Beauty: Problem skin? Time to mask up. . .

Whatever your skin’s condition or complaint, there’s a superhero mask ready to come to the rescue. Alice Ryan masks up

Amyza Skin Rejuvenating Glow Mask, £38, amyzaskin.com
The debut product from new British beauty brand Amyza Skin, this all-rounder of a mask takes ingredients inspiration from founder Maheen’s South Asian heritage. Velvety in texture and spa-like in scent, it blends botanicals naturally high in antioxidants, anti-inflammatories and anti-bacterials: saffron to soothe, turmeric to even tone, sandalwood to heal and hydrate and rose to cleanse and stimulate collagen. Brush onto cleansed skin, leave to dry and either wash straight off or, for a deeper exfoliation, dampen your fingers and gradually massage away.

fresh Floral Recovery Calming Mask, £25, Space NK, Trinity Street, Cambridge and fresh.com/uk
As someone with really sensitive skin - anything from mean weather to new beauty products can bring it out in blotches and bumps - I wouldn’t be without a pot of this calming mask in the bathroom cabinet. Formulated to reduce both redness and roughness, a bouquet of floral extracts (passionflower, peony, cornflower, cherry blossom) combine to calm; Vitamin C brightens; and squalene smoothes. Best left on overnight and gentle enough to deploy daily if needs be, it provides instant comfort.

POWDA Beauty Collagen & Rose Petals Mask, £9.99, powda.co
Scheduling an evening of self-care? This is the mask you want. Like all POWDA masks, the hero ingredient is powdered algae, loved for its high levels of antioxidants, amino acids and vitamins; combined here with plant collagen, dragon fruit and rose petals, it works to smooth, hydrate and plump up the skin. Mix the powdered mask with lukewarm water, apply with a spatula and leave to dry for 20 minutes or so. You’ll feel a cooling, tightening sensation, after which the mask becomes magically elastic and peels away.

Dr. Levy R3 Cell Matrix Mask, £69, cultbeauty.co.uk
We all want to age well - and this means-business mask promises to help our skin do just that. Reducing inflammation (Vitamins B3 and E), replenishing moisture (hyaluronic acids, Omegas 6 and 9) and rebooting stem cells (retinol, Vitamins A and C, ficus extracts), it’s highly active yet gentle enough to use under eyes as well as on the face, decolletage and backs of your hands. Results are both immediate and cumulative; even my witchy old hands looked plumper and perkier from first application.

Clarins Cryo-Flash Cream-Mask, £53, John Lewis & Partners, Grand Arcade, Cambridge and clarins.co.uk
If you’re keen to minimise pores and/or boost the buoyancy of your skin, this new cream mask from Clarins comes highly recommended. Using extracts of menthol and evening primrose to mimic cryotherapy, which uses the cold to firm, lift and smooth the skin, it works visible magic in the space of 10 minutes. Applied generously everywhere except around the eyes, the gel-cream formula is pleasantly icy on the skin, lowering its temperature by an impressive and effective 4°C. Skin is perked and pores are diminished - it really does do what it says on the pot.

Grace & Stella Energy Drink Face Mask, £18 for a pack of six, graceandstella.com
The sheet mask has been given an upgrade by Grace & Stella, the husband and wife-run brand known for its fun, effective and ethically sound formulas. Made from jelly-like hydrogel, designed to prevent product evaporation, the Energy Drink mask doses the dermis with super-hydrating glycerine and vegetable protein serum. Puffiness, redness and the appearance of fine lines are reduced in the space of a single 20-minute application; effects are short-term, yes, but no less impressive for that.

BEDEW Skin Pink Clay Glow Up Mask, £16.99, bedewskin.co.uk
Ideal for oily and breakout-prone skins, this is one of the best clay masks I’ve ever tried: unlike many, which seem to hoover up moisture and glow along with the oils and impurities, it manages to leave skin feeling and looking soft and supple as well as squeaky clean. Absorbent white and pink clays are combined with calming, comforting oat powder and hydrating, healing allantoin to strike the perfect skincare balance. Brilliantly, this mask also doubles as an overnight spot treatment.