Everyone knows about using cucumber slices to cool the skin, but did you know potatoes are even more effective at healing sunburns?
When I was a child, my mother would blend raw potatoes to apply on my face and arms after a long day under the summer sun. The raw potato juice would run down the sides of my face and get everywhere, but it did the job. However, if there’s an easier method of applying potato to cool down the skin, I’m definitely down to explore that option to avoid dealing with runny potato juice.
The Face Shop Real Nature sheet mask line utilizes a natural grinding extraction process in which natural plants are ground and mixed with a water base to create a natural extract. It also uses a natural adhesive mask that claims to be effective in infusing the sheet with the included essence.
As for this particular potato mask, the Face Shop says this water-type “soothing sheet mask with potato extract provides a cooling sensation to relieve skin that looks tired due to exposure to strong sunlight.” Exactly what my mother told me about potatoes. I love how this sheet mask utilizes a water-type essence as I think a water-type essence would be more soothing to the skin than an oil-type one. Plus, a water-type essence would provide more hydration, which is a definite must when it comes to dehydrated skin from being out in the sun.
This sheet mask as a light, fresh scent that’s mixed with the scent of alcohol. The alcohol part isn’t too strong, but you can smell it in the essence. For some reason, the scent conjures up memories of fancy casino hotel rooms minus the cigarettes. It also reminds me of those individually packaged hand wipes some restaurants offer. It’s a good, clean scent.
The product feels gently cooling on the skin. It wasn’t as cooling as I expected, but I think that’s fine because it’s good to be gentle to raw, sunburned skin. Plus, keeping it in the refrigerator until use would amp up the cooling factor if you desire a stronger sensation. After removing the sheet, the cooling sensation increased a little bit and my skin looked a little less heated and red. After patting the essence in, there is still a thin layer of oil that remains. That layer mostly sinks into the skin after a a few minutes, leaving behind well-moisturized skin. This is nice because sunburned skin will be extremely dehydrated. It’s important to hydrate the skin, but a good moisturizer is needed to lock that hydration in (learn more about this over on my hydrating vs. moisturizing post). While the oily layer is a little too much for me for daily use, I think this might be a decent option for when you want a gentle mask to help with heated skin. With that said, however, I feel like this sheet mask is nothing particularly special. Just a decent sheet mask, nothing spectacular. If you do end up purchasing this, I suggest using a good hydrator beforehand such as the Yadah Soothing Jelly Pack.
