The body shop tea tree skin clearing clay mask reviews

Hey everyone! For day 13 of my review challenge I was supposed to review a clay mask, so I decided to review the Tea Tree Oil Skin Clearing Clay Mask from the Body Shop. I have been using this mask for a couple of months so I have a pretty good handle on its effectiveness. Clay masks are typically marketed for oily skin types, as they are supposed to reduce the amount of oil your skin produces, while also providing a deep cleaning for your pores. However, I’m not sure how good these typical clay masks actually are for your skin, especially my skin. If you are new to my blog, I have oily/combo/potentially dry skin. I am oiliest on my nose, whereas my forehead, cheeks and chin are normal to dry.

Packaging and First Impressions

This face mask comes in the typical packaging of face masks, a screw top plastic jar. The design is pretty simple, with a theme of green, black and white with a picture of tea tree leaves on the lid. The face mask itself is also tinted green and is very creamy. There is definitely a tea tree scent, however it is not the strongest tea tree scent that I have ever smelled. I used to HATE the smell of tea tree, but after using various tea tree products, I got used to it very quickly.

Price and Quantity

This mask is priced at $18 CAD ($17 USD but on sale right now for $10.20 USD on their website) for 110 grams (3.85 oz). This is a good price for a face mask in my opinion. Often when you buy a face mask you expect to shell out at least $20, if not well over that. There are plenty of other clay masks that are on the market so I will compare to various other popular ones, that I have also used. I have not used any drugstore clay masks, if they exist, which I am sure they do.

Probably the most popular clay mask that you hear about is the GLAMGLOW SUPERMUD Clearing Treatment, which is $79 CAD ($69 USD) for 50 grams (1.7 oz). This mask is very expensive(!), however it is very much raved about on all social media platforms. A cheaper alternative that a good amount of people claim is a dupe for the GLAMGLOW SUPERMUD is the Sephora Collection Mud Mask Purifying & Mattifying, which is $25 CAD ($20 USD) for 60 mL (2.03 oz). A high end but slightly more reasonably priced mask (compared to GLAMGLOW) is the Josie Maran Whipped Mud Mask Argan Hydrating and Detoxifying Treatment, which is priced at $59 CAD ($48 USD) for 52 grams (1.7 oz) of product. I have used this mask in the past and it definitely feels luxurious and nice on the skin, however it is still on the more expensive side. A more affordable option that also helps to retexturize your skin is the Origins Original Skin Retexturizing Mask with Rose Clay, which is priced at $34 CAD ($27 USD) for 100 mL (3.4 oz). Here are the cost comparisons, organized from best to worst deal:

Rank Company’s Product Mentioned Above Cost ($ CAD) Quantity (oz) Cost-Quantity Ratio for 1 oz of product 1 Body Shop $18 3.85 $5/oz 2 Origins $34 3.84 $9/oz 3 Sephora $25 2.03 $12/oz 4 Josie Maran $59 1.7 $35/oz 5 GLAMGLOW $79 1.7 $46/oz

I wasn’t surprised to see that the Body Shop Tea Tree Skin Clearing Clay Mask was the best deal, however I was surprised that the Origins rose clay mask beat out the Sephora Collection one! Body Shop products are also often more affordable since they almost always have sales and promotions going on, so you may be able to get this product free if you buy a couple others etc.

Claims

Here are the claims from the Body Shop website:

“Cool and deeply cleanse your skin with our Tea Tree infused clay mask. Perfect for blemished complexions, the instantly cooling sensation refreshes skin, without over drying. This mask will help to clear impurities while absorbing excess sebum, leaving skin feeling smoother and clearer looking.

• Infused with purifying tea tree oil grown in the foothills of Mount Kenya
• Deeply cleanses to remove impurities
• Soothes and calms skin
• Helps to promote clearer-looking skin”

The Body Shop is also a cruelty free company, and this product is vegan.

Performance

I’m going to start off with saying that I feel like there is a lot of propaganda on social media and out in the general public, that people with an oily skin type need to be using clay masks to help control their oil production. I think it has been so propagandized that people treat it like a fact, but I don’t think it can truly be generalized the way it is. Since becoming more interested in skin care, I was initially under the impression that clay masks were what I needed, and that they would stop my oil production and prevent acne. After a lot of trial and error, I am only just learning that SOME clay masks may do this, while others may exacerbate the problem. The main difference is whether the clay mask dries down completely or not.

Using clay masks that dry down completely, I believe, take things way too far in terms of “deep cleaning”. These masks that become dry to the touch after application most often suck the life out of your face. By this, I mean they suck too much oil and moisture out of your skin. In response to this, your skin may then start to overproduce oil to make up for this sudden dryness, even if you moisturize afterwards (may depend on the moisturizer). Of course, this overproduction of oil often results in breakouts. So what began with my attempt to control oil and breakouts, actually caused excess oil and breakouts. This has certainly been my experience with clay masks that dry down. The only exception is that I will use these types of mask on my nose, which is my oiliest area and pretty much never gets pimples. Of the masks I listed above for the price comparison, the GLAMGLOW SUPERMUD, and the Sephora Collection Mud Mask Purifying & Mattifying both dry down and fall into this category. For me, I do not like using these masks for a full face treatment, although they are great for spot treatments. When I do use these all over my face, I get multiple pimples by the next day.

One exception is the Origins Original Skin Retexturizing Mask with Rose Clay, which also dries down. While I do not use this on my full face, I do use it on my cheeks since this is the area that I have the most texture that I want to treat. On nights that I do use the retexturizing mask, I make sure that I do a really good job of moisturizing afterwards to prevent the oil overproduction and subsequent acne. So far, I haven’t gotten any pimples that have clearly been caused by this mask. The Josie Maran Whipped Mud Mask Argan Hydrating and Detoxifying Treatment does also pretty much dry down, however this mask is supposed to detoxify your skin with clay, while also hydrating your skin with argan oil. Because of this, this mask is okay to use on your full face, since it has ingredients in it that will prevent your skin from excess drying out. I always used to use this mask on my full face and I never broke out from it, however I have not repurchased since running out because it is so expensive!

On the other hand, using clay masks that do not dry down completely can give you the beneficial properties of clay (draws out impurities), without over-dehydrating your skin. This is where the The Body Shop Tea Tree Oil Skin Clearing Clay Mask comes into play.

This mask is very creamy, and because of that it doesn’t dry down all the way. When first applied you can feel a slight cool tingling, which is mainly due to the tea tree. I like this cooling feeling, because it actually feels like the mask is having an effect on my skin. When I wash this mask off, I use a face cloth because it is quite thick. If you just try to rinse with water, you might find yourself rinsing for a long time because of the thickness. I always apply this mask quite generously. I’m not sure if this mask leaves my skin feeling smoother, however it does look calmed afterwards. I don’t find that this mask does a lot to control my oil production, as my nose still gets just as oily the next day, but I am happy if it isn’t causing an OVERproduction of oil.

I really like to use this mask, however I am not sure how effective it is. I have been using this mask around once a week for a couple months now, however because of my constant hormonal acne issues I have been still getting plenty of breakouts, so it is difficult to tell whether this mask would actually control acne on people with normal skin, that isn’t as finicky as mine. Although it isn’t controlling my breakouts, I know that this mask does not cause breakouts, and it feels great on the skin. I also do think that it helps to draw out impurities and dirt, which is the best attribute of clay facial products. Because of this I continue to use this mask.

I think most people realize that masks don’t often provide tangible results, and they are used more as a “treat”, which for me is mostly the purpose of this mask. However, for someone who gets occasional acne (that doesn’t have an underlying cause like my never ending hormones), this may actually help treat your acne and prevent it. Tea tree is used in facial products because it has anti-bacterial properties. Because this mask works to help prevent oil overproduction and bacterial action on your skin, it may work great for you!

Final Thoughts

I definitely like this mask since I know that it will not cause break outs like many traditional clay masks do. Because it does not dry down I can prevent acne by:

1. Benefiting from the purifying properties of clay
2. Not over dehydrating my skin, which increases oil production and acne break outs
3. The use of tea tree oil, which prevents acne caused by excess bacteria

Have you used this mask or any other clay masks that I haven’t tried and are amazing? Have you encountered similar results to me with masks that dry down completely? Although I am only talking about clay masks that dry down completely today, I personally avoid all masks that dry down completely, whether they contain clay or not. If it dries down completely, it may very likely over-dehydrate your skin.

Top 4 the body shop tea tree skin clearing clay mask reviews edited by Family Cuisine