Beauteque Mask Maven is a monthly K-beauty subscription box dedicated to masks. If you love trying new Korean sheet masks, this subscription is for you!
FYI: This box has had significant shipping delays. This is the December box but was received in February.
My Subscription Addiction paid for this box. (Check out the review process post to learn more about how we review boxes.)
About Beauteque Mask Maven
The Subscription Box: Beauteque Mask Maven
The Cost: $18.95 month-to-month ($15 subscription + $3.95 U.S. shipping). Save with 6- and 12-month subscriptions.
ACTIVE DEAL: Save 10% off of your subscription
CODE: SHEETFACED
The Products: 9 masks of all kinds, straight from Korea and Taiwan. Most are facial sheet masks, but you will sometimes see a hair mask, hand mask, or lip mask, too.
Ships to: The U.S., Canada, Europe, Australia, and parts of Asia (see international shipping costs during checkout)
Beauteque Mask Maven December 2020 Review
The number of sheet masks out there for sale must be incredibly large. Mask Maven almost never sends repeat items, and I discover something new every month:
1 of 4
The box came with this information card. This month's theme was "Cold Weather Beauty Essentials."
On to the items:
Ballon Blanc Blanc Therapy Egg White Sheet Mask – Retail Value $2.50
Egg white contains albumen, which is a protein that is supposed to help shrink large pores. (For what it’s worth, large pores are more of a problem for me in warmer weather.) I can’t say I noticed a big difference in that regard, but as is the case with a lot of specialized skincare ingredients, you need to use them consistently over time before you can really conclude that they work (or don’t). This was a new brand for me, which is always nice.
This one would be good if you’d like to cover a variety of skincare concerns with one product, as it also has a lot of moisturizing ingredients, like sodium hyaluronate and trehalose (both of which hold on to a lot of water molecules near the skin surface) and antioxidants from orange peel, grapefruit peel, tangerine peel, and tea leaves, plus there’s propolis, which is produced by bees and should have some anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial properties.
Village 11 Factory Daily Fresh Up Mask, Aloe
There were a lot of masks in this month’s package that I couldn’t find for sale online from reputable, U.S.-based sources. I did not want to rely on values from other countries where shipping would be prohibitively expensive and take 6 weeks to arrive, at any rate.
This one was not all that drippy and did not have a strong scent, for which I am grateful. Aloe usually is pretty compatible with my skin and this was no exception. It can be soothing to reddened or sunburned skin if those happen to be issues you are having. This was also just a good, general-purpose moisturizer.
Skin Planet Daily Fresh Garden Mask Sheet, Argania
This one contains argan oil, of course, which is great on my hair but a little too much for my oily skin (facial oils don’t usually agree with me, sadly). In mask form, this was not so oily, but the serum did take quite a long time to dry down. I think I might appreciate this more if I lived somewhere colder or had to spend more time outside. Although I don’t have an ingredients list, I suspect this has a lot of water-based moisturizers, as well, based on how the serum felt (for instance sodium hyaluronate or collagen/hydrolyzed collagen – things of that nature).
Ballon Blanc Blanc Therapy Avocado Sheet Mask – Retail Value $2.50
The experience of using this one was pretty similar to the egg white mask from the same product line, above. The key ingredient here is obviously avocado oil, which, as an initial matter, contains lots of plant-based fatty acids and is thus moisturizing. It also contains vitamins C and E, which are antioxidants, and grapefruit peel oil and tea leaf extract for even more antioxidants.
Despite the plant fats, this one is not vegan. Propolis is produced by bees and most of the sodium hyaluronate used in the industry is a byproduct of poultry processing. Although some K-beauty brands are starting to move into the vegan beauty space, a lot of them are not there yet, which is something to consider depending on your purchasing habits.
Skinmaman Botanical Fit Honey Sheet Mask with Pomegranate – Estimated Value $1.49 (buy 10 for $14.90, found here for $12.90)
A lot of sheet masks with “honey” on the packaging smell strongly of an artificial honey scent but this one did not, which was honestly a point in its favor, as the artificial scent can be cloying at times, but this one was pleasant. (It didn’t smell particularly fruity either and no, nothing is wrong with my sense of smell at this time.) This also includes pomegranate extract, which is going to provide vitamins and other antioxidants. I hinted at this above, but honey, like propolis, has anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial properties. This one was not too drippy and the serum dried on my face in a reasonable amount of time.
This one also contains blueberry, kiwi, and lemon extracts (more antioxidants), purslane – which is supposed to be soothing – and allantoin, which is said to help smooth rough skin. This one is relatively affordable and would thus be good for daily use (or at least get a box or two, so you can watch for its effects over time).
Village 11 Factory Daily Fresh Up Mask, Lemon
This is from the same product line as the aloe mask up above. Upon opening this I was prepared for a strong lemon scent that reminded me of a housecleaning product, so I was pleasantly surprised that it was not like that at all. It was a soft lemon scent with a hint of sweetness, kind of like what you might experience from a lemon dessert. Otherwise, this was pretty similar to the aloe mask but maybe with just a little bit more toning capability.
Pax Moly Real Honey Mask Pack
Ah, here’s that strong “honey” scent. This brand shows up in Mask Maven from time to time but oddly doesn’t seem to be available on the Beauteque website. We’ve talked about honey a bit above but I feel like this brand really goes all out with the active ingredients (more about that with the ginseng mask below), likely with a higher concentration based on the scent. So if you are really looking for those anti-inflammatory or anti-bacterial properties from honey, this would really be the way to go. I do think this helped reduce some redness in my skin.
Milatte Fashiony Black Eye Mask, Panda
This only covers the eye area and is regular sheet mask material (not hydrogel). It is a black sheet but I suspect that may be primarily decorative (to go with the whole “panda” theme). Oftentimes when I use sheet masks my glasses end up sliding down my nose by the end of the day, but that did not happen here. I also kind of liked that this was cooling, but only around my eyes and not all over my whole face. This fit well although some of the decorative parts at the edge wrapped over into my hair. (I have a small head, though.)
Pax Moly Real Red Ginseng Mask Pack
Here is another one with a strong scent, which does match what I have come to associate with ginseng in sheet masks. This one made my skin tingle, similarly to how menthol does. Ginseng is rich in antioxidants, which may help fight damage from free radicals (but don’t rely on antioxidants in place of good SPF products – use both!). Ginseng is rich in B vitamins and also has a lot of polysaccharides and glycoproteins (proteins with sugars attached), both of which are good for moisture. I am honestly not sure why this one made my face tingle but the effect did stop when I removed the mask.
Mizon Joyful Time Essence Mask, Acai Berry – Retail Value $2.90 (found here for $2.32)
I have apparently visited this product page many times, but I don’t remember this specific mask. However, this is part of a rather extensive product line and it is entirely possible I’ve tried one or more of the other masks in the past (all are listed on the same page).
This one takes a super long time to dry after use and it’s probably because of the numerous (and sometimes unusual) moisturizing ingredients, including chia seed extract, as well as more conventional moisturizing ingredients, like sodium hyaluronate and hydrolyzed collagen. Acai, as a deeply-pigmented fruit, is going to be a good source of antioxidants. This mask does also contain alcohol but I didn’t notice a specific alcohol-related effect (but to be fair, my skin is an oil slick and alcohol-containing skincare products usually work pretty well for me because of that).
Verdict: I couldn't calculate a total value for the December 2020 Beauteque Mask Maven because many of the items were not available from reliable and/or U.S.-based retailers. Although this package was quite late, Beauteque was forthcoming about the lateness and included a 10th item to make up for the delay, which I think is a nice touch. Of course, as subscription box enthusiasts, we are all aware that domestic shipping was greatly disrupted due to the holidays and COVID-19, but international shipping was as well. At any rate, I was pleased to try a lot of masks that were new to me, including some completely new brands. I can’t say I felt there was an overarching theme for the month but, on the other hand, there was more variety than some past months, which have been heavy on a single ingredient like aloe or charcoal. I would say the item types received this month are fairly typical of what you can expect from this subscription.
To Wrap Up:
Can you still get this box if you sign up today? No, this was the November package. You have to sign up by the 15th to get a current month's box, so your first box would probably be January’s box, arriving in early February.
ACTIVE DEAL: Save 10% off of your subscription
CODE: SHEETFACED
Value Breakdown: At $18.95 for this box, you are paying approximately $1.90 per mask.
Check out all of our past Mask Maven reviews and the best skincare boxes of 2020 as voted by MSA readers!
Keep Track of Your Subscriptions: Add this box to your subscription list or wishlist!
What did you think of the December 2020 Beauteque Mask Maven? Do you get any K-Beauty or Asian Beauty subscriptions?
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