Review: Origins Out of Trouble, Origins Clear Improvement, and Origins Drink Up Masks

I’ve always wanted to try Origins but never knew where to start. For Christmas last year, Origins came up with a three-mask pack at RM168.00, and my mom was kind enough to buy it as a Christmas present for me (thanks Mom!). Here’s how they look like:

All tubes are 75ml, but the full-sized ones are 100ml for RM100. So it’s a very good bargain and if my math is right, it’s RM168/3, making it RM56 per tube, and you get about RM0.75 for 1ml. Long story short: cheaper than full-sized (assuming my price points are correct).

Now this is a genius pack that Origins came up with. For my normal-combo-oily skin, I already thought that the Origins Out of Trouble 10 minute mask and Clear Improvement were definitely well-suited to my skin, and once in a while, I could just give myself a hydrating treatment with the Drink Up mask. For those with drier skins, Drink Up would be the stand-out, and the other two would be great masks to dry up pesky blemishes and detox the skin. Onward for individual reviews.

Origins Drink Up 10 minute mask
A 10-minute emollient cream mask to quench dry skin, this contains algae extracts which deliver hydration and emollient-rich apricot kernel oil acting as a “fountain of youth”. This mask is best for dry or dehydrated skin as I found it a little uncomfortable for my oily skin. I didn’t experience any adverse skin reactions.  I recommended this to a colleague who had normal-dry skin and she gave good reviews. The instructions say that you can tissue it off after 10 minutes, but I’d go with rinsing it out if you feel it’s too rich for you. The ingredients list can be found here.

Between this and Clinique Moisture Surge (as a night mask), I’d go with Clinique because it’s more absorbent and doesn’t make me feel like I have an uncomfortable layer on my skin. Do bear in mind again that I have oily skin, so for me personally I like gel-type hydrating masks. Those with drier skins should definitely give this a go.

Origins Out of Trouble 10 minute mask
This is a stiffer cream-based mask that contains zinc oxide and sulfur, camphor, and salicylic acid. The cream texture is quite dry, and the mask itself doesn’t dry into a peel-off mask; you do have to rinse this off with a damp washcloth. This is my favorite mask out of the lot. I like the tingle of the camphor and do be warned that it smells a lot like Mopiko (a topical anti-mozzie bite cream sold in Malaysia and Singapore). This mask is great for the times when my skin gets a whole lot oilier and when the zits start popping up. I’ve used this as a spot treatment overnight and it helps to dry out some of the zits. It can be a tad too drying for dry skins, but those with oilier skins will like how refreshing this feels. I don’t think you need to use this as an all-over mask if you don’t have to; I only use it on problem areas. This is almost HG-status for me…I need to give it a bit more thought 😉

Ingredients are water (aqua purificata) purified, cetyl esters, zinc oxide, titanium dioxide, cetyl alcohol, cetearyl alcohol, glycerin, glyceryl stearate, peg-100 stearate, camphor, ceteareth-20, salicylic acid, colloidal sulphur, butylene glycol, bentonite, methyl and propylparaben.

Do NOT on any account use this if you have acne vulgaris or very bad acne. Your skin may be too raw and the camphor/salicylic acid may be too strong for it, especially if you’re already undergoing other treatment.

Origins Clear Improvement active charcoal mask
We all know that charcoal extracts are used to clear pores. Origins also added white china clay to absorb environmental toxins and lecithin to dissolve impurities. This is an almost liquidy mask, kinda like if you had runnier toothpaste – it’s very easily spreadable and there is no discernible scent. It dries down into a powdery texture, and if you smile or scrunch up your face, you’ll see the mask crack and flake off like old whitewash (paint on the walls/fences). You do have to rinse this off after it dries. You can find the ingredients list and another review here.

Unlike Out of Trouble, I could probably go without repurchasing this. I like using this weekly as a detoxing mask and it cools my skin down, making it feel comfortable and malleable (ooh, malleable). There’s a very subtle brightening effect with this mask, but I’m not sure if this is a mask that I’ll be needing all the time. My skin type prefers the tougher salicylic acid/camphor/sulfur action, but if I had better skin that just needed some weekly upkeep and not a constant battle with pimples, I would then purchase Clear Improvement. I recommend this as part of your arsenal if you don’t need Out of Trouble. This is a lovely mask that feels great on the skin, gives a tiny bit of hydration – enough to make your skin comfortable before putting on your night moisturizer – and relieves it from weekly stresses.

Have you tried any of the three masks before? Let us know what you think 🙂