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Reviews and Photos by: Zoe Halatyn
This year’s HerCampus Survial Kit featured an array of beauty and health products that tempted just about everyone who received them. As a self titled beauty guru (not like I advertise as the ultimate beauty, but because I’ve tried just about every product out there), I knew I had to test them out. And the three that were calling my name were the FREEMAN’s Feeling Beautiful face masks.
I’ve been suffering from extreme acne and bad skin since I was 12 trying everything from department store lotions and creams to dermatologist prescribed accutane, so believe me when I say that I know what I’m talking about. Looking at the samples I was about to try, I wasn’t exactly confident they would work, but I knew that I’d at least have a few minutes of relaxation while trying them out.
The first face mask I tried was FREEMAN’s 4-in-1 Apple Cider Vinegar Foaming Clay Mask. The package advertises that this product can be used as a daily cleanser/scrub or mask to clean, scrub, tone, and absorb the oils on your unruly skin. The foaming feature and the 4-in-1 aspect of the mask was calling my name; I couldn’t help but rip open the package and start lathering it on my face.
The mask was a little more liquidy that toothpaste with little grains in it for exfoliation. It was also the nicest bright pink color and smelt just like apple cider! I put on an even coat all over my face and got ready for the next few minutes of relaxation.
But first, I took a full on photoshoot in my suite’s bathroom to document how BOMB this looked on my face.
After my quick glamour shoot, I went back to my room to wait for the mask to harden while I watched the horror movie Teeth. Side note about Teeth: it’s a movie about a girl with teeth in her vagina that bites off the penis of whoever enters her. So if that’s your thing, watch it (honestly, it was kind of awesome).
Fifteen minutes passed and the mask was hardened, so I headed to the bathroom to wash it off. Seeing my face in the mirror I felt a little disappointed that the mask hadn’t foamed up like the packaging said. But that disappointment quickly went away as soon as I washed my face. The great thing about this mask is that it feels smooth on your face but when you wash it off it exfoliates your face. Immediately after washing it, my skin felt noticeably smoother and cleaner. Looking at my face, it looked bright and tight. However, it was a bit red for about half an hour after.
Ultimately, it was a pretty great face mask! I think it’s awesome it can be used as a daily cleanser or as a deep cleansing mask. It’s exfoliating feature definitely worked, but I was disappointed that the mask didn’t foam and it irritated my face a bit. Rating: 4 Starz
The next mask I tried was FREEMAN’s Feeling Beautiful Avocado and Oatmeal Facial Clay Mask. This one claims to nourish and purify skin making soft to touch and squeaky clean. The packaging said to apply to face and wait for it to dry before rinsing off. It also said that the package contained 4-5 applications, which I highly doubted, but didn’t dissuade me.
I applied a thin coat of the light green mixture to my face and was surprisingly left with more than have the mixture left in the sample! After applying it, I sat down and read Animal Farm, by George Orwell, while I waited for it to dry. Nothing like a good diss to communism and ridding my skin of oil and dirt.
The first thing I noticed while wearing the mask was it was actually cooling my face while it dried. That sensation is what told me this mask would actually work. Ten minutes later my face was stiff, so I washed off the mask with warm water. My face didn’t feel as smooth as the apple cider mask that I just previously tried. However, my face did turn red just like that other mask. What can you do?
A bit disappointed, I went back to my room. A few moments later, fellow HerCampus writer, Delaney Russell, walked into my room and immediately announced, “Zoe, your skin looks amazing!”. Shocked, I looked in the mirror and my skin looked smooth and clean!
This avocado oatmeal mask started out underwhelming, but turned out to have visible effects of my skin.
Rating: 3.5 Starz
The final mask I tried was FREEMAN’s Cucumber Peel-Off Mask. This mask says it’ll clarify and renew your skin. Having a mix of oily and dry skin, I really hoped this mask would work and peel off some of my dead skin.
The mask is a clear, sticky paste and made my skin look shiny as heck. I didn’t take a picture of myself using this one cause it made my face look like is was rubbed in oil and zombie-like, sorry y’all. It took a while to put on because it was so sticky, but I didn’t have to use much of it so a lot was left that I could use at a later time. I waited for the mask to dry, which was harder to tell than the other two because it was clear and no cracks formed on my skin. To see if it was truly dry, I’d use my fingers to tap on my face and if any of the product came off, I knew I had to wait a little longer. Finally, it dried, and I started to peel the mask off from the bottom up. Most of the mask came off on the first try, but the rest I had to scrub off with a washcloth.
This mask wasn’t as impressive as the other two. Yes, my skin felt clean and smooth, but the dry bits of the mask lingered all day; I kept finding dried bits of it and it made my face look like it was shedding. I was also disappointed that it didn’t all peel off at once. It took forever to get on and forever to get off. I did, however, like the smell of it and how it cooled my face.
My friends did say my skin looked good, but ultimately this mask didn’t do it for me.
Rating: 2.5 Starz