Sleep Mask | Eye Mask for Sleeping Men/Women Better Than Silk Our Luxury Blackout Contoured Eye Masks are Comfortable - This Sleeping mask Set Includes Carry Pouch and Ear Plugs (No Scent)

As a chronic insomniac with very specific conditions under which I can both fall asleep and stay asleep, a good sleep mask is imperative to me. I've used a sleep mask for years and it was, up until I discovered the Bedtime Bliss sleep mask, the usual flat sleep mask with a thin elastic band to secure it...y'know, the kind that flattens your eyelashes, doesn't fit right over your nose so it lets light in, and has the flimsy elastic band that eventually stretches out and doesn't hold the mask in place. Yeah, that kind. Well, the Bedtime Bliss sleep mask is a whole different animal. The molded shape doesn't squish your eyes or flatten your eyelashes. In fact, you can even open your eyes while you're wearing it and, because it's molded, it fits over your nose so you don't get light infiltration from there. Plus, there is a wider, adjustable (with Velcro closure) elastic strap to hold it in place all night long. It lets in a little light here and there if you're in a really REALLY bring environment but otherwise it is lights out! I'm on my second one now (the first one finally kicked the bucket after three years of nightly use) and, since Bedtime Bliss started using the bamboo material, it's even better and softer than the previous model. I've never had a problem with the Velcro getting stuck in my hair or with the elastic band loosening on me in the night. For all the insomniacs, night owls, swing shift workers, and the rest of you who love a good quality sleep mask, look no further!

Lovely soft mask, feels comfortable on the face. The velcro clasp at the back is soft and does not feel like a hard bump. When I first received this eyemask I wore it without washing it because I had come home at night and it was there, and it had no smell. But I woke up with a bad headache, and was not able to get rid of the pain till the afternoon, so I think it was eye-ache, rather than headache. I washed the mask and dried it, but even on the second wearing a couple of days later, I still had another headache. I washed it again, and I loosened the strap a little more, and I have worn it now a number of times and had no headache. Either the headaches I had were coincidence with the first two wearings of the mask, or there really was some residual material in its manufacture that affected me (or perhaps it was too tight). In any case, I mentioned the headache to the owner of the company that makes(?) or distributes these masks after the first night of wearing the mask, and he was apologetic, extremely helpful, and refunded my costs immediately without waiting to hear whether washing the mask made any difference and without my asking for a refund. I feel that was both responsible and very fair.And now that I don't have to worry about headaches, I can report that the mask does block light much better than many other masks I've tried. And I like very much the fact that you can blink your eyes freely and not have the eyes clamped against the mask - for me this is extremely commendable - I've never had another mask that allowed that and was still effective. I still have a very slight problem in that the mask slips around a bit at night and so sometimes leaves a little gap between the nose and cheek letting in a bit of light, but this may be because the strap is not at the right tightness yet, so I don't want to jeopardize the potential benefits of the mask to someone with a larger head than mine by claiming this as a defect. My head is apparently tiny compared with every other human (I cannot buy a hat that fits me well - they're all too big), so the mask's face shape is probably perfect for someone with a non-tiny head.

*** UPDATED 7/28/2015 ***I've used this now for a few months. I'll urge you to ALWAYS HAND WASH this item. It says so on the box, but I figured it would handle the drier on low heat for 15 minutes (how I deal with Under Armor items). BIG MISTAKE.The "fabric" of this item is bonded to the formed material that gives it its shape. I don't know if it was detergent, heat of the drier or perhaps both, but the fabric separated. It was still usable, but you could feel it. I'm getting another one and posting a warning to FOLLOW THE WASHING INSTRUCTIONS. If you need it every night and aren't likely to wash it first thing when you wake up so it had time to air dry, get TWO and rotate usage.Pros - It's comfortable on the face and does a decent job blocking out light...doesn't rub against the eyelids. While it is molded to fit the face, how well it blocks light around the nose depends on how closely your face fits the pre-conceived shape after which it is modeled.Cons - The wide elastic strap (with Velcro...I didn't see that coming) isn't that comfortable. I can't run the strap normally (like you would wear eyeglasses) because it will grind against top of my ears. That means I have to wear it over outside of the ears...which just feels odd. I did eventually get used to it AND the strap gets seems to get "softer" with use.I initially gave this 3 stars, but overall, I'm bumping it up to 4 stars. It's a good product....could be better, but well-worth the price. JUST BE SURE TO HAND WASH ONLY!Arrived in good condition.