It’s crazy how the deeper you fall into the skincare rabbit hole, the more you find out how different things can be. Case in point: cotton pads. But, cotton pads are all the same, right? Wrong!

The texture, its ability to soak up product, how easy it may or may not fall apart… the more I experiment with various cotton pads, the more I find how alarmingly different yet similar they can be.

But it wasn’t until I gave in and got my hands on the Silcot did I begin to realize how important these things could be in the grander scheme of a skincare routine.

Claims:

“Skin care with cotton puff makes so much difference in moistness!

Do you think that using cotton puffs is wasteful?

Or pressing with hands is the same as using puffs?

A joint-study between Unicharm and external research agency on skin care methods shows patting with cotton puffs is MORE effective in penetrating toner into your skin more deeply than using only hands.

Secret of Uru-uru Sponge: Uru-uru sponge material

Can use for patting pack because the Uru-uru sponge reverse the toner efficiently back to your skin, even with ½ of your toner usage.

Skin softening moisture ingredients inside

It is made of smooth material so you can gently care for your skin.

Use for: Patting; cotton face pack.

Silcot Uru-uru Sponge has passed the international standard of “Oeko-Tex Standard 100” rank 1 (infant toiletry) so it is confirmed that it is even safe to use for babies.”

Ingredients:  Pulp, Cosmetic-use Rayon.

Size: 70mm x 58 mm (per side)*

*Can separate at dotted line and can use for 2 sheets.

Quantity: 40 sheets (80 pieces)

How to use:

1. Apply half of your usual toner quantity on the surface. Gently pat to apply toner on your skin.

2. After patting, you can add toner again and use it as a mask.

Additional tips:

1. Don’t apply too much product onto the cotton pad.

2. Rub pad together to spread toner across evenly.

3. Tear along the perforation to use it separately if you want.

My Skin Type: Sensitive (prone to redness), Combination, Acne-prone, Dehydrated

Unicharm Silcot Uruuru Sponge Facial Cotton Pads Review:

Now, here’s one of the many cool things I’ve found about these cotton pads: the packaging. Sure, it looks like a very run-of-the-mill rectangular cardboard packaging with some dark blue gradient and graphics… but, look a bit closer and attempt to close it after use and, well, it has a neat little locking mechanism! Being used to other cotton pad packaging without this ‘lock’, this definitely made me a little happier as it reduces the risk of external contamination (stray dust bunnies, etc).

In terms of the actual product, the cotton pads are designed in such a way that it can easily fit under the curves of the eyes, therefore, they are not cut straight like most; instead, as you can see here, there is a bit of a wave/curve pattern. Now, as I use these mostly to pat on toners/emulsions and not to “sheet mask” (aka the Chizu Saeki method), I don’t exactly reap these benefits, but I could certainly see this being very useful in that department!

Besides the wave/curve design, the cotton pads in the box are also folded, so you actually have two cotton pads attached via a perforated divide, which can be torn in order to use individually. If my description makes little sense, please do refer to the attached images instead!

It’s pretty cool, and once you tear it at the perforated divide, you may also notice that the cotton pads are quite stretchy. When drenched in liquids, it gets even stretchier, which makes it perfect to fit onto facial contours easily.

Texture-wise, the material gives off a very soft, sponge-like feel unlike other cotton pads. Said to be made of pulp and cosmetic-use rayon, it does look fibrous and rough to the n*ked eye, but when you touch it, it just comes off as very smooth and soft, and feels even smoother once covered in the liquid of your choice. Hence, it glides over the skin easily and does not induce much friction to the skin – which makes it ideal for those with sensitive skin!

However, I must say that my favorite way to use this is not to swipe it onto the skin. Instead, due to its sponge-like nature, I like using it to pat on products and it works pretty well in this regard (in my opinion, of course).

Now, you may wonder why you may even need a cotton pad to pat on product instead of just using your hands, right? Well, to be honest, I’ve only just been made aware of this technique after doing a bit of research on Niu Er, founder of the Taiwanese skincare brand, Naruko.

According to the “Beauty King” who looks younger than his years, he suggests using cotton pads to apply toner and moisturizer as applying moisturizer with just the fingertips may lead us to over-moisturize. In clearer words, he reasons that by using cotton pads, the risk of over-moisturizing oily areas and under-moisturizing dry patches could be avoided. This is because cotton pads aid in absorbing excess product.

However, while I have personally found this to be an insightful method, I don’t diligently adhere to this daily due to sheer laziness, but when I do, I always only choose to perform this method with only the Silcot cotton pads. While I do understand the rationality of Niu Er’s reasoning, I’m quite stingy and I’d hate to waste too much of my skincare products! Hence, this is where Silcot comes in.

As these cotton pads don’t absorb much product – instead, it pretty much just stays on the surface until ready to be patted onto the skin – it’s a win-win situation for me. Less product usage and less risk of too much/too little hydration! Additionally, I do think these cotton pads would be great for those luxury products (first treatment essences, anyone?) where you’d like to milk your money’s worth and avoid product wastage.

Now, in my opinion, I have found Niu Er’s technique to be a great method as sometimes I do tend to apply too much product, especially emulsions where once over-applied, may lead to my skin struggling to absorb any following skincare products I choose to layer on.

As a result, my skin would just end up looking dull and feel too heavy, oftentimes even giving off an oily sheen despite feeling dry inside (classic dehydration symptoms, yes) which later becomes exacerbated as the hours go on due to the high humidity levels in the tropical climate I live in.

So, yes, while it may not be that sustainable in the long run (it’s always cheaper to forgo cotton pads in favor of hands, after all!), this technique is definitely worth a try if you suffer from dehydration/combination skin.

All in all, I’d rate this at a good score of 4/5. I do love mostly everything about this box of cotton pads – from the packaging to the texture to the fact that after use, the cotton pads just become “thinner” and doesn’t flake off or leave “lint” on the skin – but it is on the pricier side considering the quantity given.

Also, I do find that while it exceeds in toner/essence/emulsion application, it does not work that well in makeup removal. So definitely docking marks to say that while I enjoy using it, it definitely still has its faults. But as always, YMMV!