In less than a minute, you’ll know to pass on or snatch it up.

Sheet masks are all about putting the moisture back into the skin. But like all promises, making sure to delivery on them is what matters most. After a recent study1 dispelled some truths, we wanted to share with people the problems and solutions so at a glance, you can know what’s going to work for you.

Essence weight matters a lot

Within the study, the main issue with sheet masks are that they’re not moisturizing the skin. One problem we found with sheet masks was the weight – or how much essence is in them. The skin needs time to absorb enough product before it dries out of the mask, and a lot of face masks weight below 20 grams. Try to always see beyond packaging, and peek at product weight.

Cotton is good – but rayon matters too

Product essence needs time to get into the skin, and a sheet mask to not wick out. When a mask has enough essence, the best way it won’t dry out is from not using just cotton. When blended with another fiber (we did rayon), a sheet mask can stay on the face for even a half an hour before drying out – and usually you get a little leftover essence to spread down the neck or on the hands for a bonus. There you have it, just a couple ways to know if anything is going to be good enough to seep into the skin and be effective.