Instead of relying on evaporation, it uses two physiological coolants, methyl diisopropyl propionamide and menthyl lactate, to create a strong icy sensation, wrapped in a bear-shaped pouch with 0.3 percent centella and a 33 ml fill.
A playful, genuinely icy novelty mask that oily and combination skin will enjoy on a hot day. As a calming cica treatment for sensitive skin, though, it contradicts itself: alcohol sits fifth, and lavender, tea tree, a menthol derivative and fragrance join the 0.3 percent centella. Buy it for the chill and the bear, not for soothing a reactive complexion.
SNP's US store lists nine reviews for this bear-shaped mask, and larger retail counts could not be confirmed. Our conclusions therefore come mainly from the published formula, including its declared 0.3 percent centella and its cooling agents.
The case for it
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The studies behind the evidence row
As a maskNot judged: what a mask is for — works within its wear time, benefit outlasts the mask, comes off cleanly — cannot yet be measured from the ingredient list (only intensity without injury can).
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The coldness you feel when you bite into a mint has nothing to do with temperature. Menthol and its chemical cousins bind to a receptor on sensory nerves called TRPM8, the same one that fires when skin meets genuinely cold air or water. The brain receives the signal and reports 'cold', even though nothing has actually cooled down. The discovery of this receptor contributed to the 2021 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, and the cosmetics industry has used the trick for decades. SNP's Ice Bear Cica Mask is built around it.
The pouch is cut in the shape of a translucent green gummy bear, and the mask lives up to its icy name. Two cooling agents appear near the end of the list: methyl diisopropyl propionamide, a synthetic coolant developed to give a long-lasting, clean chill without a strong minty smell, and menthyl lactate, a gentler menthol derivative. Within a minute of application, the sensation of cold starts building, and on a hot, sticky day it is undeniably satisfying.
The product also carries a second promise: calming sensitive skin, thanks to centella asiatica. SNP declares 3,000 ppm, or 0.3 percent, of centella extract, listed ninth. Centella is one of the best-studied soothing botanicals, and purslane, peony root, aloe and two types of chamomile support the calming message. On paper, it is a cica mask.
The problem is what else the essence contains. Alcohol sits fifth, above the centella. Lavender and tea tree extracts appear in the middle of the list, both aromatic plants with a documented record of causing irritation or allergy in some people. Menthyl lactate itself can sting reactive skin. German chamomile is a recognised allergen for those sensitised to daisy-family plants. And fragrance closes the list. For robust skin, this combination is fine. For the sensitive, stressed skin the pouch describes, it is a stack of potential triggers, and the vivid cooling sensation can mask early signs of irritation until the sheet is removed.
The rest of the formula is solid enough. Water, dipropylene glycol and glycerin form a good humectant base, and PEG/PPG copolymers, dimethicone and a silicone-PEG hybrid give the essence a silky, slippery feel that makes the sheet glide on and sit smoothly. The pouch holds 33 ml, more than many sheet masks, so the sheet is well-soaked and there is plenty left for the neck. There are no oils, but PEG-60 hydrogenated castor oil and glyceryl caprylate put it on the avoid list for people managing fungal acne.
In use, the Ice Bear mask is fun. The chill is strong enough to make you gasp slightly on a hot afternoon, the minty-herbal scent is fresh, and the bear-shaped packaging makes it a hit as a gift or a novelty. After fifteen minutes, the skin looks refreshed and feels hydrated, and oily skin in particular appreciates the lightweight finish. The cold sensation fades within a few minutes of taking the sheet off.
It is important to be clear about what the cold does and does not do. It does not reduce inflammation, shrink pores or calm redness in a lasting way. For people with rosacea, the sensation of coolness can feel relieving in the moment, but alcohol, aromatic extracts and fragrance are among the common triggers for flares, so the net effect may be negative. For people with healthy, oily or combination skin who simply feel hot, it is a pleasant sensory experience with some hydration.
It also helps to use it thoughtfully. Keeping it away from nights with retinoids or exfoliating acids avoids stacking irritants. Following with a fragrance-free moisturiser replaces moisture the alcohol evaporates. Refrigerating the pouch adds real cold on top of the neurological kind, which is arguably the most effective way to use it after sun or exercise, provided the skin is not burned.
Timing matters too. The cooling agents are most welcome after exercise, a commute in summer heat or a long day in a stuffy office, when the face feels flushed and tired. In winter, when skin is drier and more easily irritated, the alcohol becomes more of a liability and the chill less of a treat, so this is best treated as a seasonal mask.
There is a broader lesson here about cica branding. Centella has become shorthand for 'gentle', and many products lean on the word while including ingredients that sensitive skin handles badly. Reading the full list, rather than the headline, is the only reliable way to tell a genuinely calming product from a cooling one with a calming label.
On value, the mask sits in the middle. SNP's US store lists a ten-sheet box at thirty dollars, three dollars a sheet, with single pouches also available. The larger 33 ml fill and the novelty of the cooling agents justify part of that, but for the price, sensitive-skin shoppers can find calmer, fragrance-free cica masks. Only nine reviews appear on SNP's store, and larger retailer counts could not be verified.
Who should buy it, then? Fans of cute packaging, people with oily or combination skin who love a cold, refreshing ritual in summer, and anyone looking for a fun, novelty sheet mask to share. Who should skip it? Precisely the people the pouch addresses: sensitive, rosacea-prone or eczema-prone skin, which will do better with a fragrance-free, alcohol-free soothing product.
The bear on the pouch promises ice, and it delivers. Just do not mistake the cold for calm.
The hero actives that drive this product's performance.
| Ingredient | Function | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Centella Asiatica Extract (3,000 ppm (0.3%)) | The 'cica' in the name, declared at 0.3 percent and placed ninth; it supplies the calming triterpenoids behind the soothing claim, though alcohol and several aromatic extracts in the same essence work against it. | Not yet assessed |
| Methyl Diisopropyl Propionamide & Menthyl Lactate | Two physiological cooling agents that trigger the skin's cold receptors, producing the icy sensation that gives the Ice Bear mask its name without actually lowering skin temperature. | Not yet assessed |
| Glycerin & Dipropylene Glycol | The main humectants in a generously filled 33 ml pouch, keeping the essence hydrating despite the alcohol listed fifth. | Established mechanism for Dehydration · established mechanism |
| Portulaca Oleracea Extract | Purslane, a staple of Korean 'calming' formulas, adds antioxidant and anti-redness support alongside the centella. | Not yet assessed |
| Melaleuca Alternifolia (Tea Tree) Extract | A small amount of tea tree extract lends a fresh, clarifying note, but together with lavender it raises the irritation potential for reactive skin. | Not yet assessed |
Ingredient standings describe the active at treatment-level doses and vehicles; this product's own condition grades weigh its actual formula.
Water, Dipropylene Glycol, Glycerin, PEG/PPG-17/6 Copolymer, Alcohol, Dimethicone, PEG-8, Bis-PEG-18 Methyl Ether Dimethyl Silane, Centella Asiatica Extract, PEG-60 Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Butylene Glycol, Ammonium Acryloyldimethyltaurate/VP Copolymer, Carbomer, Paeonia Suffruticosa Root Extract, 1,2-Hexanediol, Chamomilla Recutita (Matricaria) Flower Extract, Lavandula Angustifolia (Lavender) Extract, Melaleuca Alternifolia (Tea Tree) Extract, Glyceryl Caprylate, Potassium Hydroxide, Cellulose Gum, Hydrogenated Lecithin, Ethylhexylglycerin, Sodium Palmitoyl Sarcosinate, Portulaca Oleracea Extract, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract, Anthemis Nobilis Flower Extract, Methyl Diisopropyl Propionamide, Menthyl Lactate, BHT, Disodium EDTA, Fragrance
treatment
AM & PM
Follow with a fragrance-free moisturizer to replace what the alcohol evaporates; keep it well away from nights with retinoids or exfoliating acids if your skin is easily irritated.
An immediate, strong cooling sensation during wear and a refreshed look afterwards. The chill fades within minutes of removal and there is no cumulative calming effect.
The defining feature of this essence is its use of physiological cooling agents. Menthol-like compounds, including menthyl lactate and the synthetic coolant methyl diisopropyl propionamide, activate TRPM8, a cold-sensitive ion channel on sensory neurons that normally responds to temperatures below about 25 degrees Celsius. Activation produces a perception of cold without significantly altering skin temperature, and the effect is dose-dependent and transient. These agents can provide subjective relief from itch or heat, but at higher levels, or on compromised skin, menthol derivatives can themselves cause stinging. Centella asiatica extract, declared at 3,000 ppm, contains triterpenoids such as asiaticoside and madecassoside that have shown anti-inflammatory and barrier-supporting activity in laboratory and small clinical studies, although effective levels in those studies were typically higher. Purslane, peony root, aloe and chamomile extracts add antioxidant and mild anti-inflammatory activity. Counterbalancing these, ethanol listed fifth can transiently disrupt barrier lipids and increase stinging in reactive skin, while lavender and tea tree oils and extracts contain terpenes such as linalool and terpinen-4-ol whose oxidation products are recognised contact allergens. German chamomile can cross-react in people allergic to Asteraceae plants, and added fragrance is a leading cause of cosmetic contact dermatitis. Humectants such as glycerin and dipropylene glycol, together with the sheet's occlusion, provide the hydration benefit. PEG-60 hydrogenated castor oil and glyceryl caprylate are fatty-acid-derived ingredients commonly avoided by people with Malassezia folliculitis.
Cooling agents can give genuine short-term comfort for heat or itch, and clinicians sometimes suggest menthol-containing products for that purpose in intact skin. However, for patients with rosacea, eczema or reactive skin, the standard advice is to avoid alcohol, fragrance and essential-oil-derived extracts such as lavender and tea tree, all of which appear in this mask. The sensation of cold can mask early irritation, so a patch test on the jawline is sensible before full-face use. For sensitive skin, clinicians generally recommend fragrance-free, alcohol-free products with ingredients such as centella, niacinamide or ceramides used consistently. This mask is better suited as an occasional cooling treat for resilient, oily or combination skin than as a calming treatment.
For extra chill, keep the pouch in the fridge beforehand. Cleanse and tone, then position the sheet over the face using the eye and mouth openings as a guide. Leave it on for ten to twenty minutes; remove it sooner if it stings rather than cools. Pat the leftover essence into the face and neck, then apply a fragrance-free moisturizer. Two or three uses a week is enough. Avoid pairing it with retinoid or exfoliant nights, and do not apply it over sunburned or broken skin.
At thirty dollars for ten 33 ml sheets on SNP's US store, about three dollars each, this is a mid-priced sheet mask. The larger fill, the cooling technology and the bear-shaped packaging add appeal, and for people who love a cold, refreshing mask, the price is fair. For the sensitive skin it is marketed to, value is poorer, because the formula's alcohol and aromatic extracts may cause irritation, and gentler fragrance-free cica masks are widely available at a similar or lower price.
Oily and combination skin that loves an icy, refreshing sensation in hot weather will enjoy this, as will anyone looking for a fun, giftable mask in bear-shaped packaging.
Sensitive, rosacea-prone or eczema-prone skin should pass despite the cica label, because of the alcohol, lavender, tea tree and fragrance. Dry skin and anyone with fungal acne will also find better options.
Ready to try SNP Ice Bear Cica Mask?
Buy at Amazon ♥A generously soaked sheet with a slippery, slightly silky essence thanks to the dimethicone and PEG polymers.
A fresh, herbal-minty fragrance with a lavender edge.
Translucent green pouches die-cut in the shape of a gummy bear, sold singly or in a ten-count box.
A distinct icy chill starts within a minute and builds while the sheet is on; some sensitive faces notice tingling or stinging from the alcohol and aromatic extracts.
One sheet per session; ten sheets last around a month at two or three uses weekly.
summer
SNP likes a gimmick, and its Ice Bear line, packaged in pouches shaped like translucent gummy bears, launched around 2021 with a cooling concept to match the name. The cica version is pitched at stressed, sensitive skin.
SNP, established by SD Biotechnologies in 2012, is a high-volume Korean sheet-mask maker that frequently releases playful novelty lines such as its bear-shaped Ice Bear masks. The brand has not published product-level clinical studies.
A mask that feels icy is actually cooling the skin down.
The coolants activate cold-sensing nerve receptors; the sensation is real but skin temperature barely changes.
Cica masks are always safe for sensitive skin.
This one contains alcohol, lavender, tea tree and fragrance, which can irritate the very skin cica is meant to calm.
The stronger the tingle, the better the mask is working.
Tingling reflects coolants and irritants on nerve endings, not a treatment effect.
It contains two cooling agents, methyl diisopropyl propionamide and menthyl lactate, that stimulate the skin's cold receptors. The chill is a sensation rather than a real drop in temperature.
Despite its soothing claim, it contains alcohol, lavender, tea tree, a menthol derivative and fragrance, so sensitive or rosacea-prone skin may sting. A patch test is strongly advised.
SNP declares 3,000 ppm, or 0.3 percent, of centella asiatica extract, listed ninth in the essence.
It may feel refreshing on warm, intact skin, but the alcohol and aromatic extracts make it a poor choice for sunburn.
No. It includes PEG-60 hydrogenated castor oil and glyceryl caprylate, both commonly avoided by people with fungal acne.
They share a cooling base; the cica version adds 0.3 percent centella plus lavender and tea tree, while the hyaluronic version adds trehalose, witch hazel, bamboo juice, sodium hyaluronate and ceramide NP.
Recurring themes our editors read across retailer reviews of this product — summaries in our words, not quotations, and not a substitute for your own patch test.
Very cooling
Cute packaging
Can sting sensitive skin