SKINCARE | Epic Naruko Multi Sheet Mask Review Complete with "Melfies"

Yesss, new skincare! I can never resist a new skincare brand especially an Asian one because most of the innovative new products that we have seen in North America have often been out on the Asian market for YEARS. While I am more familiar with Korean skincare, I was fascinated by a Taiwanese brand that is new to Canada called Naruko. Mainly plant-based in ingredients, Naruko has a number of different products that focus on brightening, tightening, plumping and even DNA repair. This brand felt very technical which I know not everyone enjoys, but I hope I can point out a few products that I really thought were outstanding and/or worth trying.

Naruko Sheet Mask Review

Just like we have our own beauty gurus (I'm not a fan of this word, but it really is the only one that works), Taiwan does too. Naruko was created by skincare and makeup guru and television personality Robin Niu. This man is almost 50 and from the looks of it, whatever he's doing is working! I watched a video of him giving a TED talk style lecture and his skin looked great live!

I am all about anti-aging and looking bright and healthy so among the four sheet masks that Naruko sent, I immediately grabbed the Taiwan Magnolia Brightening and Firming Mask* ($28.00 CDN/10 masks) first! This mask is for brightening, firming and improving overall skin texture. I won't lie that the other reason I wanted to try this mask was because of the little ear hooks! Finally, a mask that won't result in chin goatee! Since this mask was all about lifting, there was a secondary pair of ear hooks allowing part of my neck to get pampered too!

Taiwan Magnolia Brightening and Firming Mask Review

This mask has a creamy essence that once soaked in leaves skin so soft and smooth and all without dimethicone! Sheet masks that leave skin with a silky finish are oftentimes soaking in an essence with silicones which I don't mind so much in the mornings, but at night I want to be as 'cone-free as possible! I wish I had taken a picture of the ingredients for these mask, but here is the ingredients list from CosDNA for those of you who are interested. Overall, I liked the low irritant factor of the ingredients in addition to the focus on plant-based ingredients.

Taiwan Magnolia Brightening and Firming Mask Review

I didn't bother to take melfies of the next three sheet masks because they were pretty standard in terms of look and were all made of the same white triple layered cloth.

The next mask I enjoyed was the Naruko ampm Super Triple HA Hydrating Mask* ($36.00/5 masks) as definitely parched my dry skin and also left my skin feeling smooth. Most sheet masks are supposed to be hydrating, but oftentimes the clear essence that these masks are soaking in is still not enough and I feel the urge to apply moisturizer after I have patted the essence into my skin. In this case, my skin was smooth and comfortable just the way it was. I had my Goldilocks moment where my skin really was "juuuust right"! 

In terms of ingredient analysis, I was looking for three forms of hyaluronic acid as per the name of the mask, but I could only identify two? My other favourite ingredients were niacinamide (brightening) and salix alba bark extract which is a natural source of salicylic acid. Aside from looking for HA, I noticed the addition of a number of essential oils which I could actually smell! It was like an aromatherapeutic experience and I could smell hints of rosemary, sage and eucalyptus. Pure heaven!  

AMPM Super Triple HA Hydrating Mask Review

Ingredients: Purified Water (Aqua), Glycerin, Butylene Glycol, Glycosyl Trehalose/Hydrogenated Starch Hydrolysate, Propandiol, Salix Alba Bark Extract, Niacinamide, Chlorphenesin, Xantham Gum, Phenoxyethanol, Allantoin, Hydroxyethyl Cellulose, Alcohol, Glycosphingolipids, Hordeium Vulgare Extract, Sodium Hyaluronate, Imperata Cylindrica,/PEG-8/Carbomer, Dipotassium Glycyrrhizanate, Disodium EDTA, PEG-40 Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid, Disodium Adenosine Triphosphate, Carica Papaya Fruit Extract, Phenoxyethanol, Algin, Sodium Hydroxide, Essentials Oils of Lavender, Eucalyptus, Marjoram, Thyme, Clary Sage, Rosemary, Ho Wood, Ascorbyl Glucoside 

Oddly enough, the Rose & Botanic HA Aqua Cubic Hydrating Mask* ($24.00 CDN/10 masks) which is the mask for intense hydration and giving you back a dewy, radiant glow, was not as hydrating for me as the Super Triple HA Hydrating Mask. I definitely felt the urge to apply moisturizer even after the essence had absorbed into my skin. It did smell wonderfully like roses thanks to actual rosewater and is a mask that I think most of you would enjoy. Check out CosDNA for a complete list of ingredients because I really don't have the patience to type them out!

AMPM Rose and Botanic HA Aqua Cubic Hydrating Mask EX Review

The Naruko ampm RX10 Peptide Firming and Repairing Mask* ($36.00 CDN/5 masks) is probably the most interesting to anyone focusing on anti-aging as the essence does contain 10 different peptides that work to restore elasticity to the skin. Though the peptides are at the end of the ingredients list, it's not like you need a high concentration for them to be effective.

This was the only mask out of the group that contained dimethicone which I am always iffy about in skincare. It is present in a relatively low concentration compared to other masks I have seen where it is the second or third ingredient. This mask also had a very soft scent  - slightly floral with the essence taking an hour or two to fully absorb into my skin. This was quite a bit longer than the other three masks so I can only assume it's the peptides? My skin felt bouncier than with the other masks, so I have a feeling it might be one of the more effective ones!

AMPM RX 10 Peptide Firming and Repairig Mask

Ingredients: Purified Water (Aqua), Glycerin, Butylene Glycol,Propylene Glycol, Butyrospermum Parkii, Sodium Acrylates Copolymer, Isononyl Isononate, Niacinamide, Meadowfoam Seed Oil, Morus Alba Root Extract, Hydrolized Soy Fiber, PEG-40 Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Phenoxyethanol, Chlorphenesin, Lecithin, Allantoin, Polymethylsilsesquioxane, dimethicone, isohexadecane, xatham gum, verbena offincinalis extract, PEG-40 stearate, steareth-2, steareth-21, sodium hyaluronate, essential oils of lavender,eucalyptus, marjoram, thyme, clary sage, rosemary, ho wood, cetearyl methicone, iodopropynyl butylcarbamate, mannitol, hydrogenated lecithin, sodium oleate, sodium citrate, magnesium chloride, dextran, carbomer, polysorbate 20, acetyl tetrapeptide -15, palmitoyl tripeptide-3, palmitoyl tetrapeptide-7,palmitoyl-hexapeptide-12, nonapeptide-1, palmitoyl tripeptide-1, tetradecyl aminobutyroylvalyaminobutyric, urea trifluoroacetate, tetrapeptide-30, acetyl octapeptide-3, acetyl tetrapeptide-5, oligopeptide-68

Final verdict:
 I am a huge fan of the Taiwan Magnolia Brightening and Firming Mask so a pack of those will be in my online shopping cart as well as the Rose and Super Triple HA masks. As much as I love sheet masks, I really only use them for fun because I've never really seen ingredients in them that I find of real value. The ingredients in these Naruko masks look like they belong to a bottle of serum! Maybe I have been living under a rock, but I have not seen peptides in a sheet mask formulation nor this many plant extracts so I am definitely impressed. No, these don't have a a fun animal pattern on them, but there is a time and purpose for those types of masks! This is not the last you have heard from me about Naruko as I have been using their more high end Jing Cheng skincare routine for the last 3 weeks and will be talking about them shortly!

Naruko Canada has offered everyone $10 off on their Naruko purchase with the Code: I88021G44522B. Find them on Amazon.ca as well at Naruko Amazon.ca!

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