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skincare review

Skyn Hydro Cool Firming Eye Gels

I was super stoked to try Skyn Hydro Cool Firming Eye Gels.  Having read about these quite some time ago, when I went to Ulta recently I was so excited to see them.  They are heralded as a “celebrity favorite,” therefore sending them directly to the top of my list.

Skyn Iceland is also free of parabens, formaldehyde, and all the other chemicals I can’t pronounce or spell.  Best of all, they’re vegan and cruelty free.  Score! And Rachel Zoe loves them.  Did anyone else watch that show?  Bananas ????

Skyn Hydro Cool Gels - Beauty Chaos

Rachel Zoe is the only celebrity listed under those who love the product, but it has been featured on Rachael Ray, Good Morning America, and a whole host of other relatively well respected TV shows.

Introduction

The packaging is simple and clean, just the way I like it.  Had I not seen this in a magazine previously, I would have been attracted to the packaging on the shelf for sure.  At around a $24 price point I feel like it’s a tad expensive, but there are four pairs of eye gels to a package so it’s not entirely unreasonable.

Skyn Hydro Cool Firming Gels - Guitar Piks! Skyn Hydro Cool Firming Eye Gels look like little wings.  Or spatulas.  Or weirdly shaped guitar piks.  Oh, and look, you can see where I ruined the coffee table with nail polish remover to the left of them.  Shhh, don’t tell husband.

The instructions state to stick on the Skyn Hydro Cool Firming Eye Gels under your eyes and leave them for 10 minutes.  The package promises they will firm, de-puff, reduce dark circles, and prevent future damage. I am excited.  They have CoQ10 in them, which is generally taken in vitamin form to help prevent a whole host of maladies including heart failure, cancer, and muscular dystrophy.

Experience

As I take the eye gels out of the package, they feel pretty much how you might think – soft and cottony on one side, a little gooey on the other.  I peel them off, stick them on and set off to make my kettle corn, aka dinner while husband is away.

Skyn Hydro Cool Firming Gels
Every time I take one of these, I realize how badly I need to wax my eyebrows

They’re kind of itchy, to be honest.  But they feel like they’re working. And when I say “stick them on,” I mean it.  These things stick.  I tried to kind of adjust after I slapped them on my face, but they were not budging.

I think I put them too close to my eyes, which is why I was trying to kind of move them.  So they’re kind of uncomfortable.  But I pour myself a glass of wine and deal with it.

After the 10 minutes are up, I gleefully ran to the bathroom to remove the  gels.  They peel off easily, which is a relief because after not being able to budge them, I was a little afraid.  I look in the mirror and feel…confused.  There is no discernible difference.  I pat my under eye area gently, thinking it might be like a face mask and I have to pat in some sort of serum, but there is nothing there.

Now, this may not be the case for everyone.  Perhaps I don’t have the right problems for the Skyn Hydro Cool Firming Eye Gels to fix.  My under eye area is plagued by dark circles, but I seldom experience puffiness.  I’m starting to get fine lines, but they’re not terrible.  And I’ve come to the conclusion that nothing can help the expression lines when I smile. That’s just part of aging.

Skyn Hydro Cool Firming Gels Pin

Cost and Where to Buy

You can find Skyn Hydro Cool Firming Eye Gels on the Skyn Iceland website for $30.  Ulta has them for the same price.  Walmart has them for $23.87.

Summing Up

The Skyn Hydro Cool Firming Eye Gels have great reviews on every site I’ve visited.  I think perhaps I’m not the correct audience.  Or perhaps tomorrow, I’ll wake up and something miraculous will have happened overnight.  For now, I don’t really see a difference.

Have you tried the Skyn Eye Gels?  Leave me a comment or message me here and let me know what your experience was!

Leaders Coconut Gel Brightening Recovery Mask

Today fun with face masks continues!

Although I suppose it never really stopped, just took a pause long enough for me to regroup after the Blackhead Mask disaster.  I’m trying out Leaders Coconut Gel Brightening Recovery Mask.

Leaders Coconut Gel Brightening Recovery Mask
Leaders Coconut Face Mask - Serial Killer - Beauty Chaos
Jason? Michael Myers? Leatherface?

The Leaders Coconut Gel Brightening Recovery Mask is one of the newfangled sheet masks that everyone is raving about.  As I’m writing this, it sits on my face like a horror movie killer mask.  Seriously, I’m scaring the cats.

I bought the Leaders Brightening Mask on my most recent trip to Ulta, aka beauty mecca.  Ulta and Sephora each jockey for that position in my heart.  On the one hand, Sephora is amazing, but it’s  expensive and there’s no other options but the expensive stuff.  Ulta, alternatively, has an entire section of drugstore products.  It’s a tough choice.

Choices, Choices

Leaders Coconut Gel Brightening Recovery Mask - Ulta HaulOne of my favorite things to do, when I have time, is wander around Ulta and look at the different displays they have.  This is probably how I end up with a bag full of products, as you can see on the right.  Hi, I’m Amy and I’m a cosmetiholic.  That’s why I have this blog ;).

The Leaders Mask happened to be on a display with a bunch of other sample-ish sizes at the end of one of the skincare aisles.  It was right next to the Skyn eye masks, which I will definitely be trying out this week.

There were a bunch of masks to choose from sitting on the display, but I decided to start simple with one.  My skin has been looking a little dull lately, so I thought the Coconut Recovery Mask would be a good fit.

First Impressions

Leaders Coconut Gel Brightening Recovery Mask Face - Beauty Chaos
Feeling a little more relaxed as time goes on

So the Leaders Coconut Gel Brightening Recovery Mask comes in this little pouch that you tear open.  The pouch is squishy, and feels like it’s full of gel.  When you pull it out, the instructions are to “peel off protective film from one side.” However, the mask is folded up and, having never done this before, I struggle a bit.  But I am a college graduate, so I eventually figured it out.

The actual mask is sandwiched between two paper sheets.  I believe the mask itself is made of cotton and soaked in the serum. The active ingredients are Telangyn, a skin tone improving compound; and Niacinamide, a brightener.  Since I have never heard of these ingredients, I’m sure nothing can go wrong.j

Experience

Leaders Coconut Gel Brightening Recovery Mask Face - before and after
Before (Top) and After (Bottom)

Like most masks, the Leaders is uncomfortable, but not intolerable.  It’s cool on my skin and stays in place, which I find pretty impressive.  Peeling the mask off is easy, and leaves a residue of serum on my face.  As instructed, I pat the excess serum into my face, leaving it feeling a little sticky, but definitely moisturized and better than it felt this morning when I woke up.

I left the mask on for 20 minutes.  The instructions say 10 to 20, and since I’m a beauty extremist I went for the full 20.  My skin feels moisturized, for sure, and I feel like the clock has turned back a few years…or at least to yesterday before I drank that red wine last night.

Cost and Where to Buy

As I said, I bought my mask at Ulta for $7, which I see now that I’m doing research was kind of a rip off, since MaskSheets.com has it for $2.  $2! I definitely overpaid.  MaskSheets.com, however, requires you to pay shipping unless you order over $40 worth of stuff.  I guess I’ll have to stock up on my masks and write a bunch of reviews.

Leaders Coconut Gel Brightening Face Mask Pin - Beauty ChaosSumming Up

This is a good mask.  I think it would work best on those with more dry skin.  Since my skin is oily it feels a little sticky and slick, but I’m glad I tried it. For $7 if you’re looking for a little pick me up or need some pampering/self-care, I think it’s manageable.  Or if you feel a mask frenzy coming on, try MaskSheets.com and get yourself a bunch.  They have crazy sales on their site and you can get a lot of sheet masks for $1 in their Sale area.

Have a mask you’d like me to try out?  Leave me a comment or message me here!  And don’t forget to subscribe!