Clarelle Hydrocolloid Roll
★★★★★ 4.7 out of 5 (10 reviews) Read them
With Clarelle I just snip whatever I need. Two months in and the roll barely looks used.Theresa O.
Clarelle is a 2 in x 5 ft roll of thin, matte hydrocolloid tape that you cut to the shape of the spot. If you already use pre-cut dots and keep finding the circles miss the edges, this is the same familiar material sold as tape instead of a tray of circles.
- ✓Cut the piece to match the spot, including one long strip for a cluster along the jaw that four round dots would leave gaps around
- ✓It turns cloudy white as it fills, absorbing fluid from the surface of the spot, so you can see when it is time to swap it
- ✓One roll is 2 in x 5 ft (5 cm x 1.5 m), which is 120 square inches of tape with a peel-off paper backing on the adhesive side
- ✓Matte, closer to bandage beige than white, and thin enough that concealer or foundation goes over it without leaving an outline
- ✓Trim a sliver smaller than any pre-cut dot for a spot beside the nose or on a lip line
What is in the box
The roll: one continuous length of thin hydrocolloid tape, 2 in x 5 ft (5 cm x 1.5 m), wound on a small pale core. That works out to 120 square inches of material, and you cut only what each spot needs.
The backing: a paper liner over the adhesive side. Cut through roll and liner together, then peel the liner off the piece.
Finish: matte rather than glossy, and the color is closer to bandage beige than to white.
Size in the hand: smaller than most people picture. The roll is roughly 7 cm across and 5 cm wide, about the size of a desk tape roll, and it fits in a palm.
Packaging: a cardboard box with a tear-open flap. Scissors are not included, and small nail scissors are the easiest thing to cut with.
How to use it
Cut first: with the backing still on, snip a piece that covers the spot plus a small border all the way around. For a run of spots along the jaw, cut one long strip rather than several squares.
Peel and press: bend the piece so the liner splits, lift a corner with a fingernail and pull it away. Lay the piece down flat and press the whole perimeter for a few seconds with a dry finger.
Leave it 6 to 12 hours: overnight is easiest. In the morning it should have gone cloudy white where it sat over the spot. Lift a corner, take it off, and cut a fresh piece the next night if it is still filling.
What it will not do
This is a dressing, not a treatment. It covers a spot and absorbs fluid from the surface while you wear it, and spots often look flatter by morning.
It does nothing for blackheads, nothing for deep bumps under the skin, and nothing for the mark a spot leaves behind. We would rather say so here than let you find out.
Shipping and delivery
Shipping is free on every order. Orders are dispatched in 1 to 3 business days, and a tracking link is emailed to you as soon as yours ships.
30-day money back
Cut a piece, wear it a night, and if it is not for you email us within 30 days of delivery for your money back. No restocking charge, and an opened box is fine. No subscription and nothing that renews.
About the crossed-out prices: on Buy 1 Get 1 Free it is two rolls at $54.90 each, and on Buy 2 Get 2 Free four rolls at $54.90 each.
Sound familiar?
A round dot is a guess
about the shape of your spot
Hydrocolloid works the same way whichever shape it arrives in. The difference is that a die-cut circle decides in a factory how much skin gets covered, and your spots were not consulted.
Clarelle is the same hydrocolloid material, sold as tape you cut yourself.
Why a roll
The problem with dots
is not the material
It is the die cut. A cluster along the jaw needs one long piece with one perimeter. Give it four circles and you get four sets of edges, gaps in between, and the two small spots at either end left uncovered because you did not want to open another patch.
- One piece, one perimeterCut a strip as long as the run of spots. Fewer edges is less to lift on the pillow, and nothing in the middle is left bare
- It cuts small as well as bigTrim a sliver for a spot beside the nostril or on the lip line, where even the smallest pre-cut dot is too wide
- The box stops setting the paceA roll is 120 square inches that you cut from, so you stop saving patches for the spots you decide are bad enough
- The same familiar materialIt absorbs fluid from the surface and turns cloudy white as it fills, exactly as the circles do
The goal
One piece, cut to the shape
of what is actually there
Four dots along one jawline, and the edges still show between them. One cut strip gives you a single perimeter instead of four. By morning it has gone cloudy white where it sat over the spot, which is your signal that it has done its job and it is time for a fresh piece.
- One spotA piece with a small border
- A cluster along the jawOne long strip
- Beside the nose or a lip lineA trimmed sliver
- Each piece stays on6 to 12 hours
How to use it
Cut it, press it,
leave it until it turns white
Clarelle is a dressing, so the routine is short and the same every night. Clean, dry skin with nothing underneath it: no cream, no oil, no toner still damp on the surface.
With the backing still on, snip a piece that covers the spot plus a small border all the way around. For a run of spots along the jaw, cut one long strip rather than several squares.
Bend the piece so the liner splits, lift a corner with a fingernail and pull it away. Lay it down flat and press for a few seconds with a dry finger so the edges bond.
Overnight is easiest. In the morning it should have gone cloudy white where it sat over the spot. Take it off and cut a fresh piece the next night if it is still filling.
Cut it first. Cut through the tape and the paper backing together, then peel. Peeling first is where people get stuck.
An honest comparison
Clarelle vs
a box of pre-cut dots
Almost everyone reading this already has a tray of round patches in a drawer, and they do work. This is about the places where a shape you cut yourself behaves differently, and the places where it does not.
| Clarelle | Pre-cut dots | |
|---|---|---|
| Cut to the length and width of what is actually on your skin | ✓ | Two or three fixed sizes |
| One long strip covers a run of spots along the jaw | ✓ | ✕ |
| Trim a sliver for a spot smaller than the smallest dot | ✓ | ✕ |
| Cut only what the night needs, 120 square inches per roll | ✓ | A set count per box |
| Matte, bandage beige, takes foundation over the top | ✓ | Often glossy white |
| Turns cloudy white as it absorbs, so you know when to change it | ✓ | ✓ |
What we will not claim: this is a dressing, not a treatment. It does nothing for blackheads, nothing for deep bumps under the skin, and nothing for the mark a spot leaves behind.
What you get
One roll, and
a pair of small scissors
Questions
The things people ask
before they order
Sticking, cutting, makeup, size, and the spots it will not do anything for. Straight answers, including where the answer is no.
Will it actually stay on overnight?
Usually, if three things are true: the skin is clean and completely dry with no cream or oil under it, the piece is cut with a border wider than the spot, and you press the whole perimeter for a few seconds after laying it down. If it lifts at one edge in the night, it is almost always a piece cut too close to the spot or moisturizer underneath. Side sleepers should cut a wider border.
The paper backing seems fiddly. Any trick?
Cut first, always. Snip through the tape and the liner together, then bend the cut piece slightly so the paper splits away from the adhesive and lift that corner with a fingernail. Trying to start the liner on the full roll is what makes people give up. Once you have done it twice it takes about two seconds, and small nail scissors are easier than kitchen ones.
Will it work on my spot?
It depends on the spot, and we would rather be specific. Surface whiteheads and spots that have already been picked at or drained are what hydrocolloid is for: it absorbs fluid from the surface and turns cloudy white as it fills, and the spot often looks flatter by morning. Blackheads, closed bumps and deep spots under the skin have nothing at the surface for it to draw from, so it will not do much there.
Can I wear it out of the house or under makeup?
Yes, with a caveat. The tape is matte and closer to bandage beige than white, so it does not catch the light the way a glossy circle does, and concealer or foundation goes over the top without leaving an outline if you press the edges flat first. Be realistic though: in daylight, at conversation distance, someone looking at your face can see it.
How big is a 5 ft roll really?
Smaller in the hand than almost everyone expects, which is why we photograph it in a palm. The roll is about 7 cm across and 5 cm wide, roughly the size of a desk tape roll. Unrolled it is 2 in x 5 ft, which is 120 square inches of material. Because you cut only what each spot needs, that goes a long way.
Will it help the mark left behind after a spot clears?
No. This is the question we get most and the honest answer is that it does nothing for marks, discoloration or texture left after a spot settles. It covers a spot while it is draining and absorbs fluid from the surface while you wear it. That is the whole job.
How long do I leave a piece on, and how many nights?
Leave each piece 6 to 12 hours. Overnight is easiest because you are not touching it. Swap it once it has turned cloudy white, since a saturated piece has done what it can. Cut a fresh piece the next night and keep going until it stops filling, which for a surface whitehead is often one or two nights. Do not re-use a piece: cut a new one, you have plenty.
My skin reacts to adhesives. Is it suitable, and is it okay for a teenager?
It is an adhesive dressing, and we cannot tell you how your skin will respond. If bandages usually leave you red, wear a small piece somewhere discreet for a night first and see. Take it off if the skin under it stings, reddens or itches. Do not use it on broken skin, open wounds or anything a doctor is already looking at. For a teenager, the same rules apply and a parent should read them too.
How should I store it, and does it expire?
Keep it dry and sealed in its box, away from steam, so the adhesive edge of the roll does not pick up moisture from a shower. A bathroom drawer is fine, the edge of the sink is not. Our supplier does not publish a shelf life, so we are not going to print a date we cannot stand behind. If a piece no longer sticks when pressed to dry skin, retire the roll.
★★★★★ 4.7 out of 5
From people who
switched from dots
What they say once the roll has been in the drawer a few weeks.
“With Clarelle I just snip whatever I need. Two months in and the roll barely looks used.”
Theresa O. Verified buyer“Thin enough that my usual base covers it with no outline.”
Jenna C. Verified buyer“Cut the piece, bend it, lift the corner with a nail. Takes two seconds that way.”
Hannah K. Verified buyer“Pieces cut with a wide border stay put, even face down on a pillow.”
Marisol V. Verified buyer“On a whitehead I had already picked at, it was cloudy by morning.”
Priyanka S. Verified buyer“She uses it on her chin, I use it along my hairline.”
Beth R. Verified buyerSwipe for more →
Customer photos
Real counters,
real cut pieces
Where Clarelle lives once it arrives.
Swipe for more →
Customer reviews
What buyers say
about Clarelle
cut first, then peel
First night I tried to peel the backing off the roll and nearly gave up. Cut the piece, bend it, lift the corner with a nail. Takes two seconds that way.
bought it for my teenager
He will not do anything that takes more than one step, so I expected this to sit in a drawer. He cuts a square, sticks it on before bed, done.
did nothing for my blackheads
To be fair the page says so. On my nose, zero, and I gave it three nights running before I accepted that. On a whitehead I had already picked at, it was cloudy by morning and the lump had gone down. Does what it says and nothing past that.
night shifts and a pillow
I sleep during the day with my face half in a pillow. Pieces cut with a wide border stay put. The one time I cut it tight to the spot it rolled at the edge.
foundation goes straight over
Thin enough that my usual base covers it with no outline, as long as I press the edges down first. Up close in daylight you can still see where it is.
stopped rationing patches
With a tray of dots I would save them for the bad ones. With Clarelle I just snip whatever I need. Two months in and the roll barely looks used.
tested a piece on my arm first
Adhesive bandages usually leave me red, so I was not hopeful. I wore a small piece inside my elbow for a night to see what would happen, and nothing did. Used it on my face after that, and three weeks later still nothing. Worth the extra night if your skin is like mine.
it will not fade the mark
The spot flattened overnight, the brown mark stayed for weeks afterward. I was not expecting it to and the page is upfront, but worth repeating for anyone hoping.
lives in my work bag now
I cut a few pieces at home and keep them flat in my bag, which is easier than carrying scissors. Used one in a hotel bathroom before a client dinner.
second roll went to my sister
Ordered the two pack mostly for the price and handed one over. She uses Clarelle on her chin, I use it along my hairline. Neither of us has got near the end of a roll.
Our promise
Try Clarelle
for 30 days
Cut the patch to fit the spot.
Clarelle is 120 square inches of thin, matte hydrocolloid tape you cut to any shape, from a long strip along the jaw to a sliver beside the nose. The second roll is free, shipping is free, and you have 30 days to change your mind.
Clarelle is an adhesive hydrocolloid dressing. It covers a spot and absorbs fluid from the surface while you wear it. Results vary from person to person.
For external use only. Not for broken skin, open wounds or anything a doctor is already looking at. If adhesives bother your skin, try a small piece first and take it off if the skin under it stings or reddens.