Today I'm posting what I hope will be the start of a fun new project, wherein I actually go through some of my Pinterest boards and try out all those fantastic recipes and hacks that I've pinned over the years. To inaugurate what I hope will become a regular series, I've chosen an awesome DIY mud mask, inspired by the Glamglow Supermud masks that became so wildly popular last year. Also, this is a very pic-heavy post, so be warned, because we're about to start...
I have recently become quite - not gonna say obsessed - interested in doing home face masks. I'm not sure if this is a result of changing climates and witnessing my skin performing differently, noticing my age reflected in my skin, or starting a blog that deals with beauty in general, or possibly a combination of all three. Either way, I've been stocking up on different types of masks, including peel-offs, clay, and mud. Last year when those disgusting pictures started cropping up everyone online of everyone using the Glamglow Supermud masks, I was intrigued and incredibly off-put by the price. I just couldn't justify it for so little product, so when I saw My Newest Addiction had created a Glamglow-inspired mask, I immediately pinned it to try. So, following her recipe and instructions, here are my experiences.
*Edit: I've since realized the post I sourced probably took it from The Twisted Horn so I am giving credit to her instead.
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup Aztec Secret Bentonite Clay
- 2 drops of Eucalyptus Essential Oil
- 2 drops of Peppermint Essential Oil
- 9 Charcoal capsules
- 1 T Virgin Coconut Oil
- 1 T Aloe Vera Gel
- 2 fl oz Chamomile Herbal Tea
Her instructions are pretty easy to follow:
Instructions
- Prep by steeping the chamomile tea and melting the coconut oil, then combine.
- Empty charcoal capsules into the bentonite clay and mix together.
- Add in the essential oils and the aloe vera gel. Stir to combine.
- Slowly mix in the tea/oil mixture and stir until well blended and creamy.
I measured out my clay and brewed my tea for about 5 minutes in about 3 oz of water (basically enough to cover the bag in the cup) and microwaved my coconut oil for about 20 seconds to liquify it, then measured out the 2oz of tea and 1T of oil into the measuring cup.
Opening the charcoal capsules was a bit messy, but this wiped away fairly easily with a wet cloth.
After mixing the clay and charcoal, I realized I probably should have stopped at 6 or 7 capsules instead of 9. This made a very dark clay - far darker than the original. I also realized at this point that my mixing bowl was far too small for this recipe, so I switched to a slightly larger one.
After adding the essential oils and aloe vera, I never did get the little balls to form up the way the original post mentions. I figured there wasn't enough liquid and that I would smooth it out at the end after adding the rest of my liquid.
Using a pipette, I started adding about half a fluid ounce of my tea/oil mixture at a time, and then stirring to mix. Having a background in baking, this process was not new to me. It helps ensure a more even finish. However, my instinct is that I should have mixed all my liquids together first, essentially eliminating the need for step 3.
My final product was a dark, thick mud. You can still see there are a few balls of harder clay that wouldn't blend - I think these were left from step 3, and another reason to add all the liquids together first.
Obviously the first step before applying any mask is to pull your hair back and make sure your skin is clean. I swiped down with a face cleansing cloth just to remove any excess oils from my skin.
I applied the mask with a brush (that came as part of the set). It applied very easily and I could immediately feel the essential oils go to work, giving me a pleasant tingly feeling.
I didn't see the pinpoint oil spots that the original Glamglow mask seems to give, but I did notice the clay soaking up in some of my oily spots - see between my eyebrows and on my cheeks. At this point I stepped into the shower and used my shower gloves to gently wash away the mask and exfoliate my skin.
As recommended in the original post, I used a gentle moisturizer right out of the shower because I could definitely feel how dry my face was.
Some of the effects were immediate - you can see that the pores on my nose are definitely clearer, and my skin was SO, SO soft and smooth!
I did not experience the same results as the original post, with whiteheads or anything else coming to the surface the next day. However, my skin definitely still feels smoother and looks pretty glowy!
Now, since cost was the original reason I refused to try the Glamglow mask, let's take a look at how much this homemade mask version to make. I purchased all the supplies from Amazon.
| PRODUCT | PRICE | VOLUME | YIELD |
|---|---|---|---|
| Natural Calcium Bentonite (500 g) | £4.99 | 2 cups | 4 |
| Eucalyptus Organic Essential Oil (9 ml) | £4.10 | ~200 drops | 25 |
| Peppermint Organic Essential Oil (9 ml) | £4.90 | ~200 drops | 25 |
| Activated Charcoal (260 mg) | £6.26 | 120 capsules | 15 |
| Organic Raw Virgin Coconut Oil (200g) | £7.49 | 1 cup | 16 |
| Pure Aloe Vera Gel (100ml) | £3.05 | 7 T | 7 |
| Chamomile Tea (50 bags) | £4.88 | 400 fl oz | 50 |
| TOTAL: | £35.67 |
As you can see, for £36, I have enough ingredients to make this recipe at least 4 times, and each recipe makes 5-6 treatments. Compared with the original GLAMGLOW SUPERMUD Clearing Treatment (34 g), which costs upwards of £45 for a (generous) estimate of 10 treatments per jar. I'd say the savings are pretty clear!
I hope you've enjoyed this little experiment. If you have any homemade/DIY beauty treatments or other pins that you'd like me to try, please send them to me on Pinterest or let me know about it in the comments. I will be making an exception to my rule about links in the comments for this purpose, so sound off if there's one you'd like to see me test.
Hope you're all having a great week, and I'll see ya soon!