DIY Pore Strips

Out of curiosity, I saw a pin on Pinterest that led to Petit Elefant about how to make your own pore strips. There were only two ingredients:

1 tablespoon unflavored gelatin (this is about 1 packet in the 4-packet box of unflavored gelatin)
1 1/2- 2 tablespoons milk (any kind)

The directions seemed easy enough:

Measure 1 tablespoon of unflavored gelatin into a disposable container. (I'm not sure why she recommended a disposable container. I used a small glass bowl and the mixture washed away easily enough.)

Add 1-2 tablespoons of milk into the gelatin. Mix it quickly until you get a chunky consistency. Add more milk if you want the mixture smoother.

Microwave the gelatin for about 10-15 seconds. It will get creamier in the microwave. Stir that around and start applying it immediately to your face.

The warm mixture easily spreads on your face. There is more than enough mixture. In fact, I thought, "Why not add another layer now that this first layer is hardening?" Despite two layers of the mixture on my face, I still ended up throwing away about half of it because there was too much.

Let it dry on your face for about 15 or so minutes. Basically it is ready to be removed when you are unable to talk.

Peel off whatever you are able to get off your face. Do this until all the hardened mixture is removed from your face.

Maybe it's just me but this process felt like it was ripping off the top layer of my skin and any small hairs or whatever was connected to that mixture. I remember watching a movie with someone who was being waxed for the first time and the person screamed as the hardened wax was ripped off the person's skin. Yep...that's how it felt.

After that painful process that left my skin a lovely hue of bright red, I washed it with very cold water which felt good. About as good as the warmed mixture felt going on and before I knew how painful the removal of the hardened mixture would be.

At any rate, if your skin is like mine, it will feel soft and clean. I guess when you remove your epidermis the next layer feels pretty fresh and soft.

After trying this, I'm not sure I would do this again. The plus side is that the mixture is easy to make and apply; and it takes less than 30 minutes from start to finish. The negative side is that it rather painful to remove from your face...or maybe I just have a very low pain tolerance threshold. Very, very low.