Good day everybody and welcome to my Blog.
Today we are going to look at the Creamy Facial Cleanser. A cream cleanser has a thicker, creamy texture and is formulated with ingredients to help the skin retain moisture, like plant-based oils. Sometimes called cleansing “milks” or “lotions” cream cleansers are gentle – they cleanse the skin without stripping it of its natural oils. Cream cleansers are excellent choices for sensitive skin and those with rosacea. They’re also a good option for dry skin and mature skin. Cream cleansers tend to be more hydrating and gentler than other cleansers, which is why they’re a particularly good choice for those with impaired skin barriers. They are great for all skin types, but especially important for those who have dry skin, sensitive skin, allergies, eczema or more mature skin. If you have oily skin, foaming cleansers can effectively remove the excess production of sebum for that clean and bright look. For those who suffer from dry and ageing skin, cream cleansers contain emulsifiers to lock in moisture when you want that extra glow from day to night. Generally, a cream cleanser is more moisturising and hydrating than a face wash. Cleansers contain mild ingredients to lift away dirt and dissolve oils while providing gentle hydration for your skin.
Formula Soothing Creamy Facial Cleanser
Heated water phase
- 15% Vegetable Glycerine
- 0.3% Xanthan Gum
- 7% finely powdered Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate (SCI)
- 4% Coco Glucoside
- 3% Cocamidopropyl Betaine
- 27.7% Distilled Water
- 30% Aloe Vera Juice
- 0.1% Citric Acid
Heated oil phase
Cool down phase
- 0.4% Allantoin
- 0.5% Vitamin E Acetate
- 1% Calendula extract or any other extract of your choice
- 1% Phenoxyethanol
Method
- Prepare a water bath by bringing about 3cm of water to a bare simmer over low to medium low heat in a wide, flat-bottomed sauté pan.
- Weigh the heated water phase into a small heat-resistant glass measuring cup or beaker (I used 100mL beakers for both heated phases. Start with the glycerine and gum, stirring to thoroughly disperse before stirring in the surfactants (wear your dust mask!), and finally the distilled water, aloe vera juice, and citric acid. Weigh the entire lot (measuring cup + ingredients) and note that weight for use later.
- Weigh the heated oil phase into a second heat-resistant glass measuring cup or beaker. Place both measuring cups in your prepared water bath to melt everything through. After about 20–30 minutes the oil part should be completely melted, and the water part should be thoroughly dissolved. Remove the water bath from the heat. Add enough hot distilled water to the heated water phase to bring the weight back up to what it was before heating, and then pour the water part into the oil part (this is important—it’s hard to get the oil phase out of its beaker completely as it’s very prone to solidifying). Stir with a rod or eggbeater.
- Blend the mixture for a minute or two with a small high-powered mixer, and then switch to hand stirring (if you don’t have a high powered mixer you could try making a 100g batch so you can use an immersion blender, or just hand stir a lot and hope the emulsion holds). Stir occasionally as the mixture cools.
- When the cleanser is cool, it’s time to incorporate our cool down ingredients. Because cool down ingredients are typically present at very low amounts, you’ll need to use an accurate scale.
- Check the pH with a pH stick. It should fall between 5.2–5.5, and that’s great! If the pH is above 6 or lower than 4.5, you’ll need to adjust it. (Citric Acid – and Triethanolamine + I really like a squeeze tube for this formulation, but a pump-top bottle or flip-disc topped squeeze bottle would also work. This is too viscous for a treatment pump or eyedropper cap. Enjoy
Thank you for reading, and feel free to send me some comments.
We can discuss the Creamy Foaming Cleanser in the next blog as it goes hand in hand with the Oil to Milk Facial Cleanser
Your Blog friend, Alta de Meyer