Trust me, you can not escape the hype that is GLAMGLOW. After all, their products are touted by magazines, online publications, beauty and fashion blogers, Youtube gurus, and Instagram influencers. But, really, in the end these are just overpriced basic clay masks, housed in fancy packaging… or are they?
Recently I had the opportunity to re-discover the brand and give a couple of their bestsellers a test run. I received YOUTHMUD and FLASHMUD treatments, both of which I have never tried before. These days you can find GLAMGLOW products backstage at fashion events, movie sets, TV shows, and rightfully so. Not surprising, considering the company originally rose to fame thanks to their volcanic mud masks, often used by musicians and Hollywood A-listers to instantly achieve camera-ready skin, and now they are available for the general public at higher end department and specialty stores.
I am actually familiar with GLAMGLOW offerings. While I never owned a full-sized version of anything, I received a lot of travel-sized tubes and foil packs in beauty boxes and GWP goodie bags over the years. Those later became my travel staples for the ability to dramatically transform the skin after a single treatment – a much needed pick me up after a red eye flight or a long car trip, especially if I need to look presentable later that day.
GLAMGLOW YOUTHMUD Tinglexfoliate Treatment is described as a “facial in a jar”, that delivers drastically brightening results in as little as 10 minutes. This oil-absorbing mask is said to moisturize and exfoliate the skin without disturbing its protective barrier. The mud glides over the skin with ease, and solidifies into light gray, greenish hue with little bits of tea leaves. The tingling is there, but it eventually goes away depending on your skin’s tolerance – for me, it takes about 5 minutes. I also find it oddly satisfying to see all of the little oily dots on my nose and forehead over the dry clay surface. Yes, there are other, much cheaper clay masks that can do the same, but there’s just something special about this one, that I can’t quite put into words. My face always looks so nice after using the mask – it’s brighter, fresher, tighter. The brightening and firming effects are temporary, but they do last a while, at least a few hours.
How to use: Apply a thin layer to clean face, neck, and chest, avoiding the eye area. Rinse off with lukewarm water after 10 minutes, and pat dry.
GLAMGLOW FLASHMUD Brightening Treatment is an intense brightening treatment, with a very impressive, mile-long ingredient list that features gems like birch wood extract, diamond powder, quartz, niacinamide, glucosamine, volcanic ash, peony root extract, jasmine extract, salicylic acid, and about two dozen others. That is a lot of brightening action, and these nine are just the tip of the iceberg. Finely ground quartz, diamonds, and volcanic ash provide gentle but abrasive physical exfoliation, while salicylic acid actively combats breakouts, and niacinamide with glucosamine address hyperpigmentation. While this is marketed as a brightening mask, I found that it really helps with uneven texture. I applied it to bumpy skin twice, and each time it made my face look much smoother.
How to use: Apply a thin layer to dry clean face, neck, and chest, in circular motions to pre-exfoliate the skin and improve ingredient absorption. Rinse off with lukewarm water after 20 minutes – the product will turn semi-transparent. Avoid the eye area.
BOTTOM LINE:
If I had to pick a favorite, I would probably go with YOUTHMUD. As much as I love the idea of exfoliating my skin with diamond dust, the oil-absorbing qualities are a bigger priority for me right now. Besides, I dig the tingling sensation, and I love how fresh my face feels afterward.
So for all the skeptics out there – nothing wrong with that btw – yes, I do believe that GLAMGLOW treatments are pretty awesome and not just empty hype. However, if your skin is sensitive, I would definitely do a patch test first to see if you can tolerate these. It’s also probably not a good idea to use anything that will make the skin tingle or improve circulation if you suffer from rosacea or severe painful cystic acne, neither from this brand, nor from any other. Also, if you know that your skin can’t tolerate scrubs in general – skip these two for sure. For everyone else, there’s a GLAMGLOW treatment your skin will be happy with, waiting to be discovered at a local Sephora.
What do you think, is GLAMGLOW worth the hype? What is your favorite clay mask? Have you tried GLAMGLOW treatments before? Let me know in the comments below!
I really hate any uneven texture of my skin, so I need to check out that second one!
I actually have yet to use a Glamglow mask. I had a clay cleanser of theirs that I really liked though, I’d be willing to give it a shot!
I’ve been loving these too! Supermud Clearing Treatment is my top fave, though!
Your post reminded me that I have a sample of Glamglow mask waiting in my untried products drawer.
I’ve been curious about this brand, although I am ignorant of price, I’m guessing they are expensive? I have a clay mask I discovered from The Body Shop that I love, I received a one-use sample and immediately bought a container of it. When that runs out I’ll have to look into this line and see which one will work well with my skin. I have Rosacea but my skin responds well to some clay masks, I love the way my skin looks those few hours after, too!! 🙂
I do see this brand a lot but have never tried it bc I thought it was a gimmick. But that mud sounds amazing! May have to pick up a jar.
I’ve got a small stash of samples that I should try. I have a lot of masks so they always get pushed aside though.
My girlfriend swears by this stuff!
These don’t look like what I had before. The one I got I swear was defective – there were sticks in it! These ones look smooth and nice. Maybe I need to re-look into them?
Both of these look refreshing
My skin is too sensitive for these, unfortunately. I turn bright red when I use them!
I looove glam glow!