These Genius Toner Ice Cubes Are Like a Cold Plunge for Your Face

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When I interviewed a big group of my beauty editor friends for a story on the treatments and tricks they turn to when they feel a breakout coming, one of the most common answers I got was: ice. 

From de-puffing and boosting circulation to soothing inflammation and dialing down redness, ice has a whole host of skin-care benefits. And skin-care genius/NYC-based facialist Sofie Pavitt came along and considered: What if said ice was actually infused with ingredients that offered even more beneficial properties for skin?

I already mentioned the Sofie Pavitt Nice Ice Toner Pods among my favorite beauty discoveries from September, but because they’re such a smart innovation, I thought they deserved a more extensive writeup. The little individual pods are reminiscent of sauce packets you might get with fast food; they’re designed to be popped into the freezer and frozen solid overnight before using. While every rando on TikTok will claim they have an amazing DIY skin-care ice cube recipe they swear by, Pavitt’s development team actually tested hers to ensure that the ingredients within them would maintain stability and efficacy, even if they were to be frozen, thawed and re-frozen.

The pinkish, mini-hockey-puck-like discs are spiked with a combination of glycerin, niacinamide, green tea extract and ashwagandha that soothes and calms irritation, inflammation and redness. Like traditional toner, they work best when paired with reusable or disposable cotton rounds (since they can get a bit drippy as they melt on contact with your face). Simply pop one out, place it on a cotton round, then massage it all over skin, taking extra care with areas in need of extra de-puffing — I always linger near my undereyes — or soothing. As the toner cube melts, it transforms into a cool watery liquid (duh, that’s what ice does) and can then be patted into skin before proceeding with the rest of your routine.

Pavitt says there’s pretty much no skin type or condition that couldn’t benefit from the gentle-yet-effective ingredient lineup, and it’s one that should be easily tolerated, no matter your sensitivity level.

Lately, I’ve been struggling with a horrible bout of hormonal acne like nothing I’d experienced before, and these have gone a long way toward (gently) counteracting it. They were especially helpful when a dermatologist advised me to immediately stop all forms of exfoliation — and to even forgo sunscreen for the time being (!!!) — because my skin had clearly been so over-sensitized and was just in pure freak-out mode. (Yeah, it’s been fun.)

Just 30 seconds of using these has quickly become a highlight of my morning routine, calming both my skin and my mounting breakout-related anxiety in one quick step. 

Sofie Pavitt Nice Ice Toner Pods, $68 for 12, available here.

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