Leaders InSolution Aquaringer Skin Clinic Mask & Common Mistake in Using Sheet Masks

A lovely friend gave me Leaders InSolution Aquaringer Skin Clinic Masks that she got on her trip to Singapore. I hadn’t heard of this brand before and was intrigued by the large, odd-shaped packaging that looks clinical indeed; apparently, Leaders InSolution is a Korean dermatologist-tested skin care company with products sold at Watsons, a chain of drugstores in parts of Asia. (Watsons bring me back memories of when I lived in Hong Kong!)

The brand has a variety of sheet masks for different skin concerns and Aquaringer addresses hydration. I’ve been very careful to avoid common irritants in skin care, and was happy to find out that this line of sheet masks is great for those with sensitive skin.

Even before reading what this sheet mask claims to do, I scanned the ingredients list — something I do for almost anything I put on my face these days as an effort to be extra gentle and kind to my skin. I used to not care too much about ingredients, but my outlook lately has been to err on the side of caution, to take a more scientific approach to better understand the results I can expect from products. I’m nowhere near being an expert on the subject and I still overlook ingredients if I’m particularly keen on trying a product, but the learning process fun.

In any case, I was happy to find that the sheet masks are:

• Paraben (preservative) free
• Mineral oil free
• Silicone free
• Artificial pigment free
• Alcohol free (though not specified as a selling point)

I’d love it even more if the company considered removing fragrance, too. These sheet masks also contain plant extracts (though soothing ones like chamomile and arnica), so I would still patch test if you have truly sensitive skin.

I’m not sure if I fully understood the semi-strange English on the packaging, but I took it to mean it’s for skin that is majorly out of whack and needs hydration. It says “diminishes dead skin cells” but it doesn’t contain exfoliating ingredients.

I put it on for 15 minutes (as directed) while soaking in the bath tub, and another 5 minutes out of the bath. I was impressed that it fit like a glove on my skin. There aren’t loose bits and tabs hanging like many sheet masks, so it adhered well with minimal creasing.

After removing the mask, my face looked very even-toned, bright, and plump! There was a thick layer of essence on my face which became sticky as a patted for 5 minutes and gave up; directions said to leave it for 10~15 minutes, and sure enough, it fully absorbed without a trace of stickiness. My skin felt very comfortable and hydrated, and I was able to proceed with my usual skin care. It didn’t feel heavy at all on my combination-oily skin.

I recently learned that a common mistake with using sheet masks is letting it dry up on your face. By leaving it on for so long that sheet mask becomes dry, you’re defeating the purpose of using them and actually drawing moisture away from your skin, dehydrating it as the mask dries, too. So while the tendency is to leave it on to deliver the serum to your skin to the last drop, don’t! I was totally guilty of doing this, but now I know it’s better to take the mask off while it’s still wet. One benefit to applying sheet masks in the bath is that they dry much slower due to humidity in the room.

It’s difficult to find sheet masks that are hydrating enough, but not too hydrating/heavy/emollient for combination to oily skin. These definitely fit the bill! I love that the company excludes many commonly irritating ingredients from their masks, too.

Have you tried Leaders InSolution sheet masks?