They say hard work shows—and nowhere is it more evident than after a good night’s sleep. If you’ve ever clocked a solid eight hours, yet still woken up with puffy eyes that make you look like you’ve cried hysterically for an hour straight, you can feel me. Alas, the low-tech methods to deal with said bags, such as splashing on ice-cold water, are in major need of a high-vibe upgrade.
When a magical-looking jade eye mask from GingerChi came across my desk with the claims of de-puffing, while aligning my chi energy and soothing inflammation, I was intrigued.
First of all, if you’re familiar with jade rollers (which also de-puff and help promote lymphatic drainage), you’ll know how pretty these gems are. In eye mask form, this gorgeous, beaded green stone mask is like a crystal-lover’s dream. Its description is equally as enticing, saying that it “emits healing energy into the liver, gallbladder, and kidneys,” which it purports will aid in soothing and detoxifying stressed-out organs.
Not only that, but it’s a royal accessory: “Empresses in China have used jade masks for thousands of years,” according to the brand. Considering I like to pretend I’m waking up as a veritable queen in my castle overlooking Central Park (pretend, I said), this sounds like the perfect addition to my beauty routine.
Keep reading for the truth about using a jade eye mask and whether they can battle puffiness once and for all.
De-puffing in luxury
Since the eye mask is really similar to a jade roller—which I’ve used copiously to help promote lymphatic drainage in my face—there’s not much to test out besides the application method.
“Naturally, jade as a stone has a low temperature, so it’s always cold,” explains Sonia Keuroghlian, a natural beauty blogger and wellness expert. “This gives it the benefit of [helping] constrict blood vessels in the skin, which then soothes puffiness.”
It constricts blood vessels in the skin, which then soothes puffiness.
If anything, laying this mask over your eye area first thing in the morning will wake you right up—it’s certainly cold on its own, no refrigeration needed (though that works too if you’re more hardcore). The brand says to leave it on as “long as you require,” so I lie half-down, half-sitting up (so I don’t fall back asleep again), and try to meditate but really just think about my to-do list for the day. After I’m sick of this—which, truth be told is about 5 minutes later—I remove the jade and peer into the closest mirror.
The mask helps with my a.m. puffiness somewhat (they’re less severe), but I still look…kind of tired. The good news is that there aren’t dark circles under my eyes, so whether by the circulation from the cold jade or a second of being up, I’ve nixed that. I chock up the fact that I’m not perfectly de-puffed because I didn’t devote a long enough period of time to chilling with the mask on.
Keuroghlian notes that the jade mask can have a similar effect as a hot-cold plunge when used in your skin-care routine. “By constricting the blood vessels, it closes your pores—so it’s good to apply your skin-care products after cleansing, then put the mask on to seal them in,” she says. “Your skin will cool and less product will evaporate, so more will stay on your skin. After this, your skin will be smoother for makeup application.”
I try it again in the middle of my skin-care routine, as Keuroghlian recommends, and notice that my complexion is smoother and my pores appear smaller (probably from the cool jade). The cooling sensation is certainly soothing, and does work some magic—so it’s not just eye candy to have on your nightstand.
Don’t worry, there are more ways to get woo-woo with your beauty routine. Here’s why you might want gemstones in your skin-care regimen, or you can try rolling your face with tourmaline à la Khloe Kardashian.
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