Laneige Water Sleeping Mask

Korean makeup and skin care seem to be the new hot thing right now, and with its focus on fresh, dewy skin, I can't blame Western markets for wanting a part of that! I used to order Korean beauty products through online retailers like Sasa and just hope for the best, but now Sephora is bringing in Korean brands like AmorePacific, Too Cool For School, and Laneige. That means I can play with products in store and buy with a little more confidence, knowing I can return it if it doesn't work out. One thing I'm definitely not letting go of though, is the new Laneige Water Sleeping Mask!

I had heard a lot of buzz about Laneige's sleeping masks and packs in the past, so I was really excited to receive the Water Sleeping Mask through Influenster. This overnight mask promises to refresh and revitalize skin while you sleep, while also soothing with Sleepscent, a blend of orange flower, rose, and sandalwood scents.

Laneige Water Sleeping Mask with included spatula

It even looks relaxing, with the colours of the periwinkle jar and pastel mint green product inside. It has a lightweight gel texture that glides over the skin easily and absorbs quickly into my normal/dry skin. While I find that the hydration level is just right for my cheeks, my drier forehead area felt like it needed a second application of the Sleeping Mask or another product on top. If you found Clinique Moisture Surge Overnight Mask to be a bit heavy for your skin type, this one might be just right for you.


I know some people won't like that Laneige included fragrance in this product, but I personally really like the Sleepscent. It's a very pretty, inoffensive floral, and almost lavender-like in the way that it makes me feel relaxed and ready to fall asleep. In the morning, my skin feels nicely hydrated and soft.

I took Water Sleeping Mask in a small jar to apply on my flight to Hawaii, and I felt like it really helped hydrate my skin against the dry cabin air. Plus the soothing scent helped me relax just a bit more in my cramped economy seat! I took an overnight flight back to Vancouver and was so tired I nodded off without applying this; my skin was noticeably drier and almost on the verge of an eczema flareup when I got home D: Lesson learned: put on my in-flight skin care right away, before I get a chance to fall asleep.

The ingredients list includes humectants such as glycerin and trehalose to attract and bind water to the skin. I couldn't find much information about the plant extract and amino acid ingredients in terms of topical skin care, and I'm not sure of the effectiveness of any antioxidants, given the jar packaging. Interestingly enough, I did find a study abstract indicating that Salicornia herbacea extract may have antioxidative and whitening effects though.

Overall, I like Laneige Water Sleeping Mask as part of a pre-bedtime pampering to hydrate skin. This works as a summer moisturizer for normal skin or year-round if you're a bit oily, and I really like it for airplane flights. Check it out at Sephora and give it a whiff -- you might just fall in love with the scent like I did.


Available at Sephora: $30 CAD / 80 ml

Ingredients: water, butylene glycol, cyclopentasiloxane, glycerin, cyclohexasiloxane, trehalose, Prunus armeniaca (apricot) fruit extract, beta-glucan, Castanea sativa (chestnut) seed extract, Salix nigra (willow) bark extract, hydroxypropyl bispalmitamide mea, Salicornia herbacea extract, 1,2-hexanediol, glycogen, glutamic acid, dimethicone, dimethicone/vinyl dimethicone crosspolymer, dimethiconol, lysine hcl, magnesium sulfate, mannitol, manganese sulfate, serine, sucrose, stearyl behenate, citrulline, alanine, arginine, ammonium acryloyldimethyltaurate/vp copolymer, ethylhexylglycerin, inulin lauryl carbamate, zinc sulfate, caprylyl glycol, threonine, polyglyceryl-3 methylglucose distearate, polysorbate 20, propanediol, pca, histidine hcl, carbomer, tromethamine, disodium edta, phenoxyethanol, fragrance, blue 1 (CI 42090)