|REVIEW| Holy Grail: My Beauty Diary Aloe Mask Review

Today I want to talk about a sheet mask that I own (or owned for now). I have an obsession with sheet masks. They are quick to use, beneficial for the skin and most of the time the cheaper alternatives to hundred-dollar facials. This beauty trend has been in the market (especially Asia) for a very long time and has become the insanely sought-after beauty product these days thanks to the Korean wave. However, the mask that I am about to share with you guys today does not originate from Korea.



It comes from another Asian country: Taiwan. It is MY BEAUTY DIARY (MBD) (Simplified Chinese: 我的美丽日记，Traditional Chinese: 我的美麗日記)! It is by the same company which brings us  CLIO and Avéne! I bought it during my trip to Taiwan last year in Watsons after learning that it is the most famous mask in Taiwan. Here is the back of the mask:

Maybe because I got this directly from Taiwan, everything on the mask except the ingredients is written in Chinese so this really is a bummer for those of us who can't read Chinese. I'm not so sure about the ones sold in Malaysia but feel free to check it out at SaSa for more information!

Here I've included a brief English translation for your reference.

Aloe Vera mask 沙地芦荟面膜／沙地蘆薈面膜:

The natural Aloe Extract contains a variety of vitamins providing the nutrients and hydration needed by the skin. The essence from Rosehip helps to improve dry and coarse skin condition. Algae-Yeast complex penetrates deep to nourish and moisturise the skin and the Hyaluronic acid is well known for its hydrating power. This mask is especially effective for smoothing skin that has been exposed to the sun. The natural gel is effective for firming skin and pores tightening. 

Skin type 适用肤质／適用膚質:

All skin types especially dry, damaged skin 

Purpose 用途:

Hydrating, repairing 

How to use 使用方法:

Cleanse face thoroughly before applying mask. Excess essence from the packaging may be applied on the neck by massage. After 20-30 minutes, remove mask and gently massage face to assist absorption. Rinsing is not required. You may apply toner, moisturizer etc. after application. Use daily for maximum effect

Storage life 保存期限:

Three years

Manufacture date 制造日期／製造日期:

As on package 

Volume 容量:

23ml per piece 

How to store 保存方法:

Please store at a cool and dry place. Avoid direct sunlight.

Things to note 注意事项:

Please put out of toddlers' reach to prevent them from accidentally eating it. Stop usage immediately and consult a doctor if there is any irritation or persistent redness. Not suitable for skin with wound, swelling or redness. Not suitable for toddlers. For people with sensitive skin, please do a patch/sensitivity test before applying it to the whole face to ensure no irritation reaction. 

Ingredients 成分:

(Skincarisma)

Purified water, Propylene-Glycol, 1.3-Butylene Glycol, Hyaluronic-Acid, Algae-Yeast complex, Milk protein, Glycerine, Nanospheres, Aloe Extract, Mulberry, Albumin, Collagen, Kiwi, Bearberry, Lemon, Rosehip, L-Ascorbic acid, Bio-active Silanols, Mucopolysaccharides, Vitamin E Acetate, Squalane, Methyl Paraben, Litsea Cubeba Essential Oil, Carbomer, Triethanolamine, Sodium Hydroxide, Xanthan Gum, Citric Acid, Butyl Paraben, Ethyl Paraben, Propyl Paraben, Dimethicone, Tween-20, Lactamide

According to the My Beauty Diary website, MBD was launched in 2003 and had immediately gained popularity for its excellent ingredients and bargain prices. For those of you who watch Taiwanese dramas, even Taiwanese actresses, Big 'S' (Da S also known as Barbie Hsu) and Small 'S' (Xiao S also known as Dee Hsu) recommend the masks.

The masks came in a box of 10 with each of them packaged like the one I showed you above. It is hygienic for us to handle and convenient for travelling. You can simply grab a few and slip them into your bag if you have to travel away for a few days. That means you can still pamper your skin while you're travelling around.

I like my masks cold so I usually put mine into the refrigerator a day before using them. The thought of applying a cold mask onto my face used to give me a chill but I enjoy it so much now that I can't do them without first refrigerating them.

Because I always (and only) do mask at night, what I do is that I incorporate this step into my night time skin care routine for that particular night. Hence, the second thing (the first thing is to refrigerate it) I do before applying the mask is washing my face properly. Then I follow up with my toner, essence and serum like what I'll do on any other days. For the next step, however, I'll squeeze in a mask session rather than straight away putting on my eye cream.

 

Before you open, make sure to give it a light shake to push all the serum to the close end. Then, carefully tear open the mask pack along the tear-here marks to prevent ripping the mask apart or spilling the mask serum everywhere.

After opening it I can immediately smell the scent of aloe vera. It is not too strong for my personal preference but if the smell of aloe vera is not for you, you might want to avoid this. As you can see from the pictures above, the mask is nicely folded inside, soaked in all the goodness. When I took out the mask it was literally dripping (as in picture below). I had to wait for a few seconds until the dripping had become less frequent so that it wouldn't drip all over the counter when I unfolded it.

I would pour out some of the mask serum and spread it all over my face. Subsequently at the speed of light, I opened up the mask. It was attached to a piece of pearl paper which you're supposed to remove from the mask before application. I then quickly placed it on my face and adjusted it accordingly.

I have a rather huge face thus the mask didn't fit very well. As shown above, it was unable to cover the top of my forehead but otherwise it was pretty good size wise. The mask was so thin it actually looked like it disappeared from my face if I'm not wearing my glasses. So be careful when you open it or peel it off the pearl paper to avoid tearing it.

I would then jump straight onto my bed (be careful not to jump head first!) and plugged in my earphones after setting the timer to 30 minutes (I like to go for the maximum time limit haha). Music + mask? That's the best thing I could ask for after a busy day! The aloe vera smell is very calming as well and it helps me to relax while waiting for time to pass. 

Before I forget! The extra mask serum that I am unable to fit onto my face will usually either be stored for use in the next morning (like below) or applied to my hands/legs. They need some pampering like my face as well okay.

"If you~~~, if you~~~ 아직 너무 늦지 않았다면..."

That should be my 30-minute timer. 

Reluctantly, I would wake up (I tend to fall asleep haha), pull off the mask and squint really closely at the mirror to look at the effect.

Now I'm forcing you to look at it. 

Before                                                                    After

My face clearly looked like it just had a drink of water. It looked way more moisturised than before and my pores had become less visible. The mask definitely did it job of hydrating and repairing!

Note: Both pictures were taken with flash and all artificial lights on. They are unedited as well. 

The tone of the pictures are different so the seemingly whitening effect that you see here is simply the difference in saturation due to the lighting. This mask does not have any whitening effect. 

Later, I would pat in the leftover mask serum and follow up with my eye cream, lip moisturiser and moisturiser to seal in the goodness before hitting the hay 💤.

Q&A

Do you think My Beauty Diary Aloe Vera Mask is worth it?

With such quality, the mask is totally worth the value. But as a student, at RM4++ per piece, I wouldn't use it as a daily mask as recommended. Instead I use it only for special occasion especially when I want to look super pretty the next day or the day after facial to speed up the recovery of my skin. 

So... now comes the most important question: where to get the masks in Malaysia?

I have not bought My Beauty Diary masks in Malaysia before but if you're interested, you can visit any SaSa outlet to purchase the masks as I've once seen the masks being sold at SaSa Sunway Pyramid. The price was around RM40++ per box (10pcs in one box) if I'm not mistaken. If you're interested in just the brand itself, Hermo does carry the brand but it doesn't sell the above mask. 

This post contains affiliate links.

Malaysia only

Hermo - RM41.10 (8 pieces)

You can use Shopback to save some money (save 2% for every purchase) when buying from Hermo. Just sign up using my link: https://www.shopback.my/hermo?raf=OxeI66, and you'll be rewarded with RM5 immediately, followed by RM5 when you make your first purchase on Hermo through Shopback. That's RM10 in total. It works in the form of cash back which you can cash out to your bank account. You'll can learn more on their website here.

International

Amazon - USD15.25 (8 pieces) (approx. RM60)

Should you buy My Beauty Diaries Aloe Vera Mask?

If you have combination skin like me or dry skin which needs more hydration, you should totally try out the mask as it can give an instant boost of moisture for your skin! 

Leave a comment below if you have any questions regarding to this, I'll be more than happy to answer them. You can also leave a comment below to let me know if you'll use the mask!

Thank you for reading, see you in the next post!

This is not a sponsored post and it is strictly based on my personal opinion of the product after personally trying it out. Please make sure you consult whoever is selling you the product and ask for samples if you can! Here is a link to the My Beauty Diary website for your convenience!