Review: Etude House Play Therapy Soft Clay Pack (Pore & Sebum Care)

Ordered another tube of my Etude House Goodbye Pore Ever Pore Primer Essence and got this as a sample. I love clay masks for pore cleansing and refining and overall skin brightening. So far the Origins Active Charcoal Mask has been my go-to clay mask, but because it's quite steep in price I'm always interested in trying out other ones. I've tried Skinfood Egg White Pore Mask, which helped in refining my pores only after I've cleaned out most of the stuff with Origins. Etude House Wonder Pore Clay Clear Pack/Mask didn't do much for me. Innisfree Jeju Volcanic Pore Clay Mask is probably the most popular of clay masks in Korean skincare and I would say is the runner up to the Origins Active Charcol Mask.
Description (from koreadepart.com):

• Soft application and amazon clay remove excess sebum and impurities giving clear skin care
• Soft clay pack providing silky flawless skin after face wash
• CLay from Brazil amazon area with rich minerals provide skin protection which was used by natives
• After face wash, use toner to fix skin texture, apply gently onto face avoiding eyes and lip area. After 10-15 minutes rinse off gently with lukewarm water. Apply onto blackhead or pores to treat on small areas. Use 1-2 times a week

My impression:

I used this on my whole face, even though I don't think this sample was enough because I barely had enough to cover my forehead after I applied it on my lower face. I felt that this was dryer than the other clay masks that I've tried. Not sure if that makes a difference, but just something that I observed. 

After rinsing my face with water, I did find that my face felt smoother. That's about where it ends though, so maybe the smoothness was just some residue from the mask? The little plugged pores and irritating red bumps on my skin did not go away as they usually do with Origins. This clay mask also didn't brighten my face (which is basically taking away all the impurities that can't be taken away by daily cleanser) like Origins did. 

I didn't feel like it was drying on my face like Origins feels sometimes. I also didn't feel any irritation upon application. But I don't feel like this mask did much, if anything. If I had to choose a Korean cosmetic brand clay mask, I'd still go with Innisfree Jeju Volcanic Pore Clay Mask. 

Summary:

No irritation, no drying my face up feeling
No effect on my plugged pores and irritating red bumps
Did not brighten my skin
$8 for 150ml on koreadepart.com

Grade: 2/5 because it doesn't do anything but it doesn't irritate the skin either so you could give it a try if you happen to get a sample like me. I wouldn't buy it though

Value: 3/5 because it's pretty cheap...but I guess it's cheap for a reason

Repurchase? Nope. Will be sticking with Origins for now...