How “Higher Than Balm” Double Cleanses With Simply One Product
I’ve been engaged on one thing actually particular for the previous three years, and at the moment, 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 know-how, which permits it to rework 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 onerous to make a product that I felt was efficient and in addition a pleasure to make use of, and since creating this balm, it’s shortly turn out to be my favourite strategy 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 positively turn out to be a mainstay within the skincare world. You understand the kind—it’s thick, perhaps just a little waxy, and whenever you flip the jar the other way up, it doesn’t budge. And pay attention, I absolutely perceive why folks like utilizing these! They really feel wealthy and moisturizing, and so they do an amazing job of eradicating make-up. However, this will come at a price. In the end, my inspiration for Higher Than Balm got here from constantly watching folks use conventional cleaning balms incorrectly, to the detriment of their pores and skin.
The Downside 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 after? It’s as a result of these balms are made from heavy oils or waxes which are 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 go away you feeling comfortable and moisturized, nevertheless it additionally means the remainder of your skincare merchandise aren’t going to work as successfully. Oils are made up of huge molecules, and merchandise like serums are made with tiny molecules which are designed to go deep into the pores and skin. For those who put a small molecule on prime of a giant one, it gained’t be capable of penetrate via. (That is why I used to be by no means a fan of double cleaning with a balm previously.)
Whereas it’s necessary to decide on a cleanser with out harsh components that may strip your pores and skin, the principle 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 truth, in case your cleanser is leaving an oily movie behind, it could really dehydrate your pores and skin over time. You see, all pores and skin sorts want a mixture of oil and water to be wholesome. Water-based merchandise are usually made up of—you guessed it—smaller molecules. So, a layer of oil would really stop 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 Components
From a method standpoint, there are two issues that make Higher Than Balm stand out. First, the oil we use is much more light-weight than most oils. Second, this cleanser incorporates a better quantity of surfactants than conventional cleaning balms. Getting the right ratio of oil to surfactants was positively 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.
Part 1: Oil Part
Part one in all Higher Than Balm is an opulent 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 part of Higher Than Balm is caprylic/capric triglyceride. It’s made by purifying small, fatty molecules from coconut oil right into a liquid, emollient type. The defining property of caprylic/capric triglyceride is that it has 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/capric triglyceride is so light-weight, it’s additionally extra appropriate for greasy or acne-prone pores and skin sorts, 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/capric triglyceride has a decrease melting level, which permits it to supply steady slip as an alternative of hardening. It glides seamlessly, making this cleanser the right 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!
Part 2: Gel Part
When you add water to Higher Than Balm, you activate part two. What you’re actually activating right here is sucrose laurate, the ingredient liable for this cleanser’s transformation. Sucrose laurate is a delicate surfactant produced from a mixture of sugar and lauric acid. It will probably emulsify the caprylic/capric triglyceride in order that it may be simply rinsed away with water and doesn’t go away a movie.
Under, you may see the cleanser instantly begins to rework 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:
- Assume 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 vulnerable to breakouts and clogged pores, which heavy oils and strong waxes aren’t advisable for
- Need an oil-based cleanser that doesn’t go away a barrier on their pores and skin (keep in mind, this will impede the penetration of serums utilized after)
Lastly, this cleanser is for anybody who loves just a little aromatherapy with their nighttime self-care routine (in spite of everything, isn’t that what skincare is?). I labored intently with the lab to give you a phenomenal scent for Higher Than Balm; it’s heat, inviting, and enjoyable with delicate hints of sentimental rose. I’m absolutely obsessed and it’s one of many many causes this product has turn out to be the perfect a part of my nighttime routine!
Frightened about perfume in skincare merchandise? Study why it’s not as dangerous as you’ve heard.
Find out how to Use It
One factor Higher Than Balm does have in frequent with conventional balms is that you will need to use it appropriately with a view 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 rework 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 damp Reusable Cleansing Cloth 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 necessary as a result of whereas the cleanser dissolves your make-up, the bodily wiping motion of the material is what really lifts that make-up off the pores and skin. In any other case, you’re simply smearing it round.
How Higher Than Balm Suits 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 primarily based purely on developments. I’ve to actually consider in a product’s capability to enhance folks’s pores and skin. I additionally by no means need to create a product only for the sake of it. I need to make one thing as a result of I see a necessity for it and since I feel I can provide folks one thing particular.
All through my profession, I’ve all the time preached utilizing a cleaning gel to take away sebum within the morning, and a cleaning lotion to take away make-up at night time. What pushed me to lastly come out with a balm cleanser was the evolution of basis make-up. Formulation have advanced from BB and CC lotions into make-up that’s designed to remain on the pores and skin for hours and hours. Cleaning lotions can take off loads, however for the sort of complexion make-up, you simply want extra oil to get all of it off.
Higher Than Balm embodies my skincare philosophy and I’m very proud to be placing it out into the world. I like it, and I do know you’ll, too!
Up subsequent, be taught why you must all the time wash your face within the morning.
Celeb Esthetician & Skincare Knowledgeable
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 skilled has created a real-world resolution — merchandise which are formulated for nine different types of skin so your face will get precisely what it must feel and appear its greatest. 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 “probably the most passionate pores and skin practitioner we all know.”
