Chapped lips are my ultimate pet peeve. I can’t stand having my lips even slightly dry. Growing up in Boston, the sub-zero temps in the winter were prime for chapped lips. My first-ever beauty product was a tub of Blistex LipMedex from the drugstore. I’ve been taking care of my lips since forever, so not to boast, but, I do have soft lips that are rarely chapped. I exfoliate, I moisturize, I do it all. But for some reason, recently I had the worst chapped lips I’ve had in my life. They were cracked, even bleeding sometimes. More than annoying, it was painful. And it was driving me crazy because every product I used was somehow making it worse.

Until I used the Knesko Nanogold Repair Collagen Lip Mask ($19). I had heard of the buzzy Knesko face masks, beloved by seemingly every celebrity under the sun (Kim Kardashian, Chrissy Teigen, Jessica Alba–just to rattle off a few), but I never actually tried them. But then I had what was one of the best facials of my life at the Serrano Spa at the Yaamava’ Resort. My facialist totally transformed my skin from dull and dry to bright and revived. I asked her what products she recommended for me, and she said the Knesko face masks. I bought a few Knesko face and lip masks for a rainy day (super smart on my part!).

Knesko, Nanogold Repair Collagen Lip Mask — $19.00

Because fast forward to a few weeks ago during which my lips were experiencing a dry spell, the masks really came in handy. I think it had to do with the air quality in Los Angeles, but all I know is that every single balm, scrub or mask I used not only didn’t work–but was making it worse (the formulas just irritated the skin more, leaving my lips even more wizened). Then I remembered the Knesko masks in my bathroom drawer.

I put the lip mask on, left it on for about 30 minutes and then massaged the excess serum into my lips. Immediately they felt soothed, but I was blown away when I woke up the next morning and they were essentially repaired. I’ve rarely seen results that quickly from any type of mask, ever.

What my lips looked like after:

Now, let’s talk price. A single lip mask is $19, which isn’t exactly cheap. But I will say, a $19 mask that actually works is so much less expensive than a $8 one that doesn’t do anything. So I reached out to my facialist, Amanda Labrecque, the lead esthetician at the Serrano Spa to explain what specifically about the Knesko Nano Gold face masks sets them apart from others.

“Ingredients always come first for me,” explains Labrecque. “I love the high concentration of hyaluronic acid, niacinamide, and Vitamin E in the Nano Gold mask. But what really sets it apart is the mask itself. They’re made from biodegradable hydrogel (like those jelly masks you see on TikTok/IG), they hold 10 times more ingredients than your standard sheet mask, and react with your body temperature for maximum absorption.” So it’s really the high quality material of the physical mask that allows the high-end ingredients to maximize their effectiveness.

After the huge success with the lip mask, I tried out the Nanogold Repair Collagen Face Mask ($47), which works very similarly to the lip mask—but it’s pricier of course because it’s a full-face mask versus a smaller lip mask. I loved it because it comes in two parts—top and bottom—so you can easily mold it to your face for maximum coverage.