As you may recall, I wrote a blog post about a trip to Shanghai and Beijing in May. While I was on this trip, I made the most amazingly weird but brilliant beauty product discovery…… Steam Eye Masks! I found these while we were in Beijing, browsing in a store called MINSO (which is described as a Chinese dollar store). MINSO is a low cost Chinese retailer that is heavily influenced by Japanese style. The store sells everything from kitchenware to stationary and cosmetics (all of my favourite things basically lol).
When I spotted these cute little boxes in the cosmetic section that had ‘Steam Eye Mask’ written on the front, I was very very intrigued. I thought, what on earth is that?! Given that I was in China, I couldn’t read any of the instructions on the back (I still can’t lol) and to be honest, I don’t even know if they are in Chinese or Japanese. MINSO is a Chinese store (and I bought it in China) but the back of the pack says MINISO Japan!? Lol……. the confusion remains, but nonetheless, I thought, for a few pounds these are far too interesting to leave behind. I picked up a green box and a pink box and off I went……
Once I got home I cracked open one of the boxes to find five pouches inside. The picture instructions on the packet were pretty clear (it is basically an eye mask with two elastics for hooking around your ears), but I thought I should probably look up the instructions in English to make sure I knew what I was getting myself into. I found a video on YouTube which explained that you should use the mask for the following:
- When working with computers or smart phones
- If you have dark circles under your eyes
- If you have difficulty sleeping
- If you frequently have dry eyes
- If you are always on the road
- If you are feeling stressed
- If you travel frequently
So basically, you can use this mask as and when you like!
I opened up the pouch, which like I said, was basically an eye mask that is made out of a thin disposable material. To be completely honest, it does look a lot like a sanitary towel (lol). The masks are one size fits all and it sits very comfortably around my eyes.
Now it is time to get scientific…….! After a few minutes of having the mask on my eyes, it began to warm up and felt so so soothing. Apparently it reaches a comfortable heat of 40°c. There is a heating element inside the mask containing iron and moisture, which is what creates the steam. When the sachet is opened and the mask comes into contact with oxygen in the air, the iron is oxidized, generating the heat. This heat triggers evaporation of moisture in the heating element and creates the steam. CRAZY! Feeling this actually work on my eyes after removing a dry (cool) mask from the packet blew my mind lol. It feels absolutely amazing. When it is broken down it seems so simple!
I like to use these masks in the evening time, when I can, for about 20 minutes. I find them absolutely brilliant! As a daily contact lens wearer, my eyes will often feel very tired and strained by the end of a day. When I feel like this, I will pop on one of these masks and it always makes my eyes feel so much better. They also work amazingly if you have a headache. They are just so soothing and relaxing, and make the area around my eyes feel moisturised and soft. Once I am finished with the mask I just throw it in the bin, but I think you could even wear the mask overnight if you wanted to.
I have gone through quite a few of these masks now, and my 2 boxes are beginning to run low (sad and worried face lol), but I checked online and believe it or not, there appears to be a MINISO store in Dubai now! YAYYYYY. I can safely say that I will be stocking up soon!
Since discovering the Steam Eye Mask in China, I have recently heard about a similar concept called the Spacemask. However, I know absolutely nothing about this one. Has anyone else tried these yet? Or am I just very late to the party? I’d love to hear if you give them a go.
I have included a few links in the ‘SHOP THE POST’ section, where I have found similar products that can be purchased in the UK. I have also included a link to the Spacsmasks which I mentioned.
SHOP THE POST
