I haven’t been afflicted with pimples in a really long time (not all is bad with pregnancy hormones) so when three of them decided to show up at the same time, it was time to bring out the big guns. I had these patches stored for something like this and now was the time to try them.
The COSRX Master Patch Blemish Covers are small, see-through circular patches that you are meant to put over an acne spot and leave overnight in order to eliminate the pimple. They come in three different sizes, and they are well designed because I’ve used all three and they fit properly. I did not feel like I needed additional sizes.
I’ve used a different brand of patches before and I felt like if I moved my face too much, the patch would unstick and fall off. The COSRX patches, however, stick to the skin like chewing gum sticks to the bottom of your shoe: unless you go and purposefully remove it, it’s not coming off not matter how much you shake it.
These patches were comfortable to wear. and quite discrete. You might even get away with using them during the day, if you go bare faced (makeup over top would not look good, they are still relatively thick). But the best part about them is that they work.
I used them overnight like instructed (over cleansed skin, with no product) and the pimples, though still there, were a lot smaller by the next morning. They probably needed patches two nights in a row to completely disappear, but given that they were a lot tinier, I could live.
Looking at the packaging, something that struck me was the “drug-free” disclaimer. I like drugs in my skincare. A little bit of salicylic acid would be nice for pimples. But this contains nothing. I’ll list the ingredients, but honestly they are not relevant, there are no actives in this. Being that it is so, I had to research how this thing works.
COSRX Master Patch Blemish Cover Ingredients: Cellulose Gum, Styrene Isoprene Styrene Block Copolymer, Polyisobutylene, Petroleum Resin, Polyurethane Film, Liquid Paraffin, Tetrakis Methane.
These are what is called hydrocolloid patches. Drug-free, indeed, they work by absorbing the fluid from a pimple, and the moisture from the patch accelerates the healing process.
I’m still curious to try patches with salicylic acid – and see how they compare – but I can’t deny that these work. At 6,95€ for 24 patches, these are worth having just in case.
