Black peel-off mask: Iroha vs. Balea

Lately, my blackheads have really started to annoy me. Don't ever Google the word 'blackhead'. I just saw everything. Gross. So I've been trying to find a good way to remove them all!

Balea & Iroha

I thought it would be a great idea to do a comparison rather than just a review post because they are supposed to do the same, but with a big difference in prices.

Iroha nature. Intensive treatment. Instant effect. Detox. With charcoal and fruit extracts. Ideal for blackheads on T-zone. Helps with removing blackheads and impurities, reduces pores and leaves skin soft and smooth. I've never actually heard of this brand Iroha nature and they're new here so I thought I would try something and this seemed like a logical choice since I was looking for a peel-off mask anyway.

I'll start with describing the lid because I thought once I open it, I wouldn't be able to close it. It's so basic, but it gives you chance to close it properly. It didn't have any special smell, nor did it burn my eyes or anything like that.

Application was pretty smooth with my brush. It dried in a bit more over 15 minutes which was OK because it says so on the packaging. While it was drying and when it was fully dry, I didn't feel like it's pulling on my skin. I didn't feel uncomfortable and it was quite easy to move my face which is not the case with all masks. Once it was dry, it was really easy to peel off. I also didn't have any problems with peach fuzz.

The disappointing part was seeing it off my face. I expected at least some blackheads on there, but I didn't see any. So it didn't pull anything out. However, my skin did feel a bit cleaner and just a bit smoother, but not as I expected.

Balea. With active charcoal. Deeply cleanses and nourishes normal and combination skin. I usually love Balea's products so when my friend Anchy saw this, I had to get it. It's black, with charcoal, peel-off and vegan (although I don't pay attention to this, I know a lot of you do).

I like this packaging a lot more cause it's only a tube with a normal lid and I find it easier to work with. Once you open it, it has a rather strong scent that burned my eyes a bit, but nothing too strong or unbearable. The scent goes away after a minute or two and eyes also stop burning after some short time.

Again, I had a smooth application with my brush. It was really easy to handle it, choose the right amount and spread over wanted areas. It dried in about 13 minutes and it was also very comfortable to have it on. I didn't apply it all over my face so I didn't have problems with peach fuzz, but it also didn't pull any off my skin and I didn't find it painful to remove.

I also didn't get the results I wanted. However, I saw few of blackheads out so I believe it would maybe work better if I steemed my face before (during shower) or if I used it more.

Comparisson and verdict?

	IROHA	BALEA
PRICE	around $10	around $3
AMOUNT	18 g	100 ml
SCENT	none	alcohol?
APPLICATION	smooth and easy a bit harder to get it out	smooth and easy easy to get out
TIME TO DRY	a bit more than 15 minutes	around 13 minutes
BURNING EFFECT	no	a bit burning to the eyes until it starts drying
PROBLEMS WITH PEELING	no	no
FACE MOVEMENT	easy, comfortable	easy, comfortable
RESULTS WITH BLACKHEADS	none	extracted some blackheads
RESULTS WITH SKIN	smoother than before	smoother than before, shinier

With all these, I have to say I would choose Balea. Burning effect may be the biggest turn off for you, but I didn't mind it that much. Also it's 3 times cheaper and gives better results with blackheads. Balea also has more practical packaging. However, I'll continue to use them both (as these are just first impressions) and I'll get back to you if anything changes. And also have in mind no mask will give you that effect you see in some videos.

Which one would be your favorite? Have you tried either? Recommend some good peel off mask for removing blackheads!