HanaCure- Believe the Hype About This Magical Mask
If you’re on Instagram or Facebook and you follow any female celebrity or skincare brand, then you are very likely to have heard of the HanaCure craze. Actress Drew Barrymore did a home video of when she tried this Korean mask, sending this boutique skincare brand into the forefront of American curiosity. Unlike most product writers, I actually prefer not to be the first to try everything as I’m simply not that adventurous (compared to some of my online colleagues) when it comes to messing with my skin.
It’s taken years for me to create a routine I both love and can easily stick to whether I’m at home or traveling and it’s also taken that amount of time to get my skin in near perfect condition save for a smattering of very annoying sun spots and post acne scars.
I’d been keeping tabs on the HanaCure craze for several months before trying it for myself. One thing is for sure- HanaCure is hands down the most memorable and unique skincare product I have ever tried in my 30+ years of life.
Firstly, the packaging is beautiful. It’s what you’d expect when opening the package to a new, luxury mobile phone. There are two components to the mask- first is the liquid serum that comes in a small vial; the second is another liquid in a small packet resembling those single serving jams you get in hotel room service with the pull back tab. You open the small vial to carefully pour the serum into the packet (you’re only supposed to pull back the tab to the line indicated; don’t open all the way just yet). Once the serum is poured into the packet, you close the slightly opened tab with your fingers tightly around it and shake vigorously for about 20 seconds.
The two components form the clear gel that you’re to brush onto your face (HanaCure provides a cute little brush with the package).
Once I was done brushing on all of the gel onto my face, there was an initial cooling effect, similar to a gentle menthol breeze. I’d read about and seen the supposed effects of this mask, which looked dramatic and somewhat terrifying so was surprised when in the first 10 minutes, only a light tingling sensation continued.
Then the tightening slowly started.
I took HanaCure’s advice and began fanning my face with a magazine and that’s when the crazy feeling began. The tightening was intense at first, and grew exponentially after just 2-3 minutes of fanning, as if my entire face was becoming sucked into a strong vacuum.
As time progressed, I stopped fanning in between to just let myself feel what was going on, then repeated the fanning, noticing the increased intensity and strength of the vacuum tightening feeling. You know those commercials for vacuum sealing bags of food or those space savers where a huge blanket gets reduced to a fifth of its size? That’s the sensation of fanning this mask.
To be clear though, it does not hurt at all. It’s just a crazy odd feeling the first couple of times. Even my lips felt like they were puckering on their own from the tightness. It’s not even uncomfortable as much as it is a comical feeling.
If you use this mask without being in front of the mirror, be aware that when you finally go wash your face and see yourself with the mask, you might want to scream in horror. I looked exactly like what the mask had made me feel- my face had been sucked into a vacuum and I had suddenly aged to about 80 years old.
I quickly washed off the mask with warm water and was thrilled to see my own (youthful) face sans creepy puckering effect but more importantly, the insanely powerful results of HanaCure. I genuinely cannot fathom what kind of mad science these folks have used to create a mask that makes your face temporarily feel like you’re being sucked into a vortex and then you’re 80 and then suddenly your face is in the best shape it’s ever been.
What a whirlwind! My skin was the softest it’s been since before puberty, silky, pores barely visible to the naked eye, not a wrinkle or line in sight, whiteheads/blackheads gone. It was as if I had gone to both my dermatologist and facialist, gotten microdermabrasion, a full on facial and maybe even a face lift (never had the latter but I imagine this tightening, lifting effect is what it’s like?) all in one go. How was this even possible?
I’ve been using HanaCure every other week and have had people asking me what I’ve been doing as I appear to be “glowing” and “fresh.”
Ingredients in HanaCure include:
Lotus Leaf Extract
Green Tea Extract
Honeysuckle Flower Extract
Rosa Canina Fruit Oil
Peony Root Extract
Sophora Root Extract
Oriental Raisin Tree Extract
4 Different Peptides
Patented CO2 OctoLift Technology
A set of 4 treatments sells at US $110, so for some, this may be on the pricier side. For HanaCure’s powerful results though, if you can afford to use this as a weekly mask, no question about it- do it. Otherwise, incorporate it into your “for special occasions” treatments to look extra special before a huge event and you will be thrilled you did.
For once, all the hype was real.