Product Review: June Jacobs Papaya Purifying Enzyme Masque

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The Product
Along with cleansers, moisturizers, and exfoliators, masques are an important part of your beauty routine. Similar to deep conditioning treatments for your hair, a masque is like a souped-up version of your regular facial products and each targets a multitude of problems. Being in my 20s, I was looking for a masque that would provide some deep moisturizing action, while minimizing pores and soaking up oils, AND doing some anti-aging magic to boot. A pretty high order for a single product - could anything possibly answer my call? Lucky for me, one woman did and that woman is June Jacobs.

The Spa Collection from June Jacobs contains a series of amazing masques that combine the powers of science and nature to eliminate all your skin problems. The Papaya Purifying Enzyme mask in particular is designed to moisturize, tone, and repair skin from the damaging effects of pollution and daily stresses. Said to be gentler than an at home chemical peel, but just as effective, the Papaya Enzyme mask is a great solution to all the issues I was seeking to resolve.

The Guts
This masque reads more like the fruit aisle of your local grocer, than a facial product:

• Papain to eliminate dark spots and accelerate cellular repair
• Borage seed oil to restore cell membranes
• Orange peel oil which serves as an antioxidant
• Sweet almond oil to moisturize and soften
• Vitamin E for its moisturizing and antioxidant powers

There are also extracts from 3 kinds of teas combined with goji berries, pomegranate, and grapeseed oils to combat environmental free radical damage.

Price & Packaging
Unfortunately, the price for all this goodness doesn't come cheap with a single jar costing approximately $62, however the jar is the largest I've seen of any masque product and will literally last you months. Months!!

Effectiveness
I cannot rave enough about this product. It's like a facial in a jar, literally. Applied for 30 minutes on freshly cleaned skin, this creamy mask applies on smoothly and easily. A little goes a long way as I only needed a few dabs to cover my face in a thin layer. The masque doesn't dry out and it's the perfect amount of time to say, do your nails - can anyone say uber relaxing "me time" night???

The masque is a bit hard to wash off, which is why I usually wear it in the shower where the water pressure can properly hose the product away, but you could also wipe it off similar to a cold cream with a damp towelette. Even with this minor downside though, the after effects are totally worth it. My skin feels amazingly soft and even a tad plumper, with a lovely cool feeling as if I'd just come in from a fresh spring rain.

The final icing on the cake is the product's smell. Normally I don't enjoy scented products, but when I find a good smelling one, it's the final tipping factor that makes me instantly fall in love. The Papaya Purifying Enzyme mask smells deliciously fruity and tropical, with a slight minty smell that I can only describe as vaguely similar to tea tree oil, or Vicks Vapor Rub. The comparison to medicinal ingredients like tea tree and Vicks may seem odd to you, but since I actually enjoy the smell of both things, I find it to be a plus instead of a minus.

Buy or Ditch?
Definitely definitely buy. In Vancouver, this product is available at Murale in Oakridge Mall. It's an expensive product, but for the amount and effectiveness, I would say your money would be well spent.

Final Verdict: A