Dr. Jart+ pore minimalist mask

I received the Dr. Jart+ Pore Minimalist in my November Birchbox. I hadn’t done any research into this product, so this is more or less a blind review. After a whirlwind month of late nights at work, social events, and just plain winter fatigue I hadn’t gotten a chance to treat myself to a mask. My face needed this. Badly. Winter dries me out big time and due to a recent hormone flux I had a small teenage style breakout across my forehead. I was not taking proper care of my skin. Did you know that when your skin is dried out it can become even oilier? True fact.

One of my New Years resolutions was to take better care of my skin. I’ve rushed out of the house without moisturizer a few times. Fallen asleep without taking off my makeup. All the beauty sins I tell all my friends to avoid. Last night I got home and kind of stamped my foot (quietly, I have neighbors downstairs!) and said it’s time to give your face some loving.

Let’s start with the packaging. It appears there is no front or back. The foil pouch has lots of serum in it that the mask must soak in. It was folded up into a little square and was a little messy coming out. Even the nose piece is folded up, and folds out over your nose. It didn’t cover the tip of my nose, though, which I thought kind of needed some extra love as well. I kind of expected the mask to suck onto my face and stick there. While it (mostly) stayed in place, it didn’t cling on. The sides and the chin didn’t stay on at all. I kept pushing it down or holding it in place.

I look like I’m wearing a carved wooden mask.

The mask didn’t have a particularly fragrant smell, but it still kind of irritated my eyes. Not to the point of allergy, but it wasn’t pleasant either. Maybe I should’ve put little cucumbers on and pretended to be in a spa. I was actually too busy watching Brooklyn Nine-Nine. I took turns laughing at the show and laughing at my reflection in the mirror. I actually looked funnier than when I put on any of my cream face masks. It reminded me of a Jacques Nestlé painting I sit across from at work.

inverse colors of my mask

After 15-20 minutes I removed the mask. I like that you do not have to rinse off your face once finished. Silly as that sounds, it can be a deterrent for doing a nighttime mask. That would mean washing my face again. Meanwhile, I had plenty of time to make silly faces in the mirror before removing the mask. I expected more of a glowing face when the mask was removed. Overall, I was pretty disappointed. I would be open to trying this again if I received another sample, but I would not actively seek this out as a purchase. In the meantime, I can happily say I remembered to moisturize before I left the house this morning!