(Skin)
Brightening Face Masks That’ll Keep You Glowing All Winter Long
What dullness?
This time of year, all is merry and bright. Well, maybe not your skin, which can be quite common during the colder months. “Winter dullness comes from a combination of environmental stressors,” says Ildi Pekar, celebrity esthetician and founder of I. Pekar Skincare. “When the temperatures drop, the air loses humidity, and that lack of moisture pulls hydration from our skin. Indoors, heaters make it worse; they dry out the air even more, which compromises our skin barrier and leads to flakiness and dullness.”
Another often-overlooked factor is sunlight. “We naturally get less vitamin D in the winter, and vitamin D plays a role in healthy skin function and cell turnover,” Pekar explains. “Yes, supplements help internally, but sunlight on the skin also supports vitamin D synthesis. When we lose that, our skin can look more tired and less radiant.”
Luckily, brightening face masks can help. Whether you opt for a sheet mask or rinse-off, they’re one of the quickest ways to revive winter skin. “They help remove dry, dead cells that make the complexion look dull and uneven,” Pekar says. “By boosting cell turnover, hydrating the skin, and delivering targeted actives, a good brightening mask can instantly improve your glow. Think of them as a reset button. Your skin looks fresher, smoother, and more hydrated after just one use.”
There are plenty of classic, time-trusted brightening ingredients to look for. Pekar recommends vitamin C, niacinamide, licorice root extract, honey, aloe vera, turmeric, papaya and pumpkin enzymes, and kojic acid. “A brightening mask should deliver visible results,” Pekar says. “Your skin should look more radiant, plump, and hydrated after one treatment. Depending on the active ingredients, you may feel a little tingle or warmth. That can be completely normal, as long as it doesn’t feel uncomfortable or irritating.” The esthetician says to look for formulas that don’t just exfoliate, but nourish skin. “Brightening should never come at the cost of barrier health,” she adds.
When using a face mask, always following the instructions on the label. If your skin tolerates exfoliation well, aim for using a brightening mask once or twice a week. “The real key is consistency,” Pekar says.
Give these brightening masks a try to stay glowing all winter long.
Accurately named, this mask will grant you dewy skin in a flash — in five minutes, to be precise. Loaded with 25% AHAs and PHAs, it retexturizes, improves clarity, brightens, and minimizes fine lines, wrinkles, and pores. It also contains aloe vera to calm, hyaluronic acid to hydrate, and Scandinavian rowanberry extract to nourish.
“You apply it at night, go to sleep, and wake up with hydrated, plumped, glowing skin,” Pekar says of this mask from her line. “I formulated it to work with the skin’s natural nighttime healing cycle, where real magic happens.”
Turns out turmeric and cranberry make for a delicious combo for your skin. Loaded with antioxidants and resveratrol, the crushed cranberry seeds provide physical exfoliation, leaving skin smooth and glowing. Turmeric is also chock full of antioxidants, plus is an age-old brightening ingredient. The rinse-off mask takes 10 minutes and can be used up to three times a week.
Great for on-the-go, this single-use sheet mask can be stashed in a suitcase or gym bag. It spotlights mandarin extract, which is rich in vitamin C, to leave skin looking radiant and healthy. Made from coconuts, the biocellulose gel mask sticks to your skin and won’t slip around.
Two types of vitamin C make for a double dose of brightening with this rinse-off mask. There’s also fruit AHAs to gently resurface skin, leading to smoother texture, and Japanese beautyberry to infuse skin with antioxidants to protect it from free radical damage, which can lead to fine lines.
Of course your skin will be feeling fancy and radiant after treating it to a hydrogel sheet mask infused with 24k gold and damask rose extract, which improve circulation and deliver antioxidants, respectively. There’s also licorice root extract for glow, plus silk amino acids and Centella asiatica to nourish.
Bring tired skin back to life with this rinse-off mask that’s like a power nap for your face. White willow bark and pomegranate enzymes contain BHAs to gently exfoliate, while calendula, arnica, and rose otto reveal radiance. Additionally, the multitasking mask refines pores with pink clay, meadowsweet, alfalfa, lemongrass, and bergamot, while skin is smoothed and softened with beet root extract, barley, olive oil, elderberry, and cassava tapioca.
Get your beauty sleep with this overnight mask and you’ll wake up to brighter, hydrated, and nourished skin. It took over two years and 40 trial products to nail the final formula. Gardenia fruit extract, shea butter, kokum butter, and babassu oil made bedtime so much better.
“A beautiful professional product with natural enzymes that brighten instantly,” Pekar says. “It smells delicious and leaves the skin radiant.”
