Is Glamglow Worth the Hype?

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Is Glamglow Worth the Hype? YOUTHMUD Tinglexfoliate Treatment,  FLASHMUD Brightening Treatment Review

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.

Is Glamglow Worth the Hype? YOUTHMUD Tinglexfoliate Treatment,  FLASHMUD Brightening Treatment Review Is Glamglow Worth the Hype? YOUTHMUD vs FLASHMUD

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.

Is Glamglow Worth the Hype? YOUTHMUD vs FLASHMUD

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!

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