I got to know about The Body Shop Tea Tree Face Mask from Poorna. She swears by it and hearing her experience with it I was sold. Often getting attacked by the odd pimple or two I needed a spot treatment kind of thing especially since I got through my Dermalogica Hit the Spot one (almost).  I don’t usually get a pimple on an average not even in my teens but when I do I get the mother of them all. They start very deep under my skin and become this huge bump which takes ages to go away. So how did the Tea Tree Mask fare against them? Let’s find out…

    “Our Community Fair Trade organic tea tree oil comes from the foothills of Mount Kenya. Tea tree leaves are picked by hand and steam-distilled to release the oil. Our trade with the Kenya Organic Oil Farmers Association encourages sustainable and organic farming methods which help to preserve the area’s natural biodiversity.”

     Aqua (Solvent/Diluent), Kaolin (Absorbent), Cetearyl Alcohol (Emulsifier), Glycerin (Humectant), Myristyl Myristate (Emollient), Glyceryl Stearate (Emulsifier), PEG-100 Stearate (Surfactant), Ethylhexyl Palmitate (Skin Conditioning Agent), Propanediol (Viscosity Modifier), Alcohol Denat. (Solvent/Diluent), Caprylyl Glycol (Skin Conditioning Agent), Cyclopentasiloxane (Skin-Conditioning Agent/Emollient), Calophyllum Inophyllum Seed Oil (Skin Conditioning Agent), Melaleuca Alternifolia Leaf Oil (Natural Additive), Cyclohexasiloxane (Chelating Agent), Xanthan Gum (Viscosity Modifier), Disodium EDTA (Chelating Agent), Menthol (Cooling Agent), Limonene (Natural Additive), Leptospermum Petersonii Oil (Natural Additive), t-Butyl Alcohol (Denaturant), Denatonium Benzoate (Denaturant), Tocopherol (Antioxidant), CI 77289 (Colour), CI 77492 (Colour).

     The TBS mask comes in what is know as a tub packing. The body is light green in color similar to that of the product and the cap is transparent. Both are made from a good quality plastic. The tub contains 110 gms of product. Some may find the type of packing to be unhygienic as they would have to dip their fingers in the product but this can be easily remedied by the use of a spatula. Personally I like the packing as it ensures less wastage of product and more control over how much you take of it. Sometimes tubes and pumps end up dispersing more than required. The packing is spill proof and can be carried easily for travel.

     The mask is light green in color and has a strong tea tree smell to it. It has the consistency of a light cream and does not dry and become hard on the skin. TBS advises you to use this 1-2 times a week avoiding the eye and lip area and to wash it after 10 minutes of use. The pack does tingle on the skin and you need to avoid using it if your skin is broken from somewhere. Do a patch test with it on in the inside of your arm before using it for the first time. Given the consistency of the stuff one does not need a whole lot of it to apply all over the face.

    Like I mentioned before I used this more as a spot treatment initially. I have combination skin so I didn’t want to apply it all over as a) I didn’t really need it and b) I thought it might be drying (which it is). I would cover my pimple with the stuff and then just let it be. Sometimes I fell asleep with it overnight. Since the pack dries but does not harden it was safe to leave it on for long hours. Since I don’t get pimples usually, when I do end up with one I’m very conscious about it and uneasy. It keeps bugging me somewhere in my mind till it does not go away.

     For this reason I used this pack a couple times in a day. Usually I would end up leaving it on my skin for 2-3 hours and then I would wash it with water and reapply. This fixation of mine did help me get rid of it faster. What the pack does is that it throws the impurities out from your skin. Unlike other products which end up suppressing the pimple this actually makes it grow so that the pus comes out which is basically the infection and thus giving your skin the chance to heal properly. Some pimples which are very small tend to go away but more often than not they grow. You might consider it to be a bad thing but think about it. All the ickiness and problem lying deep underneath the layers is actually getting removed from your skin.

     Since the past few weeks I have been using this all over my face as a cleansing product. That is to say to detoxify my skin in a manner. I discovered fine bumps on my skin recently owing to a bad lifestyle and eating habits. This stuff really works wonders and I have recommend it to a lot of people. I have even used it on my dad who is very skeptical about what he calls “potions and chemical stuff” 😛 He found it so very effective in one use that he would come on his own and ask me to apply it on him….and knowing my father that says a lot 😀

     The Body Shop Tea Tree Mask lives up to all its claims and is an excellent product. From fine small pimples to the deep rooted lying-beneath-skin ones can be treated with this pack without fail. Though it comes with the price tag of Rs. 895/- but given how little quantity of the product gets used at a time and how effective the thing is it is totally worth it! Do try out for yourself….I guarantee that you too will agree that The Body Shop Tea Tree Mask is the greatest thing since sliced bread 😀

Would you purchase The Body Shop Tea Tree Mask again? – Yes I would.

Would you recommend The Body Shop Tea Tree Mask to your friend? – Absolutely! I already have to a few of them.