Welcome to the magic that is my face. My T-zone is oily and full of dark little clogged pores that no photoshop hide. (That's a lie since photoshop can hide everything.) Theae enlarges nose pores will be the bane of my existence.
Since there is no real way to "shrink" pores, the least I can do is research on how to keep them clean. Got two Sephora gift cards this Christmas, and while I did drop two hundred at Koreaan Duty Free, none were on pore clarifying masks.
At today's local Sephora I was originally looking at the Korean brand Caolion, which looks like ghetto Chinese spelling, but it isn't. This one has a two step mask process, one that warms and clarifies, the second that cools and soothes. However, in talking to a lady who looked awfully bored at her job, she talked me into trying the Peter Thomas Roth Irish Moor Mud mask. Of course, I wanted to have a comparison so I opted for almost as pricy and actually clay bases Glamglow Supermud Clearing Treatment.
PTR's Irish Moor Mud when on as black as the forest on a moonless night. Black like that. And I could feel it heating up my skin. Just enough so where I almost panicked and thought I was having a severe allergic reaction. It is sticky and looks like what nightmares are made of. Directions says to leave in for up to ten minutes, but since I split my face down the middle I don't think I was quite accurate. No biggie though, in the end.
Glamglow was the rougher freshly mixes concrete cousin of the Irish Moor Mud. It was a lighter gray, dark but not even close to the pitch black of PTR. Went on with chunks of rough spots, probably exfoliating? I'm not sure, but not nearly as smooth as the Irish Moor Mud. It was not as dense and seemed to be more watery and therefore easier to spread.
Let's compare, shall we?
Top Left: The left black side is PTR and the right more dark green looking side is Glamglow.
Top Middle: It's starting to dry!! Look where it's still globbed and and more turning light green. PTR has stopped burning by now, so I've stopped freaking out about if I should wash it off or not.
Top left: Close up on the Glamglow on my nose, look at all those "bubbles," which is apparently where the most enlarged and clogged pores are. Like Biore strips without pulling off layers of skin.
Bottom: My ugly nose and the aftermath. Can you see a difference?
Though I was supposed to wash off the PTR first, I just waited for the Glamglow to dry since it was drying quite quickly. Both masks had a similar amount layered on. PTR did not dry or harden or anything. Glamglow, on the other hand, hardened to the point where I couldn't move my face and would cause cracks in it by simply smiling a bit.
The Glamglow has those bubbles that are supposed to be some sort of vacuum matrix sucking out the yucky things, but they looked look clean and Glamglow just had instant look gratification. PTR's Irish Moor Mud can be used several times a week, whereas the Glamglow is harsher and should be used maximum once or twice a week. I don't wear makeup, so my pores are junked naturally versus make-up filled.
The Glamglow was easier to rinse off, where I felt like I was reapplying or just wiping the PTR mud all around my face.
Either way, to deal with the "purging" that can happen with "clarifying" "pore" based masks, I washed it all off and used an Etude House I Need You! Silk Cocoon mask, which is noted to be "skin vitalizing" to give it an extra boost. Then followed by Freeset Donkey Milk 3D Moisture Cream, which I regretted because it made my T-zone SUPER greasy, something I did not enjoy after using such harsh clay/mud mask on my face. I should have stuck with my Super Qua Max Combination Watery Cream from Nature Republic. Seriously, that little jar has been keeping me much happier than Donkey Milk and cost me 1/4 the price. Seriously, it was under ten bucks at Duty Free and for the price and results, I really couldn't be happier.
Also, repeating this two faced mask experience again in a week. The winner of the challenge will go on to PK Kate Somerville's ExfoliKate. Wait, that isn't actually fair since these masks are not exfoliators. It should PK either Caudalie Instant Detox Mask or DERMAdoctor Kakadu C Amethyst Clay Detox Mask or Estée Lauder Clear Difference Purifying Mask. We will see what is the Sephora ladies have to reccomend to compare to the winner.
Bottom line: PTR for more common day use, glam glow every now and again for intensive care. Follow up with a regular mask to soothe and protect the skin.
