I Tried The Summer Fridays Overtime Mask & The Results Are As Fab As The Pumpkin Spice Scent
When trends come and go, it's what's inside the tube that matters, which is why I felt the need to bring you a Summer Fridays Overtime Mask review to see if this Instagram-breaking mask would live up to the hype of the brand's first release. ICYMI, The Jet Lag Mask has been my soothing, hydrating savior since March, and the cornflower blue aluminum tube has a place of honor on my skincare cabinet. I was more than curious to see what the brand would be releasing next. This time around, the tube is orange, the scent is pumpkin spice, and the goal is exfoliation — but trust me when I say, the results are just as good.
If you're not already in the know regarding the Summer Fridays craze, allow me to give you the scoop. The brand was started earlier this year by two bloggers, Marianna Hewitt of Life With Me and Lauren Gores Ireland of You & Lu. Combined, the two have amassed a total of 894.7K followers on Instagram, and they decided to put their influence to good use by launching their very own skincare brand. The photogenic packaging, coupled with vegan, cruelty-free ingredients, was, of course, an instant hit, and it seemed everyone was masking and posting, from those trendy girls you impulse-followed on Instagram to major celebs such as Kim Kardashian and Jessica Alba.
Fans of the brand have been buzzing about its latest launch — only the second product to date — and are breathing a sigh of relief that, yes, it's another mask. The Overtime Mask ($44, summerfridays.com) is totally unlike their first release, though, and the only similarities they share are an aluminum tube and the power to yield great results. While the Jet Lag Mask's goal was to hydrate, the Overtime Mask is all about exfoliating and brightening, and doing so safely and effectively.
The mask serves total fall vibes thanks to a pumpkin spice smell and festive orange shade, and noteable incredients include apricot seed powder, oat kernel protein, vitamin E, and pumpkin, natch. Pumpkin alone contains vitamins A, K, and E, making it ideal to hydrate while it exfoliates. Apricot seed powder is also a great pick to help with the exfoliating process, as it's far more gentle than harsh, synthetic exfoliants that often do skin more harm than good. Throw in some oat kernel protein to restore moisture and help with anti-inflammation, as well as vitamin E to assist with anti-aging and protecting skin from free radicals, and you've basically got the perfect recipe for bright, decongested skin, neatly packaged in a recyclable tube.
Did I mention there are no phthalates, surfactants, petrolatums, BHT, BHA, silicone, sulfates, parabens, synthetic dyes or fragrances? Again, it's also vegan, cruelty-free, and made in the USA, thank you very much.
I have to admit — when I first got my hands on the brand's Jet Lag Mask ($48, summerfridays.com), I didn't immediately get the hype. Wasn't a moisturizing mask just a very heavy moisturizer? My roommate, a massive Marianna Hewitt fan, had insisted to me that it would be nothing short of incredible, and when I applied it for the first time, it felt minty and nourishing, but I wasn't over the moon about it.
Fast-forward to a few days later, and I was convinced I couldn't live without it: I found my makeup applied more smoothly atop it, and my overall complexion looked more hydrated and bright. I regularly used extra product under my eyes as an eye mask, and told virtually everyone I could find that they needed to try it for themselves. After becoming all but obsessed, I had to limit myself to more sparing applications so as not to run out too quickly. Now that my tube is empty, though, I'll be rebuying ASAP, so of course I had high hopes that the Overtime Mask would join my Jet Lag Mask in its place of honor in my skincare cabinet.
On the night I had planned to put the Overtime Mask to the test, life decided to test me as well, gifting me with a rather prominent pimple:
Apologies for that, but you know what? I quickly realized it would be the ultimate opportunity to really see what this mask was made of. I needed some exfoliation, stat, so I took the photo above and started masking.
To use the mask, I massaged it into my skin in circular motions for about 60 seconds — at this point, I had already cleansed my face and dried it. When the 60 seconds were up, I let the mask sit on my skin for 10 minutes before washing it off and patting dry.
The first things I noticed about the mask was the color — a more vibrant orange than I had expected! — and the scent. I had feared the pumpkin spice-esque smell would be overwhelming, but it was actually rather soothing and pleasant, and gave me the fall facial vibes I didn't know I needed. I could definitely feel the exfoliants in the formula as I massaged it onto my skin, but in no way did it feel too harsh or abrasive. The product seemed to warm on my skin as I applied it, which felt especially luxurious. My goal in applying was not only to slough off the day's dead skin and brighten, but to pointedly exfoliate the lower half of my face in hopes that my pimple would be heal a bit faster.
Here's what the mask looked like on my skin, up close:
Finally, here's the before-and-after photo you've been waiting for, featuring dull, pimple-y pre-mask me versus a significantly more radiant me:
Even though the exfoliation was gentle and painless, I definitely saw the results. My skin overall looked very radiant and felt significantly smoother, and my pimple had been brought to the surface so that I could safely extract it, thank goodness. TBH, I already knew this mask was going to be good, but I really hadn't expected such a visible difference in my complexion's overall brightness, so I was really impressed. You're meant to follow the mask with your usual serums, moisturizers and the like, and I can easily see why the brand decided to make the Overtime Mask their second release, as the combination of its exfoliation followed by Jet Lag Mask's hydration is really all skin could ever ask for. The brand suggests using Overtime twice a week or whenever skin feels dull, and I'm already looking forward to playing with it again.
Overall, I can confidently say the Summer Fridays hype is legit, at least for me. Both products have given me unexpectedly great results, and I couldn't be happier to add the Overtime Mask to my skincare collection for when my congested skin needs to be cleared and brightened up. If the Jet Lag Mask's repeated selling out is any indication, it's likely this one won't be easy to snag, so I highly suggest you pick one up now before they're out of stock — your skin will definitely thank you.
