are my nose and chin where my pores are larger but I am not a person that has blackheads.
Overall
The mask helps calm and soothe my skin while cleaning out my pores and removing dead skin cells but the results are not as dramatic as you see on the Instagram ad. It is recommended you use this for 4 weeks to see good results and I do have clearer skin/pores especially on my nose. I like how the mask always comes off as one so you don't have messy
bits and I enjoy the 30-minute waiting time where I can catch up on some TV or socials. Will I purchase this again? Yes.
I have reviewed the APRILSKIN Magic Snow BB Cushion and I will like to try more from APRILSKIN. This product is now stocked in selected Mannings and Watsons stores in Hong Kong. You can get this directly from the April Skin website which ships worldwide or on Ebay.
Hope you enjoyed this post!
Until next time!
Joyce x
Hello everyone!
With most shutters down and the government urging us to stay home, my shopping orientation has changed drastically over the past few weeks. Online shopping apps are creeping up on my most frequently used list on my mobile phone, so instead of saving money, my bank account is actually taking a greater hit than usual from the Circuit Breaker 🥴 Shopee has got to be the biggest culprit of all because of their flash sales that happen every four hours and to be perfectly honest, most products sold there really are priced at a steal.
Take, for example, the APRILSKIN skincare products of which advertisements have been bombarding my social media feed lately [even though said products were launched in 2018?]. What could have essentially cost me almost $50 if I had gone the traditional route [i.e. buying from Guardian] was only slightly more than half that amount during the flash sale I so happened to be camping for.
My APRILSKIN haul!
Established in 2014, APRILSKIN is a South Korean beauty brand that prides themselves on using naturally-derived ingredients in their products to prevent skin irritation. Apart from skincare products, APRILSKIN also boasts a complete range of makeup tools and cosmetics from which many devotees might have first learnt about the brand [not gonna lie – their cushion foundation looked incredible].
Based on the availability, or lack thereof, of their products on their international website, it’s safe to say that APRILSKIN is sought-after not only in Singapore and their home country, but also in other parts of the world as well. Hence, I’m very excited to see what the hype is all about! Are their products really that effective, or is APRILSKIN just a master of social media marketing? Let’s find out 😉
Here’s my bare face before using both APRILSKIN products – right profile
Left profile
In case it wasn’t explicit earlier, all products reviewed on this post were paid for with my own money and Shopee had not approached me to do a collaboration.Real Calendula Peel Off Pack [S$23]
APRILSKIN Real Calendula Peel-Off Pack
APRILSKIN Real Calendula Peel-Off Pack
APRILSKIN Real Calendula Peel-Off Pack
This product in particular piqued my interest because of how gentle it seemed in exfoliating the outermost layer of the skin, unlike those that cling to the skin and make ripping them off a nightmare. There’s also something oddly satisfying about peeling stuff off the skin while being able to see dead skin cells getting removed in the process [nothing quite unusual for someone who enjoys morbid videos of pimple popping, earwax extraction and ingrown hair removal 😜] so I wanted to experience it for myself!
Calen.. what? If you have been out of the skincare loop like me, calendula, or pot marigold, is traditionally used in Ayurvedic and traditional Chinese medicine. It has antiseptic properties which helps in treating wounds and preventing acne, and promotes skin tightening among many other benefits. ‘Pretty much explains how calendula lent itself to be the star ingredient in this peel-off mask!
What the gel looks like
The product had a scent to it that smelled somewhat like yuzu to me [it might well be the smell of calendula but I’m not familiar with this plant] although some users have also commented that it reeked of artificial fragrance. It contains visible particles which, according to APRILSKIN, are parts of the calendulas [petals, pistil, stamen, calyx, etc.] and are distributed evenly throughout the clear, gel-like sticky substance.
My Sand & Sky brush finally came in handy!
Application is ideally done with the brand’s Real Jelly Brush for a more even coating but since it was not included in the bundle, I used the brush that came with my Sand & Sky mask just because I am a cheapskate [it worked perfectly well, though!]. Having tried several different ways of application, I found dispensing the product onto the bristles before spreading it all over the face, section by section in an upward motion, worked better. The brand also recommends applying a thin layer [twice a week], but I piled it up a little more to prevent it from ripping apart during removal. At the rate I’m going, one tube would probably last me for about two months.
After mask application
After mask application
When mask had dried down. I didn’t want to smile and risk having wrinkles, y’know!
The product tightened over time and finally, with my desk fan pointing towards me on full blast, dried down completely after 20 minutes instead of 30 minutes as stated on the box. The peeling process went pretty smoothly and painlessly [although it wasn’t as clean as this] but not without having to lightly scratch or pinch along my jawline to locate the edge of the mask [‘reckon I lost a few strands of facial hair doing so].
Peel mask off starting from the bottom, going along with the direction of the face muscles [and against gravity] to prevent skin sagging
More peeling shots because I like them
Mainly my skin’s natural texture and dead skin..
All in all, I didn’t think it was entirely effective in removing my blackheads [on my nose especially], but it certainly lifted tons of dead skin [mostly from my healing zits] from atop my cheeks. Although the drier parts of my face looked negligibly flaky thereafter [it definitely did not give me the glass skin depicted on their marketing collaterals after use], it appeared brighter overall and the redness of my acne blemishes had also been visibly reduced. Most importantly, it did not irritate my sensitive skin!
After removal of mask – side profile
After removal of mask – side profile
After removal of mask – full profile
Real Carrot Serum [S$25.90]
APRILSKIN Real Carrot Serum
APRILSKIN Real Carrot Serum
APRILSKIN Real Carrot Serum
By the way, this is how you can verify the authenticity of your APRILSKIN products! How cool is this?!
This was included in the set, so it wasn’t like I had a choice. That said, it came timely because I was already on the lookout for a replacement for my nighttime serum when my current one runs out. However, much as I was happy to welcome this to my rotation, I was also curious – why is carrot chosen over the likes cucumber, aloe vera and tomato which are so commonly found in skincare products? Google revealed a plethora of benefits of carrots but the one that struck with me was its ability to overcome acne. Wow, today I learnt! Where have carrot-based skincare products been all my life, especially when I was battling a serious case of acne?
According to APRILSKIN, this daytime and nighttime serum has been clinically tested to be non-comedogenic. It harnesses ingredients derived from certified organic carrots [carrot water, carrot seed oil and carrot proteins] to combat blemishes such as acne and whiteheads [those pesky little bumps beneath the surface of the skin which I have plenty of!] and also niacinamide [a water-soluble vitamin] to brighten the skin tone and lighten hyperpigmentation. Of course, the ingredient list doesn’t stop here but I shan’t bore you with the details.
Appearance of serum
Pump 1 to 2 times and gently spread across the face from the centre outwards
After applying the serum
The smell of this white, lightweight, mildly viscous cream reminded me of lemon grass – it kind of evoked a sense of tranquillity in me. But not to worry if you aren’t a fan of aromatherapy because the scent is fleeting and you won’t be able to smell a thing once it’s on your face. In terms of its efficacy, perhaps because I used it after applying the peel-off mask, I noticed that the skin absorbed it a lot better than other serums. It also didn’t leave a sticky texture behind after application, which is a rarity for Korean skincare products [for me]! There wasn’t much difference to the appearance of my skin until the next morning because I woke up to shrunken bumps and glowing skin! The results were quite unexpected, I must say 🙊
I woke up like that!
TL;DR: Before and after [click to view image in full size] – colour-corrected [I tried] for accuracy
In general, even though the mask didn’t perform as well as I hoped at the first try [I expected more gunk], I enjoyed the experience of peeling it off and will most likely repurchase due to this reason [it’s a good compelling reason for me to use it as I have the tendency of not using up my face mask before they pass their shelf lives 🙊 #lazy]. The effects of the carrot serum were what really took me by surprise so I guess this pretty much settles it for me. Hello, new serum in my skincare regime!
What are your thoughts on these products? Let me know what you think in the comments below or take a quick poll! 😊
Thanks for reading!
APRILSKIN Real Calendula Peel Off Pack & Real Carrot Serum are now available on Shopee and GUARDIAN SINGAPORE.Follow me on Instagram and Facebook for bite-sized beauty updates!