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3rd Jun 2019
It’s hard to imagine a time before The Ordinary and its parent company, Deciem, were dismantling the beauty industry, rebuilding it staple-by-staple to gift us transparent, efficacious and affordable beauty. But it has been a short relationship, so short, in fact, that The Ordinary is now only just launching its first face mask in The Salicylic Acid 2% Masque.
Formulated to refresh “lackluster tone and textural irregularities” a miniature, lab sample landed on this editor’s desk for testing and I honestly couldn’t wait to get it home and slather it on.
The first thing to note is that the mask is black (that’ll be the vegetable charcoal) so be sure to avoid anything white while masking with this product and have a towel handy that you don’t mind getting a little marked. I don’t have particularly sensitive skin or suffer from major breakouts but going into winter I am always keen to slough away any dead skin lurking on my visage before dipping myself in oil for the long, cold winter.
From the very first second this was on my face I could feel the salicylic acid working its tingly magic, but I persevered, continuing to apply across my forehead, chin, nose and cheeks. The bottle advises you leave it on for no more than 10 minutes and I honestly wasn’t sure I would make it the whole 10, but eventually the initial stinging dissipated.
Not taking too long to dry, the formula turned to a matte consistency on my face, making it so easy to remove, it almost flaked off.A quick rinse with warm water and the mask washed away, leaving my skin feeling fresh and glow-y.I honestly had expected some redness and that tight, stripped feeling post-mask, but was pleasantly surprised there was none of the above. In fact, the charcoal and clay felt like they had drawn out what needed to be drawn out and were well-matched with the salicylic acid in exfoliating efficiently. What was left, and I dismissed as wishful thinking, was an almost oily feeling which, later, upon reading the packaging more carefully, I realised may have been squalene.
In the days following I noticed a little dead skin on areas that tend to be a little dryer, so next time I will avoid applying here, focusing instead on the areas I tend to get congestion. I had used the mask on a Sunday evening (recommended usage is one-to-two times each week, but I think one is sufficient) after a big weekend of birthday celebrations for a friend, so had two new alcohol-induced friends arrive on my chin that evening. But what would usually be a longer-term relationship with these two, ended quite quickly after using the mask.
Even though I’m generally not a picker of blemishes, they still tend to leave dark-ish ghost-like spots that mark their territory for longer than the angry red part of the relationship lasts. However, this time around they were gone just as soon as they arrived, leaving only the faintest mark in their place, that I’m sure the Salicylic Acid 2% Masque would eradicate if I consistently reapplied.
On the whole, this is a real masking experience so you will need to set aside some time, a less-than-favourite towel and enjoy the tingly ride.
Value for money: At $21.90, The Ordinary’s Salicylic Acid 2% Masque is great value for money as this will last you some time – you really only need a light layer. Plus, chemical exfoliants are generally pricey, so this is a great way to dip your toe into the whole realm.
Good for: This mask has been formulated for those who are blemish-prone so would definitely be worth testing if you fall into that category, especially if you’re in need of a product that will slough away dead skin and draw out impurities.
Where to get it: The mask will be available from Deciem.com and all Deciem stores in Australia from June 12.
This is an independently written road test which was not commissioned or paid for by the brand. However, a sample of the product was provided to the writer at the brand’s discretion.
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