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I recently bought one of the new Etude House Bubble Tea Sleeping Packs in Black Tea. I’m obsessed with skincaretainment, bubble tea, and cute things, so it seemed like a good match for me. I conveniently forgot my second mantra–“Life is too short for Etude House skincare”–when making the purchase (I was too busy remembering my first mantra, “No matter what Gwynneth Paltrow says, don’t eat skincare“).

When I posted a quick unboxing video on Instagram a few people wanted to know if it’s good or not. I usually take months to review products and only review a few of the best from my collection, but I wanted to get a “first impressions” review up so that you have more information about the product before tossing money at Etude House no matter what I say.

Oh shit this is cute as hell

Etude House, makers of kbeauty makeup, skincare, tools, and kitty ear spa headbands, recently released a new line of sleeping packs designed to look like bubble tea. Honestly, we didn’t stand a chance. This shit is CUTE, like, Jongin with small children and puppies cute.

Black Tea is intended to firm skin and moisturize.

Green Tea is supposed to help with enlarged pores and excessive oil.

Strawberry Tea is designed to help with dry skin.

It’s freaking adorable. Each jar contains skincare boba. It’s tiny bubble tea that you put on your face~~<3. I can tell y’all want this boba jelly because this video of the product in action is my most-liked post on Instagram ever.

A video posted by Tracy (@fanserviced) on Apr 26, 2016 at 4:55pm PDT

Ingredients

Water, Propanediol, Glycerin, PEG/PPG-17/6 Copolymer, Alcohol Denat., Butylene Glycol, Sodium Hyaluronate, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract (1,900ppb), Natto Gum, Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis (Sweet Almond) Seed Extract, Dipropylene Glycol, Beta-Glucan, BIS-PEG-18 Methyl Ether Dimethyl Silane, Panthenol, PEG-60 Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Agar, Hydroxyethyl Acrylate/Sodium Acryloyldimethyl Taurate Copolymer, Glyceryl Acrylate/Acrylic Acid Copolymer, Sodium Polyacrylate, Coptis Japonica Root Extract, Theobroma Cacao (Cocoa) Seed Extract, Hydrogenated Lecithin, Sodium Carbomer, Hydroxyacetophenone, Carbomer, Tromethamine, Titanium Dioxide (CI 77891), Disodium EDTA, Ethylhexylglycerin, 1,2-Hexanediol, Iron Oxides (CI 77491), Iron Oxides (CI 77499), Fragrance. CosDNA analysis.

I have to laugh that the amount of Camellia Sinensis (green tea) Leaf Extract is 1,900 parts per billion when the amount of Camellia Japonica (camellia) Flower Extract in my current favorite night cream is 54.72% of the whole jar. LOL That would be fine if the formula made my skin feel great and hydrated, but…it doesn’t.

Please god I can’t stand to use this another day

This is honestly one of the most lackluster skincare products I’ve had the misfortune to use in some time. In case you’re not familiar with sleeping packs, they’re moisturizing overnight masks that you apply at the end of your skincare routine before sleeping to lock/pump in moisture. Great sleeping packs plump fine lines, hydrate deeply, and banish dead skin flakes. Sleeping packs are generally supposed to be a super-charged moisturizer that goes beyond regular lotions, emulsions, and creams to deliver a fuckton of skincare goodness.

The Etude House Sleeping Pack, on my skin, felt a good deal less effective than even the last lotion I used. This pack is supposed to firm and moisturize, but in my tests, this product delivered so little moisture that my skin would have been better off with literally any other moisturizer in my arsenal replacing it. On days when I used a sheet mask or lots of a watery essence before applying the pack, I woke up with skin that felt ok. On days when I just applied the sleeping pack, I woke up and my skin was under-hydrated–it almost felt like I had used nothing the night before. For my skin, just about any sheet mask delivers much better results.

I have normal-to-oily skin that can be dry sometimes due to the acids and prescription retinoid I use, but my skin was in generally good condition when I used this–meaning that this wouldn’t have worked for me at all when my skin was a bit more dry. At the same time, I didn’t notice any sort of increased oil control on days after I used the sleeping pack.

To the best of my knowledge, I don’t think I’ve ever complained on fan-b about a skincare product not delivering enough moisture. This is a first. It delivers so little to my skin that it’s not worth the 30 seconds or so it takes to apply the product.

Compared to some other products

CosRx Oil-Free Ultra-Moisturizing Lotion with Birch Sap has a similar milky, light texture, but it hydrates SO much better while not giving my skin a heavy, sticky feeling. If I were a teenager again, this is the lotion I’d use every day and night, I think. I’m, like, two teenagers old and I still use it regularly.

TonyMoly Banana Sleeping Pack also comes in a novelty package, but it’s actually packed with emollients that help to soften and soothe dry skin. It’s an example, in my opinion, of a kbeauty product in fun packaging done right.

Laneige Water Sleeping Mask is THE classic kbeauty sleeping pack. It’s a watery gel that actually dries down on my skin, but results in plumped, moist skin in the morning

Su:m 37 Water-full Aqua Sleeping Pack is a good choice if you want a beautiful package and don’t mind dropping some $$$ to get it.

Blossom Jeju Pink Camellia Soombi Blooming Cream is what I actually use these days to blast my skin with goodness all night; it’s loaded with amazing, proven extracts and saves my skin even on days I’ve overexfoliated and have dry skin.

Should You Buy It?

Naw.

Will You Buy It?

Yes, it’s a tiny bubble tea sleeping pack, if you haven’t bought it, you will even though it’s terrible imo. Because it’s tiny bubble tea that you put on your face~~<3. Maybe it will work for you! I just wanted to put my opinion out there so people have a bit more information than the promotional images alone.

Where to Buy It

If you must: Memebox | eBay | Etude House Global | Amazon | Jolse | TesterKorea | KPopTown

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. Clicking those links before you shop means that fan-b receives a small commission, which helps to support the blog. Please see my full disclosure for more information.