Makeup
An emulsion of oil, pigment and often silicone, formulated to stay put on skin. Two of those three need different treatments, in the right order.
In detail
Most makeup is engineered to resist exactly what a cleaner would do to it: to stay on skin through moisture, movement and rubbing. Foundation, concealer and mascara are emulsions of oils or silicones carrying finely ground pigment, often with film-forming polymers in the long-wear versions, which is why a single product rarely clears a mark in one pass. The carpet institute treats the family as a two-stage problem and its entries differ in which stage comes first. Makeup opens with a detergent solution, moves to warm water and then to a solvent; mascara opens with the solvent, because it is the greasier of the two. That ordering is the practical lesson: where the deposit is mostly oil, dissolve it first and emulsify the remainder; where it is mostly pigment in a light carrier, lift the carrier with detergent and treat what is left. On skin-contact tools the question is different again — the dermatology guidance in this register is about how often brushes should be washed and when cosmetics should be replaced, which is a hygiene question rather than a stain one.
Why
- Makeup is explained by Emulsification
- Makeup is explained by Solubility and polarity
Sources for this page
Sources
Spot Solver: spot and spill removal procedures
The Carpet and Rug Institute (CRI) · Trade or professional body
Relied on for: That makeup opens with a detergent solution followed by warm water and a solvent, while mascara opens with the solvent before the detergent solution. (states this directly)
Verification: a person has read the passage relied on.
Read on — Sprint 5-10: fifteen entries, stain by stain. Sprint 30: enumerated at 296 from the publisher's own sitemap, 134 more read plus 'Unknown'. Sprint 38: 56 more, chosen against stains the catalogue lacked. 192 of 296 read. Supports the claim as stated.
Last reviewed by a person on .