You wore a microdart patch last night. This morning, look at the bump before you open another cone. The next sticker may be a cheap hydrocolloid disc. The cone box can stay shut.
A microdart is a small square of dissolving cones, typically £0.60–£2.50 or more each on this site. A hydrocolloid patch is the round disc, roughly 15–40p, for a spot that already has fluid on the surface. They are not two nights of the same job. If the spot is deep, painful, cystic, or it keeps coming back in the same place, see a GP. A patch is not a cure.
The short fork is hydrocolloid vs microdart. This page is the morning after a cone.
Look at the bump before you open another cone
Peel last night’s patch off slowly, close to the skin. Bin it. It is single-use. Look at the spot in ordinary bathroom light, before moisturiser goes on.
Last night the bump was closed: no white head, nothing leaking, surface still intact. That is why the cone was the format. The closed-bump guide is that choice. This morning can change it.
A white head, broken skin, or anything weeping means fluid is now on the surface. That is a hydrocolloid job. A second cone spends the dear patch on work a 15–40p disc already does.
Check the hold from last night as well. Did the square stay in the middle, on dry skin, with no cream under it? A cone that peeled off, or one you took off after twenty minutes to check, has not told you the format failed. The microdart apply guide is that checklist. Fix the wear before you open another square.
If the bump is still a small closed mark, with no fluid on top, a hydrocolloid disc will not invent that fluid. A disc can sit there and stay clear. That clear disc, after a proper wear, is the usual clue the bump was still closed. The unchanged-bump guide is that read. A thicker disc is not a switch.
When the next patch is a hydrocolloid disc
Switch when you can see fluid, a head, or broken skin that was not the reason you chose a cone.
Wash the area with a plain cleanser, or with water. Wait until that bit of skin feels dry. Leave moisturiser, oil, serum, and SPF off that exact spot.
Put the middle of a round disc on the fluid. Press the rim for a few seconds so the edge sticks. Leave it for six to twelve hours, or overnight, if it feels comfortable. The sticking steps are in the overnight hydrocolloid guide.
A disc that turns cloudy or white has collected something from the surface. That colour belongs to the hydrocolloid. A microdart does not go white in the middle the same way. The white-centre guide is the colour read for discs only.
If you picked the spot after the cone came off, you have opened it. The next sticker is still the cheap disc. The picked-spot guide covers what a disc can do after a squeeze. It cannot undo the pick.
One disc is enough for that wear. Take the cone off, look, then choose. Do not stack a fresh cone on top of the disc, and do not put the disc on while the cone is still stuck down.
When another cone wastes the box
Leave the microdart packet closed if the spot is now open or weeping. The cone was for a closed early bump. Opening a second square “to finish it” is how a small pack disappears in a weekend.
Leave it closed if last night’s square never stayed on. Dry the skin and skip the cream on that spot before you decide the format. A crushed cone, or one whose sticky side folded on itself, is already spent. Do not unpeel it and try again tomorrow.
Leave it closed if you want a cover for the day and the spot has a head. A thin hydrocolloid disc is the format for that fluid. A cone is the wrong patch to hide under makeup. If the bump is still closed and you only want your fingers off it, a plain disc can sit there as a cover. It will not do the cone’s job, and it is not a reason to peel a fresh square before you leave.
A hybrid such as Revolution Super Dart puts dissolving cones on a small hydrocolloid dome. The dome can take a little fluid if the spot is slightly further along. It is still a cone you have paid for. If the spot is openly weeping this morning, the next patch is a plain disc from the cheap sheet, not a second hybrid from the same box. The Super Dart explainer is that hybrid read.
Stop, and see a GP, if the bump is deep, very sore, spreading, or it keeps returning in the same place. Another cone tomorrow will not change that call. Stop if the skin is more painful after the patch than it was before, or if you feel unwell. Take it off.
Do not put last night’s square back on. Do not move it to a second bump. Do not leave it on the sink for later. Once it has been on skin, it is finished.
Where to buy in the UK
For the cone you are trying not to waste, Revolution Super Dart (Amazon UK) is dissolving cones on a small hydrocolloid dome. It is often listed around £5.51–£9 for 9 patches. Check the price on the day. More shops for that format are on where to buy microdart patches.
The next-day disc is the cheap format, in the 15–40p band. Shops for a plain hydrocolloid sheet are on where to buy hydrocolloid patches.
More reading is in all guides. If you are still choosing a format rather than this morning’s switch, start with hydrocolloid vs microdart.