I Tried Using Pepto Bismol As A Face Mask

Have we hit peak DIY beauty madness? Now that a Pepto Bismol face mask is the latest skincare hack to try, I'm pretty convinced that we've reached our limit. When it comes to mastering DIY beauty experiments, I’m probably near ready to receive a black belt by now, being that I’ve tried more recipes than I can even count. But despite my extensive DIY repertoire, trying and testing a homemade face mask is what really gets my motor going. Sure, whipping up guacamole and mushroom coffee face masks bring back fond memories of ridiculously gorgeous skin, but trying a Pepto Bismol mask was unlike any other challenge I’ve tried before.

Before you spit out your morning coffee, let me assure you that the Pepto Bismol facial is one of those beauty treatments people can’t seem to stop talking about. Trust me, editors and A-listers alike seem to love slathering the trusted intestinal medicine on their faces, so I knew from the get-go that this was one experiment I had to indulge. Here’s what happened when I slapped Pepto Bismol onto my face for seven days straight.

Day One: A Study In Pink

With a disastrous combination of stress and hormones on the horizon, my acne-ridden skin was in dire need of some rehab. But instead of retreating to my usual stash of drying lotions and sheet masks, I headed out to my local drugstore and invested in some pink gloopy goodness that costs less than five dollars.

Pepto Bismal, $5, Amazon

Boasting claims of tighter skin and fewer breakouts, the strange at-home beauty treatment definitely had it's advantages, especially since most face masks cost more than $20.

So using an old cosmetic brush, I applied a thin layer of formula to my face and left it there for 20 minutes. And while this pink sludge smells like all shades of weird, it surprisingly didn’t wreak chaos on my usually sensitive skin. Let’s just hope it stays that way.

Day Two: The Tighter, The Better

While my skin hasn’t transformed completely overnight, painting on a pink face hasn’t been hard to incorporate into my daily routine. Upon application, your face can get super tight, to the point where you really can’t talk. But the smooth and tighter feeling is kind of worth it. I guess.

I definitely got some Mommie Dearest vibes while waiting for the mask to work it’s magic, but don’t worry; I’m not scrubbing any floors anytime soon.

Day Three: No More Makeup

Slapping on some Pepto for the past few days actually left my skin with a rosy tint (you can definitely see it in this photo), so applying some foundation to conceal any bubblegum residue seemed like a good idea in theory. However, instead of hiding those blackheads and blemishes, my foundation made any angry pimples on my face even more pissed off. It was back to no makeup and more Pepto facials for me.

Day Four: Spot Treatment

"Pepto-ing" definitely gets a gold star for leaving your skin buttery smooth, but I wouldn’t say it had transformed my skin altogether -- at least, not by day four. Being that PB is a derivative of salicylic acid, I was hoping that it would tackle some breakouts bubbling up beneath my skin, but alas, there really hadn't been any noticeable changes.

To shake things up a bit, I decided to use my pepto as a spot treatment to combat any flaring zits obnoxiously sitting on top of my face. If my salicylic-acid-filled Mario Badescu Drying Lotion could do it, I was curious to know if my handy (and less expensive) Pepto could do it better.

Applying a generous layer of pepto to a large breakout, I left my special spot treatment on overnight, eager to see the results come the next day. And while the Pepto Bismol helped my zit dry out a bit come the next morning, it was still pretty noticeable on my face.

Mario Badescu Drying Lotion, $17, Amazon

Day Five: Longer Time Spent

Upping the stakes a bit, I decided to leave my mask on a bit longer to see if it changed the results in any way. Having changed my wait time to 30 minutes this time around, my face felt definitely tighter than before.

I wouldn't say that waiting longer improved my skin, but leaving this bad boy on my face has definitely discouraged me from picking my zits.

Day Six: Liquid Blush

I’ll admit that my attention span wears pretty thin, so growing somewhat bored of my Pepto facial, I decided to see if Pepto Bismol had any other beauty uses that I could benefit from.

Sites like Refinery29 reported on using Pepto Bismol as a budget blush trick, so you bet I was happier than ever to give my powder and liquid blushers a break, and bring some pink warmth onto my cheeks.

Now, several layers of Pepto will definitely give your skin that romantic flush, but it left my skin drier and flakier than a snake's. Maybe next time, I won’t layer it as much, even though this was pretty much the only way I could get that noticeable color.

Day Seven: Is It Over Yet?

By now, my face was getting used to the everyday pink treatment, but the leftover pink sheen is starting to drive me nuts. While mental images of a pink-faced monkey immediately come to mind, my sister and I have decided that Pepto faces look like something out of a Doctor Who episode.

Remember the "Crimson Horror," fellow Whovians?

Should You Go Pepto?

While I can say that I’ve tried yet another DIY beauty treatment, I can’t necessarily say that this has revolutionized my skin in any way. Sure the daily use of the Pepto formula left my skin tight and smooth, but I didn’t get any irresistible glow after seven days.

However, once you get past the sickly sweet smell, your skin may really suck this up. Plus, it’s a lot cheaper than most face masks on the market; less than five dollars a bottle is pretty hard to resist. Just be wary of (or maybe excited about?) the pink tint that comes with Pepto-ing. That stuff really sticks.

Images: Courtney Leiva (13), Giphy (2)