Unboxing Beauty

disclaimer: product received for review purposes.  all opinions are my own & unbiased

To repeat what I wrote in an earlier blog post, KollectionK is a new K-Beauty online shop, whose motto is “Kollect Korea and Keep Kute Stuff!”  They are based in South Korea and their mission is to offer fun and humorous new ideas and products from Korea to the International market.  They offer cosmetics, skincare, fashion items and cultural products, home decor, accessories and much more.   They have a reviewer program and I applied ~ after I was accepted, I was able to pick out a few items that were of interest to me

I have already reviewed the Skinfood eye shadow palette here and I am currently trying out the Etude House 0.2 mm Therapy Sheet masks.  Nature Republic Hawaiian Fresh Clay Pack has been on my wish list for a while now, as I do love clay mask packs due to my oily skin and big pores.  Plus Hawaii!  I have tried some of their peel off and jelly Hawaiian mask packs before, but never the clay version.   This mask pack is an Allure Korea Editor’s Pick Award Winner in 2013 in the Best of Beauty & Style Expert category.

Skin Concerns: Oily, clogged pores, blemish prone, anti-aging concern, hyper-pigmentation

 

 It contains micro-fine natural clay that has sebum clearing effect and with hibiscus extract, it moisturizes and clears skin tone. It will clear your pores and tighten them too. Your skin will be softer and will glow with natural brightness.

It looks like the original packaging was in a light blue tub with a silver jam jar lid and it has been repackaged into a spring green plastic tub.  It is the same size and as far as I can tell, the same exact product.  The tub comes in a clear plastic box that has been decorated with hibiscus flowers

Ingredients

This contains Kaolin and Bentonite are both clay products ~ kaolin helps remove dirt, absorbs excess oil, while removing excess shine on your face, while bentonite smooths, exfoliates, cleanses your pores while improving overall skin tone. Volcanic Ash is a skin purifier due to its high sulfur content and has anti-bacterial proprieties, helping to disinfect your skin.   Rich in minerals, it exfoliates ~  helping to remove dead skin cells. 

image source

Nature Republic is states this is made with deep sea water ~ they mention Kona waters and the Kona coastline is famous for its beneficial deep sea waters, off the big island of Hawaii.  Taken from a depth of 941 meters, this water starts its journey from the melted glaciers from Greenland and Iceland, sinking to the ocean floor and then following the currents, before it ends up at the Kona coastline in Hawaii.  It is full of electrolytes and minerals as it passed over volcanic fissures during its thousand-year journey.

Hibiscus is actually an amazing extract with many skincare benefits ~ I had no idea how versatile this ingredient is until I started to do some research on it!  It is anti-oxidant rich, helping combat free radicals to prevent and reverse damage caused by external stresses such as dust, pollution, UV rays.  It contains saponins, a natural cleanser and an organic acid, which will help in removing dead skin cells.  Hibiscus is also an anti-bacterial and will prevent infections and speed up wound healing, which is important if you suffer from blemishes, rashes and other skin issues.

This also contains a plethora of beneficial botanicals: Ulmus Davidiana (moisturizing, anti-inflammatory), Amaranthus Caudatus (repairs skin, soothing, anti-inflammatory), Centella Asiatica (aids in wound healing, astringent),  Fig Fruit (hydrating, tightens pores, anti-oxidant, enzymatic exfoliator), Morinda Citrifolia/Noni (anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial, anti-fungal),  Portulaca Oleracea (suppresses excessive collagen decay, protect skin from UV damage),  Kudzu (brightening, improve skin complexion),  Licorice (brightening, anti-irritant, anti-inflammatory, smooths skin),  Peony (anti-oxidant, brightener, conditions skin) and Cnidium Officinale (anti-viral, anti-inflammatory)

Glycerin, Aloe Barbadensis and Sodium Hyaluronate are very hydrating ingredients that keep moisture in your skin.

So the end game here is that this clay mask is not only packed full of ingredients that will help detox your skin, remove dead skin cells, excess oil and act as an astringent, it does so without stripping your skin dry as it has moisturizing, hydrating antioxidant ingredients that will soften and smooth your skin.

Ingredients: Water, Kaolin, Glycerin, Dipropylene Glycol, Bentonite, Titanium Dioxide, Stearic Acid, Ulmus Davidiana Root Extract, Amaranthus Caudatus Seed Extract, Centella Asiatica Extract, Ficus Carica (Fig) Fruit Extract, Morinda Citrifolia (Noni) Extract, Portulaca Oleracea  (Purslane) Extract, Pueraria Thunbergiana Root Extract, Glycyrrhiza Glabara (Licorice) Root Extract, Paeonia Lactiflora (Kudzu) Leaf Extract, Cnidium Officinale Root Extract, Hibiscus Rosa-Sinensis Flower/Leaf Extract, Soluble Collagen, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Hydrogenated Lecithin, Sodium Hyaluronate, 1,2-Hexanediol, Cetyl Alcohol, Triethanolamine, Magnesium Aluminium Silicate, Xanthan Gum, Allantoin, Algin, Sea Water, Volcanic Ash, Alcohol, Ethylhexylglycerin, Water, Butylene Glycol, Lecithin, Ceramide 3, Fragrance, Phenoxyethanol, Iron Oxides (CI77499), Iron Oxides (CI77491), Iron Oxides (CI77492) cosDNA analysis

The color is beautiful ~ it is a grey with purple tones in the tub.   It has a very smooth and soft consistency, very much like a firm pudding.  It is very spreadable, with no pulling or tugging when I apply it to my face.  The scent is a bit off-putting and now I understand the why this is called “Fresh”.  The Fresh is not about the ingredients, but the fresh scent ~ which to me, is a generic soapy perfume type of scent.  I like my clay masks to be more earthy and herbal and was hoping for a hibiscus scent, but alas, it was not to be. 

With a thin layer, it will dry down but it is doesn’t “tighten” my skin or make it feel uncomfortable.  A thicker layer will not dry down as much, so it really is up to you on how much you wish to put on your face.  That said, the thinner the layer, the easier it is to wash off.  I found that when it is a thicker layer, the clay pack is a bit gummy and is harder to remove if you aren’t taking a shower.   A lot of people do clay packs at night, and will use a wash cloth or sponge to remove their mask packs and it will be more difficult with a thicker layer if you choose to use this removal method.

As this mask dried down, I felt a cooling sensation which was very pleasant ~ the fresh scent still lingers and doesn’t disappear. Right before I washed off this mask, I took a photo (below) so you could see that even though there was some clay cracks, the mask was not flaking off my face.  For the most part, it was still pretty smooth on my face and semi-dry.  This was after 20 minutes and there was no tightening or itchiness from wearing this mask.  

After rinsing this mask off, I noticed that my face was clean and bright, my pores looked smaller and my skin was not tight or dehydrated.  My face also felt really smooth and soft too!

Final Thoughts

I can see why Nature Republic Hawaiian Fresh Clay Pack won an award from Allure magazine ~ this clay mask has all of the benefits of a traditional clay mask ~ pore cleaning and pore tightening, brightening ~ without some of the negative aspects of a clay mask ~ itchiness, uncomfortable tightening of skin, burning, mask flakiness, skin dryness.  The color of the pack is soothing with its plum-gray tones and its smooth consistency makes it easy to apply. My only complaint is the scent ~ that is a personal preference and I know that many people like the fresher smell of this clay pack instead of an earthy scent.  I like that it seems to be gentle enough to use more than once a week ~ Nature Republic states that you can use this up to 2 times a week, which is fantastic for a clay mask pack.  Have you tried Nature Republic Hawaiian Fresh Clay Pack before?  Or any of the Hawaiian series by Nature Republic?  I was disappointed by the scent, but it does work very effectively.

KollectionK sells this clay pack for $16.24 USD  (click here) for a 95 mL tub.  They do ship internationally, give free samples and their shipping rates are really reasonable as well ~ they have 3 different types of shipping services, so you can choose a faster option or a slower one, depending on your needs.  You can read more about their shipping fees here.  I ordered before from them before requesting to review products ~ and I found that the level of customer service to be the same, whether I am a customer or a reviewer.  I was able to find items that I couldn’t easily find elsewhere at the time.   I highly recommend taking a look at KollectionK and seeing what they offer as they really do carry some cute items and seem to be up on the latest releases too.

disclaimer: product received for review purposes. all opinions are my own & unbiased

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