Today, beauty salons offer their customers a huge variety of procedures for rejuvenating the skin of the face and body. Some of them have a positive effect, others are not as effective as what customer reviews say. Alginate face masks belong to the first group, since they allow you to achieve a stunning effect in just a few sessions.
What are alginates?
This is a special extract from seaweed. The most commonly used kelp. Alginates are an acid that is found in algae in the form of insoluble and soluble salts (sodium, magnesium, potassium, calcium). The ability of alginates to create fairly viscous aqueous solutions, and sometimes even pastes or gels, has made them an excellent cosmetic. An interesting fact is that alginates are not found in terrestrial plants. As a rule, manufacturers create cosmetic face masks based on alginate acid, which takes the form of a gel or dry powder.
History of Alginate Mask
Alginates, as a cosmetic product, have been recently discovered. Chemist Stanford tried to isolate iodine from brown algae in 1981. In the course of his research, alginates became the so-called “side effect” of the experiment. A few years later, another scientist, Krefting, worked on the study of alginate acid, who also, regardless of Stanford, found alginates in algae and described their features. Today, this product is manufactured in several countries around the world, in particular, in Norway, the USA, Great Britain, France, Japan, India and China. On the territory of Russia, this production is also established, but to a much lesser extent. Alginates are extracted in the Arkhangelsk region at a plant that processes algae from the Barents and White Seas. In addition to cosmetology, alginate acid is also effectively used in the food industry and pharmacology, as indicated by numerous reviews. Alginate face masks today have become a very popular procedure in beauty salons.
How does an alginate mask affect facial skin?
If we talk about the beneficial properties of alginates, it is imperative to highlight the following:
- Cosmetic procedures for facial rejuvenation using an alginate mask allow you to cool and refresh the skin.
- Thanks to this acid, the face becomes fresher, its color improves significantly.
- Thanks to its anti-inflammatory effect, it helps to heal small cracks and wounds faster, and also contributes to the rapid regeneration of skin cells.
- Alginate mask is used, as a rule, by women who want to look younger than their age, as it helps to achieve an excellent lifting effect.
- Thanks to alginates, skin elasticity is increased. They also effectively fight the first signs of her aging.
- Blood circulation in the skin cells improves, which allows an increase in the flow of oxygen.
- Cosmetic procedures for facial rejuvenation based on alginates allow you to include the natural protective function of the skin.
- Thanks to their special properties, even old acne, spots and blackheads begin to dissolve.
- If you use alginate masks together with other serums and agents, then the effectiveness of the second will increase several times.
- The fact that alginates instantly penetrate the deeper layers of the epidermis makes these masks very effective.
- Alginate acid helps to narrow pores.
Types of Alginate Face Masks
- Basic masks for body and face from alginate acid . They do not add any additional substances, as they are used in order to fight inflammation of the skin. As a rule, they are used before the main agent is applied (to improve its effectiveness).
- Masks based on alginates and collagen . Thanks to them, the body begins to independently produce natural collagen, which allows you to rejuvenate the skin, tighten it and make it more elastic.
- Masks with alginate acid and chitosan . They help moisturize the skin, tighten it, allow you to enhance the regeneration of cells, saturate them with oxygen. If you pay attention to customer reviews, alginate face masks with chitosan are great for too dry skin.
- Alginate mask with vitamins E and C. Its main purpose is to nourish the skin and make it smoother. The mask with vitamin E and alginate allows you to get rid of age spots, acne and age-related deficiencies.
- Masks with alginic acid and herbal decoctions . Thanks to herbal ingredients, this tool helps to nourish, moisturize the skin and fight various rashes. It deeply cleanses the face and removes toxins.
How is alginate mask applied?
Before applying this mask to the face, it is necessary to carefully prepare it for the procedure. Remove makeup and clean your skin. To prevent the mask from affecting the area around the eyebrows, apply any greasy cream to them. To enhance the effect, some girls apply any additional means under the mask (serum, a mixture of essential oils, emulsion). Here you need to pay attention to what problem you are going to deal with. Wait for the product to soak into the skin of the face, and only then apply the mask directly. Before this, dilute the powder with water in a ratio of one to one. Sometimes the powder is diluted in special solvents. Then the ratio should be three to one. The mask should be pasty. Apply it on your face with a spatula. Hardening takes about 5-7 minutes, and it plasticizes for another 10-15 minutes. It decreases in volume, slightly tightening the skin, but without discomfort, as indicated by reviews. Alginate face masks are removed after half an hour with one movement from the bottom up.
How does the procedure end?
For the procedure to be effective, after removing the mask, you need to wipe the face with a tonic that suits your skin type. Then an additional cream, gel or serum is applied. This is done in order to protect the skin, especially in the cold season. After this procedure, the skin is soft and smooth, but to get the maximum effect once is too little. It is necessary to conduct a course of 5-10 procedures.
Homemade alginate mask (reviews and creation)
Usually, an alginate mask at home is created quite simply, since it is sold in powder form and all you need to do is dilute it with water or a special solution, following the instructions. Solvents are more effective and are sold along with alginate acid. The fact is that they include sea salt and oligoelements, which help enhance the effect of the mask. Oligoelements are also present in the human body, but in very small quantities. It is their deficiency that often leads to inflammation of the skin and other diseases. Of all the oligoelements, 15 are vital for humans. These are iodine, zinc, iron, chromium and others. Remember that a mask film with alginates is applied in a sufficiently thick layer so that it can later be easily removed. Reviews of such a tool can be found on various thematic resources, and all of them are positive. They indicate that alginate mask at home helps to cope even with very severe skin problems, such as rosacea. If you want to get the maximum effect from alginate acid, then you need to use it together with blue clay (Cambrian). Reviews about this tool prove that it helps to deeply nourish, cleanse and protect the skin from inflammation, enhance the regeneration effect, disinfect and bleach, and also protect against wrinkles and age-related changes.
Rules for applying the mask at home
The alginate mask, the recipe of which was described above, is a professional tool, but it can be used at home, if you know all the rules and follow them adamantly. Apply it as indicated in the instructions, it is advisable not to apply it yourself, as it is quite difficult. It’s best not to put a towel under your head, but a film. To prevent hair from getting a negative effect, it’s better to put it under a shower cap. The mask is best applied immediately after dilution, as it dries very quickly.
How much does the procedure for applying an alginate mask in the cabin?
If you do not know how to apply the alginic mask at home correctly, but want to feel the result on yourself, you can turn to professionals for help. But be prepared for the fact that this procedure is not cheap. A face mask made of alginic acids costs about 1000 rubles, and for the body - 1500 rubles.