This might seem like a girly post about girly beauty products, but it’s really not, because it’s skin care, and skin care is for everyone. Male, female, young, not-young, whatever… skin is skin. Skin requires care. Skin is an organ, and like other organs, it’s vulnerable to all sorts of problems, some of them life-threatening. Daily sunscreen is the cornerstone of my skin care regimen, and weekly sheet masks are the luxury aspect.

One day last week, the mail arrived with a welcome surprise: an Epielle Facial Essence Mask extravaganza in a care package from Hawaii, courtesy of my parents.

I’ll say it again… one can never be too old for care packages from parents! They don’t even have to be our own parents. Any parents would do. Care packages from parents are the best, because parents rule. (Is there such a thing as an online “Care Packages from Parents” business? If not, some savvy entrepreneur-type should totally invent that, because I think it’d do well and bring joy to the people. Everyone can benefit from the nurturing effects of receiving thoughtful little things in the mail from parental-type people who care.)

My parents’ package contained, among other delightful things of the Kona coffee and macadamia nut variety, nine individually-wrapped Epielle Facial Essence Masks –three each of three different kinds.

These are a treat. I’ve talked about these masks before, but I’m glad to revisit the subject because the masks really are that rave-worthy. Also, talking about them again means that I have them again, and that means that my Mom has been doing very well. After ten months, she’s emerged from the worst part of her cancer treatment with her sunny smile and sense of humor intact, and the doctor cleared her to travel in between her Herceptin infusions, which she still has to do until December. With the chemo and radiation behind her, she and Dad were able to spend a little time in Hawaii in July to participate in family events and gatherings.

Thus, Epielle sheet masks once again made their way to my doorstep. They’re soothing and luxurious, restorative and invigorating… but the one thing they’re not is available in Arizona. They’re from Korea, and they’re easily found at Long’s Drugs in Hawaii, probably because of the highly concentrated Asian demographic there. I’m sorry to rave about something that’s not readily available on mainland store shelves. They can be purchased on Amazon.com, from what I can tell, but I can’t attest to the reliability of that. I’m so lucky… between my parents’ stays in Hawaii and trips to Japan, I get to use skin care products from Korea and Japan frequently, and I’m grateful for this because Asian skin-care products are, frankly, amazing.

I’m so spoiled. Mom always sends these masks when she and Dad are in Hawaii!

As I’ve mentioned before, the Epielle Essence Facial Masks are sheet masks that come out of the package dripping with soothing liquid infused with botanical extracts. I alternate the Collagen with Vitamin E for “moisturizing and renewing,” the Firming and Lifting with Vitamin C for “rejuvenating and conditioning,” and the Cucumber for “refreshing and purifying.” I use one mask per week as a part of my Sunday morning ritual.

Collagen with Vitamin E, Firming and Lifting with Vitamin C, and Cucumber

And in case you’re wondering what happens when I don’t have these masks on hand, I use the only other sheet masks I can find in drugstores that are somewhat affordable… the Garnier Skin Renew Dark Spot Treatment masks (“INTENSIVE TREATMENT – Revitalizes & Restores Luminosity”). These are good, too. Like the Epielle masks, the Garnier sheet masks are single-use and individually-wrapped. They come in a box of six; the instructions say to use them three times a week (meaning that one box would last for two weeks), but I still only do the mask thing once a week on Sunday mornings. If I’m using a Garnier mask, I just leave it on for 20 minutes rather than the recommended 10. I make that box last for six weeks! Topically, the Garnier masks differ from the Epielle ones in that they’re thinner, almost translucent; they cling more tightly to the face. The Epielle masks are thicker, more pillowy and opaque. They both work well and feel wonderful.

This last Sunday, I used an Epielle Collagen with Vitamin E mask:

Epielle Facial Essence Mask (Collagen with Vitamin E)

Regardless of the brand, I can’t recommend sheet masks enough for their effortless simplicity. I, for one, have no patience for the annoying rinsing-off of clay masks that have hardened like concrete on my face, or the peeling-off of congealed gel masks that never quite come off perfectly and just generally kind of creep me out.

Those crazy Asians. Of all the bizarre things they come up with, they got the sheet masks right!