I may have unintentionally started a foot peeling mask series, well it was unintentional until the RoseRoseShop haul. The quest was never to try every version available on the market; my target was just to buy the most affordable yet effective version. It just so happened that I would find cheaper ones that were from a different brand. Even though they should theoretically all work the same, there is always the possibility that it might not...right?
the SAEM's Dear My Foot Power Peeling mask looks exactly like The Face Shop's and Etude House's peeling products: from where it is made, to the way everything is packaged, down to the directions. The only variance is in the ingredients list, yet even that is extremely similar. I had high expectations since I've seen success with something that is practically identical to it.
the SAEM's description:
A foot peeling mask infused with hero exfoliants like Salicylic Acid and cell turnover catalyst Lactic Acid. This foot mask powerfully peels away all your dead skin cells, revealing baby soft feet. Its citrus ingredients relax and rejuvenate your tired, stressed feet, while Olive and Argan oils moisturize ’til your soles are silky smooth.
Directions
1. Wear the foot sheet.
2. Cut the pouch along the dotted line and pour the contents (20 ml) along the lateral side of each foot sheet.
3. Tie the ankle area, fix the top of the ankle with the enclosed sticker, and wait until the contents are absorbed into the soles of the feet. (Recommended Time: 60~90 minutes.)
4. After the recommended time, take off the sheet, wash off any residue with water, and towel-dry the feet.
5. After 4~6 days of use, dead skin cells will naturally start to fall off. For softer, smoother feet, wait for the dead skin cells to peel off naturally.
Ingredients
SD ALCOHOL 40-B, WATER, LACTIC ACID, GLYCOLIC ACID, GLYCERIN, BUTYLENE GLYCOL, BETAINE, UREA, PEG-60 HYDROGENATED CASTOR OIL, SALICYLIC ACID, DISODIUM EDTA, ARGININE, CITRUS PARADISI (GRAPEFRUIT) FRUIT EXTRACT, ARGANIA SPINOSA KERNEL OIL, CHAMAECYPARIS OBTUSA WATER, OLEA EUROPAEA (OLIVE) FRUIT OIL, CITRUS AURANTIFOLIA (LIME) FRUIT EXTRACT, CITRUS AURANTIUM DULCIS (ORANGE) FRUIT EXTRACT, TOCOPHERYL ACETATE, CITRUS LIMON (LEMON) FRUIT EXTRACT, FRAGRANCE
the SAEM (USA): USD $11.49
the SAEM (Korean retail): ₩7,000
YesStyle: USD $8.90
Jolse: USD $10.48
With this kind of a result, a foot peeling mask series might be very redundant...At least I can gladly say the Dear My Foot Power Peeling works! (I saw that there were some Amazon reviewers who saw no results. I wonder what that could have been due to?)
Packaging
Like I mentioned earlier, the SAEM's version looks identical to the other road shop brands. The mask is sold with a pair of serum-filled pouches and two plastic booties packaged in a box.
the SAEM, unlike the TFS and Etude House, includes an extra pair of stickers to help tape down excess plastic bag. I found it to be very weak. Since I know the booties without a sticker works fine for me, I didn't bother to fix it. I would suggest using regular tape if your feet are on the smaller side.
Ingredients
Again, the ingredients in this formulation are very very similar to the previous foot peels I have written about. The only things that are different are the order of ingredients and plus or minus some essential oils and extracts.
Color & Scent
The serum is colorless and relatively odorless (maybe slightly artificially fruity). I didn't experience any sensitivity to all the acids.
Before
Soaked my feet for 30 minutes in water prior to soaking it for 90 minutes in the peeling serum.
Day 1-3
Saw no changes. Didn't do any extra soaking.
Day 4-6
Still did not do extra feet soaking. Started to see some peeling around the toes, then the balls of my feet.
Day 7-8
Started to get a little impatient and took extended showers (a night of shaving, a night of exfoliating, and a night or two of extra hair washes, etc.) to keep my feet wet a little longer—the skin peeling process sped up a lot as a result.
Day 9
Was pressed for time (had to go on an overnight trip with friends the next day). Soaked my feet for about an hour. When the peeling layer of skin got very soft, I pushed the tip of my nails to scrape/shovel the skin off. Most of it came off without any issues, but then there were stubborn patches and flakey bits that were very much still attached to my soles despite everything.
Thoughts & Recommendations
I can't remember the last time I did a foot peel without having (accidentally) heavily soaking and rubbing my feet with water shortly after beginning the exfoliation process. I forgot how slow it was for the skin to naturally detach itself just from daily showers alone. While the box says dead skin falls off naturally in 4-6 days, it took about 6-7 for the skin to very noticeably flake. When the skin is constantly soaked for a long time, dead skin starts to fall off around the earlier predicted date. It also completely finishes peeling a lot sooner. The whole process takes can take about 9-11 days depending on how much extra help is given, whether intentional or not.
Even though shoveling the skin off with my nails sped up the process, it definitely wasn't a definitive solution. Not everything wanted to come off. What was underneath the scraped areas wasn't as clean and smooth as places where the skin fell off on its own. But hey, it works in a pinch. I would only recommend doing this towards the end of the peeling cycle.
The most important conclusion is this stuff works. It isn't a miracle in the sense that ALL callouses and thicker skin are removed, but it gets pretty darn close! (HG status worthy. Is HG still a thing in the beauty blogging world?)
If bought in Korea, it costs the same as other brands so there is no debating or guessing—just get whatever is on sale or whatever shop you first see it in. If bought outside of Korea, pick whatever is cheapest.
It is difficult to not try and experience it myself when everyone hypes up the solar eclipse. New York City might not have been graced with the marvel of totality, but seeing what was the moon covering 70% of the sun was plenty spectacular. Standing outside while being surrounded by a large group of people all trying to catch a glimpse of something we normally cannot see and stare at an extraterrestrial object which we typically wouldn't dare look at—it was surreal.
I hadn't planned the actual viewing part of the solar eclipse. Even though I knew it would be extremely dangerous to look at with my bare eyeballs, I did not pre-purchase eclipse glasses or make a DIY contraption. I mostly went outside with the hope that some nice person could let me borrow their viewing device for a hot second.
Thankfully, the phone's camera could catch the lens flares from the bright sunlight to give an indirect view of the eclipse. I heard someone say that even pointing the camera straight at the sun could potentially be harmful to both the phone and human eyes; whether I see any side effects remains unknown. It was still incredibly difficult to view through the mobile camera, let alone take a clear photo of it. (This involved max zooming, constant focus tapping, and speedy picture taking.)
Wonders of nature tends to bring humankind together—it isn't about you, me, him, or her specifically for that short period of time—just the sky, the clouds, the sun, and the moon. Complete strangers gather together. Selflessness and sharing spread in the air as a few pair of eclipse glasses passed around a sizeable group of people. Jaws dropped and admirable wows escaped, no matter young or old, as soon as the solar filters covered the eyes.
It felt completely different from the time I saw the super blood moon/lunar eclipse; I was not alone, it was not dark, and there was no chance of not being able to witness this natural event. I hear the next total solar eclipse viewable in the USA will be in 2024 (April 8th to be exact). I also hear parts of New York (far upstate) will get a chance to witness totality. Perhaps I should consider it as a bucket list item?
Exfoliation is not my strong suite in this skincare game. While I started out using ones with particles doing all the dead skin removal work, I have slowly left those behind in search of less abrasive products. AHAs and BHAs are still such foreign concepts to me. But AprilSkin Magic Snow Pad sounded like it would match well with its non-irritating and skin toning promisings. Plus, who could say no to something that is pre-portioned and seemingly foolproof?
AprilSkin's Descriptions:
The non-irritating peeling pad contains Lactobacillus/Milk Ferment Filtrate along with 10 other grain extracts that remove dirt and excess sebum from skin enhancing skin texture and tone.
100% Cotton & Microfibre
Provides sensitive skin care with 100% cotton pad and microfibre pad.
Exfoliate & Skin Soothing
Gently exfoliates and removes dead skin cells.
Sebum Control
Effectively controls sebum and brightens skin tone.
Cleansing & Hydrating
Pads in gommage type easily remove make-up and nourish and hydrate for smoother skin.
Directions (on package)
1. The white surface is pure 100% cotton and sky blue surface is abrasive (meant for exfoliation).
2. Using the white side of the pad, on a dry face, gently roll on the surface of the dry skin.
3. Use the blue side to gently exfoliate areas with dead skin cells.
4. Rinse with luke warm water.
Directions (on website)
1. Gently rub cotton pad (white) on areas with dead skin cells and skin wastes.
2. Remove peeling and skin wastes with microfibre pad (sky blue).
Ingredients (translated from packaging)
LACTOBACILLUS/MILK FERMENT FILTRATE, CELLULOSE, QUATERNIUM-60, PROPYLENE GLYCOL, DIPROPYLENE GLYCOL, PEG-7 GLYCERYL COCOATE, PEG-20 GLYCERYL TRIISOSTEARATE, CARBOMER, ALCOHOL DENAT, 1,2-HEXANEDIOL, GLYCERIN, PEG-60 HYDROGENATED CASTOR OIL, BUTYLENE GLYCOL, CENTELLA ASIATICA EXTRACT, PAEONIA SUFFRUTICOSA ROOT EXTRACT, PURIFIED WATER, CHAMOMILLA RECUTITA (MATRICARIA) FLOWER EXTRACT, CITRUS AURANTIUM BERGAMIA (BERGAMOT) FRUIT OIL, GLYCERYL CAPRYLATE, OLIVE OIL, ETHYLHEXYLGLYCERIN, CITRUS GRANDIS (GRAPEFRUIT) PEEL OIL, LAVENDER OIL, PELARGONIUM GRAVEOLENS FLOWER OIL, ORYZA SATIVA (RICE) BRAN EXTRACT, GLYCINE MAX (SOYBEAN) SEED EXTRACT, ORYZA SATIVA (RICE) EXTRACT, BARLEY EXTRACT, AVENA SATIVA (OAT) KERNEL EXTRACT, SESAMUM INDICUM SEED EXTRACT, MUNG BEAN EXTRACT, TRITICUM VULGARE (WHEAT) SEED EXTRACT, JUGLANS REGIA (WALNUT) SEED EXTRACT, AVENA SATIVA (OAT) MEAL EXTRACT, RED BEAN EXTRACT, JOB'S TEARS SEED EXTRACT, GREEN TEA EXTRACT, PORTULACA OLERACEA EXTRACT, SALIX NIGRA (WILLOW) BARK EXTRACT, ALOE BARBADENSIS LEAF EXTRACT, COPAIBA BALSAM RESIN, JASMINE OIL, SAGE OIL, ROSE OIL, ELETTARIA CARDAMOMUM SEED OIL
aprilskin.com (KR retail): ₩2,000/ea
En.aprilskin.com: USD $2.00/ea
BBCosmetic: USD $13.21/for 5
Packaging
Each double-sided scrubbing pad comes individually packaged that needs to be torn open, like sheet mask pouches. The pads come pre-soaked in the exfoliating ingredients. The slit is roomy enough for two of my fingers to fit inside. I did find it a tad too spacious; as I rubbed the pad across my face and in circular motions, my fingers bunched up to one side only.
The white side of the pad is supposedly made of 100% cotton but it isn't very soft (not like cotton used for toners). It has more of a thin paper feel (similar to those fancy Japanese oil blotting sheets).
The blue side is textured and feels much softer in comparison to the other side of the pad.
Ingredients
AprilSkin puts a lot of emphasis on the fact that the Magic Snow Pad contains lactobacillus or milk ferment filtrate. I am not 100% sure if this is the same as lactic acid; Google search explains it as a bacteria that has the ability to produce lactic acid (body-wise) and an anti-inflammatory (skin-wise).
The pads also contain a good variety of plant extracts and essential oils, as do many other K-Beauty goodies do. What sets this product apart is the inclusion of the 10-grain extracts that I assume help with the exfoliation process.
I am not sure what in the composition of the Magic Snow Pad is responsible for it, but there is a layer of a white substance that is supposed to be applied with the white cotton side of the pad. Even though most of this stuff sticks to the packaging, there was still enough on the pad itself to scrub my entire face.
Alcohol denat. is in the formula somewhere. People sensitive to that do be cautious.
Color, Texture, & Scent
The white substance I mentioned earlier pills up as it is scrubbed—the more scrubbing, the finer the pills become. Whether or not there is dead skin in there is debatable for me. Whatever the white stuff is, it is soft and almost clumpy, wet paper-like.
The pad has a very strong smell that is somewhat familiar but I can't quite place a finger on what exactly the smell is. Since there isn't any added fragrance in the ingredients list, it should be due to the blend of extracts and oils in the formulation. The scent definitely lingers as long as the product is on the face; I didn't really notice it once I rinsed.
How I Apply
After I cleansed and air-dried my face, I swiped first with the white side of the pad. When it seemed like the white substance was distributed equally, I started to work the pad in circular motions and began exfoliating. Since I didn't like how stiff the white portion of the pad was, I quickly switched over to exfoliate with the blue textured side instead. I paid closer attention to spots where I know I am more prone to flakes and dry patches (corners of my mouth, chin, nose, between the eyebrows, and cheeks).
Thoughts & Recommendations
If there was one thing I wasn't expecting, it would be that the Magic Snow Pad is actually a gommage type exfoliator. I just assumed that something with lactobacillus in a pad form would automatically be an AHA serum infused product (something like the A'Pieu Aqua Peeling Cotton Swab but in a cotton pad form). While I have nothing against gommage peeling gels, I am not sure this vehicle is the best choice. A majority of the chunky stuff that did the pilling stubbornly stuck onto the pouch and wasn't easy to scoop out. *Fair Warning: Please, please use this over a sink! Avoid the mess of cleaning up tiny product + skin pills off the floor.
My skin did feel a little sensitive to the touch after the scrubbing, but nothing too alarming. It also seemed softer and smoother—a feeling that lasted throughout the next day. While I think it did help rid a lot of dead skin on my face, I don't think it helped remove it all. I still noticed patches and flakes amongst my makeup as the day progressed. The patches were smaller than normal but not completely nonexistent.
I also didn't feel dry or tight after using the exfoliating pad; that was a feeling I was familiar with when I used a bunch of other gommage type products in the past.
For the price of each individual packet and lack of a perfect exfoliation, I don't think I would repurchase the AprilSkin Magic Snow Pad. At the very least, not as my regular exfoliator. It is nice to take on trips though. If I were to rely on this only to remove my dead skin, my wallet would burst into tears and my garbage bin would be very full. This product didn't suck. It just isn't the perfect best one for me.
