I’ve been engaged on one thing actually particular for the previous three years, and immediately, I’m so excited to lastly unveil it to the world! Meet Better Than Balm—our first-ever, oil-based cleanser.
I knew that if I created a cleaning balm, it wanted to be totally different. What makes Higher Than Balm distinctive is its dual-phase expertise, which permits it to remodel from an oil right into a milky gel. This cleanser’s energy really lies in its transformation, and it’s that very same transformation that offers you a correct double cleanse with only one product (sure, you learn that proper!).
I labored arduous to make a product that I felt was efficient and really a pleasure to make use of, and since creating this balm, it’s shortly change into my favourite option to take away make-up at night time. Because it took so lengthy to get right here, I believed I’d share the journey behind this particular product and break down what makes it totally different—and why it’s really higher than balm.
The Inspiration—Why “Higher Than Balm?”
Cleaning balms have undoubtedly change into a mainstay within the skincare world. You recognize the sort—it’s thick, possibly a bit waxy, and once you flip the jar the wrong way up, it doesn’t budge. And pay attention, I totally perceive why individuals like utilizing these! They really feel wealthy and moisturizing, they usually do an amazing job of eradicating make-up. However, this could come at a value. Finally, my inspiration for Higher Than Balm got here from persistently watching individuals use conventional cleaning balms incorrectly, to the detriment of their pores and skin.
The Drawback With Conventional Cleaning Balms
Many individuals like utilizing cleaning balms as a result of it makes their pores and skin really feel moisturized. However have you ever ever stopped to consider why your pores and skin feels so moisturized afte? It’s as a result of these balms are manufactured from heavy oils or waxes which might be actually troublesome to rinse off. The result’s that many cleaning balms find yourself leaving an oily movie behind in your pores and skin. This may depart you feeling mushy and moisturized, nevertheless it additionally means the remainder of your skincare merchandise aren’t going to work as successfully. Oils are made up of enormous molecules, and merchandise like serums are made with tiny molecules which might be designed to go deep into the pores and skin. Should you put a small molecule on high of a big one, it gained’t have the ability to penetrate via. (This why I used to be by no means a fan of double cleaning with a balm previously.)
Whereas it’s essential to decide on a cleanser with out harsh substances that can strip your pores and skin, the primary perform of a cleanser is to, effectively, cleanse. You shouldn’t be counting on it for moisture—that’s the place the remainder of your skincare is available in. In actual fact, in case your cleanser is leaving an oily movie behind, it will possibly truly dehydrate your pores and skin over time. You see, all pores and skin varieties want a mix of oil and water to be wholesome. Water-based merchandise are typically made up of—you guessed it—smaller molecules. So, a layer of oil would truly forestall hydration from moving into your pores and skin.
After I was creating this product, I used to be decided to make one thing with all the advantages of a conventional cleaning balm, and not one of the drawbacks.
The Formulation
From a components standpoint, there are two issues that make Higher Than Balm stand out. First, the oil we used is much more light-weight than most oils. Second, this cleanser incorporates the next quantity of surfactants than conventional cleaning balms. Getting the right ratio of oil to surfactants was undoubtedly the trickiest a part of the formulation course of, and it despatched me again to the drafting board greater than as soon as. We ended up with a profitable mixture that allowed Higher Than Balm to work in two phases.
Section 1: Oil Section
Section one in every of Higher Than Balm is an expensive but light-weight oil. Oil works so effectively to dissolve make-up as a result of it’s lipophilic, which means it’s interested in different oils. Or, put extra merely, “like dissolves like.”
The oil element of Higher Than Balm is caprylic triglyceride. It’s made by combining glycerin with pure plant oils. These plant oils undergo a course of to change into extremely purified and refined till they’re damaged down into a number of smaller molecules. That is what provides caprylic triglyceride its defining property—a low molecular weight. Most oils have a really excessive molecular weight, which means the particles are massive and find yourself simply sitting in your pores and skin. Since caprylic triglyceride is so light-weight, it’s additionally extra appropriate for shiny or acne-prone pores and skin varieties, like Skin Types 1-4.
One other downside of heavy oils is that they’ve a excessive melting level, which means it’s very easy for them to re-solidify or harden in your pores and skin. Caprylic triglyceride has a decrease melting level, which permits it to offer steady slip as a substitute of hardening. It glides seamlessly, making this cleanser the proper companion for gua sha or lymphatic drainage therapeutic massage.
You possibly can watch this enjoyable little experiment I did to show how light-weight the oil molecules in Higher Than Balm are in comparison with conventional balms. No greasy mess right here!
Section 2: Gel Section
When you add water to Higher Than Balm, you activate part two. What you’re actually activating right here is sucrose laurate, the ingredient accountable for this cleanser’s transformation. Sucrose laurate is a mild surfactant constituted of a mix of sugar and lauric acid. It’s in a position to emulsify the caprylic triglyceride in order that it may be simply rinsed away with water and doesn’t depart a movie.
Under, you’ll be able to see the cleanser instantly begins to remodel when water is added, versus a conventional balm that doesn’t budge.
Having these two phases inside one cleanser mimics the double cleanse course of, however with only a single product.
Who Is It For?
Higher Than Balm is for anybody who needs to take away cussed make-up whereas sustaining wholesome, balanced pores and skin. It’s light and can be utilized nightly (or as wanted) by all skin types. This cleanser was created for make-up wearers who:
- Suppose conventional cleaning balms are too heavy or waxy and like a extra light-weight texture
- Need to save time by successfully double-cleansing with only one product
- Are susceptible to breakouts and clogged pores, which heavy oils and stable waxes aren’t beneficial for
- Need an oil-based cleanser that doesn’t depart a barrier on their pores and skin (bear in mind, this could impede the penetration of serums utilized after)
Lastly, this cleanser is for anybody who loves a bit aromatherapy with their nighttime self-care routine (in any case, isn’t that what skincare is?). I labored carefully with the lab to give you a gorgeous scent for Higher Than Balm; it’s heat, inviting, and enjoyable with refined hints of soppy rose. I’m totally obsessed and it’s one of many many causes this product has change into the most effective a part of my nighttime routine!
Nervous about perfume in skincare merchandise? Study why it’s not as unhealthy as you’ve heard.
The right way to Use It
One factor Higher Than Balm does have in widespread with conventional balms is that it’s essential to use it appropriately with the intention to get all the advantages.
Step 1: Apply the cleanser to DRY pores and skin and gently therapeutic massage over the face for a full 30 seconds. This may begin to dissolve make-up, sunscreen, and sebum. For heavier make-up, comparable to long-wear or full-coverage basis, therapeutic massage for 60 seconds.
Step 2: Utilizing your fingertips, add water to remodel the cleanser right into a milky gel. Therapeutic massage for an additional 30 seconds or, for heavier make-up, one other 60 seconds.
Step 3: Rinse your face with lukewarm water to take away the majority of the cleanser and make-up.
Step 4: Use a barely dampened material and gently wipe throughout your face to take away each final hint of loosened make-up and particles. Repeat as wanted for heavier make-up.
Step 4 is so essential as a result of whereas the cleanser dissolves your make-up, the wiping motion with the material is what truly lifts that make-up off the pores and skin. In any other case, you’re simply smearing it round.
How Higher Than Balm Matches Into My Model Philosophy
Within the 26 years I’ve had my skincare line, I’ve all the time been adamant about not creating new merchandise based mostly purely on tendencies. I’ve to actually consider in a product’s potential to enhance individuals’s pores and skin. I additionally by no means wish to create a product only for the sake of it. I wish to create one thing as a result of I see a necessity for it and since I feel I can provide individuals one thing particular. Higher Than Balm embodies my skincare philosophy and I’m very proud to be placing it out into the world. I adore it, and I do know you’ll, too!
Up subsequent, be taught whether or not or not you have to be washing your face within the morning.
Movie star Esthetician & Skincare Professional
As an esthetician skilled in beauty chemistry, Renée Rouleau has spent 30 years researching pores and skin, educating her viewers, and constructing an award-winning line of merchandise. Her hands-on expertise as an esthetician and trusted skincare professional has created a real-world answer — merchandise which might be formulated for nine different types of skin so your face will get precisely what it must feel and appear its finest. Trusted by celebrities, editors, bloggers, and skincare obsessives across the globe, her huge real-world information and fixed analysis are why Marie Claire calls her “essentially the most passionate pores and skin practitioner we all know.”