Where does this cleansing balm go in my routine?

As the first of two evening cleanses, on dry skin, before any water reaches the face. Nothing goes under it: this cleansing balm is the step everything else in the routine lands on top of. If you are adding it to a routine you already like, give it a week on its own first, so what you see is the Lactobacillus Ferment and not three changes at once.

Is this the Korean-market cleansing balm or a US version?

The Korean-market one, Lactobacillus Ferment and all. We match this cleansing balm to its Korean barcode before it reaches the shelf, which is the check that tells you which market release you are holding.

Does this cleansing balm contain fragrance?

Yes. The ingredient list names Fragrance. It sits on the panel printed on this page, so you can read the position for yourself before you buy. If fragrance components are something you avoid, this cleansing balm is not the one.

What else is on the list besides Lactobacillus Ferment?

Pentaerythrityl Tetra-di-t-butyl Hydroxyhydrocinnamate, Gardenia Florida Fruit Extract and Synthetic Wax. The order they are printed in on this cleansing balm's panel is the order on the box, so you can see where Lactobacillus Ferment sits relative to them. Further down the same panel: Ethylhexyl Stearate, Cetyl Ethylhexanoate and Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter.

BANILA CO

Clean It Zero Enriching Butter Cleansing Balm 100ml

Name: BANILA CO Clean It Zero Enriching Butter Cleansing Balm 100ml
Brand: BANILA CO
SKU: 11117427450
Price: 32.5 USD
Availability: InStock

BANILA CO Clean It Zero Enriching Butter Cleansing Balm is a 100ml cleansing balm whose ingredient list carries Lactobacillus Ferment alongside Pentaerythrityl Tetra-di-t-butyl Hydroxyhydrocinnamate and Gardenia Florida Fruit Extract.

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$32.50

100 ml

$32.50 per 100 ml

Korean-market formula
Ships from California or direct from Korea
Korean barcode and batch code intact

Suited to: Dry skinCompromised barrierDehydrated skinSensitive skin

Helps with: Shoppers looking for Lactobacillus Ferment in a cleansing balmRoutines that want Lactobacillus Ferment and Pentaerythrityl Tetra-di-t-butyl Hydroxyhydrocinnamate in one stepFilling the cleansing balm step with a Korean-market formulaAnyone who wants the Lactobacillus Ferment cleansing balm sold on Korean shelves

One-time purchase

$32.50

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$29.25

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How it works

The Clean It Zero Enriching Butter Cleansing Balm is a 100ml cleansing balm, used as the first of two evening cleanses, on dry skin, before any water reaches the face. The ferment it is built around is Lactobacillus Ferment, named twenty-sixth on its own ingredient list. The same list carries Pentaerythrityl Tetra-di-t-butyl Hydroxyhydrocinnamate, Gardenia Florida Fruit Extract and Synthetic Wax, so the ferment is not the only thing on it worth naming. How much of the Lactobacillus Ferment stays on the skin, and for how long, is decided by the cleansing balm format rather than by the list alone. This is the Original Korean Formula, the cleansing balm BANILA CO sells in Korea, Lactobacillus Ferment and all.

Key benefits

Lactobacillus Ferment, the ferment this cleansing balm is built around
Pentaerythrityl Tetra-di-t-butyl Hydroxyhydrocinnamate on the same list, an antioxidant
Gardenia Florida Fruit Extract on the same list, a plant extract
Synthetic Wax on the same list, an occlusive
Cetyl Ethylhexanoate and Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter further down the same list
Persea Gratissima (Avocado) Oil and Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil further down the same list

How to use

Scoop a small, pea to almond sized amount with dry hands and warm it between your palms until it turns clear. Massage over a completely dry face, working into makeup, sunscreen and the T-zone for thirty to sixty seconds. Add a splash of water and continue massaging until the balm turns milky, then rinse thoroughly with lukewarm water. Follow with a water-based cleanser rather than skipping straight to toner.

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26 of 28 explained

Ethylhexyl Stearate emollient: Ethylhexyl Stearate is an ester emollient with a slightly richer feel than the palmitate. It softens skin and helps a formula spread evenly.
Cetyl Ethylhexanoate emollient: Cetyl Ethylhexanoate is a synthetic ester used as a dry-feeling emollient. It spreads easily, leaves a silky rather than oily finish, and helps disperse pigments and UV filters evenly.
Sorbeth-30 Tetraoleate emulsifier: Sorbeth-30 Tetraoleate is an emulsifier used in cleansing oils so the oil can be rinsed off with water rather than wiped away.
Synthetic Wax occlusive: Synthetic Wax is a purpose-built hydrocarbon wax used to structure balms and sticks. It is odourless and does not oxidise, unlike most natural waxes.
Water solvent: Water is the base almost every serum, toner and cream is built on. It dissolves the water-loving ingredients and sets how light the finished texture feels. On an INCI list it is usually first, which only means it is the largest single ingredient by weight.
Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter emollient: Shea Butter is the fat pressed from the shea nut, rich in oleic and stearic acids and unsaponifiable plant sterols. It is a heavy emollient and partial occlusive, which is why it sits in balms and night creams rather than in essences.
Silica absorbent: Silica is finely milled mineral, essentially very pure sand. It absorbs oil, stops powders clumping and soft-focuses the look of pores and fine lines.
Butylene Glycol humectant: Butylene Glycol is a small glycol that does two jobs at once: it holds water in the top layer of skin and it dissolves plant extracts and actives that plain water cannot. It also thins a formula, which is why watery Korean essences lean on it.
Fragrance fragrance: Fragrance, or Parfum, is a single declaration standing for a whole scent blend, which can be dozens of materials. Regulators allow it as a trade secret, so a list showing only this word does not say what the scent is made of. It is the most common trigger named by people with reactive skin.
Glyceryl Caprylate emulsifier: Glyceryl Caprylate is a mild emulsifier that also makes a formula less hospitable to microbes, so it is often part of a preservative-free system.
Caprylyl Glycol preservative booster: Caprylyl Glycol is a glycol that conditions skin and, more importantly, strengthens a preservative system so less of the traditional preservative is needed. It appears in most modern formulas built without parabens.
Persea Gratissima (Avocado) Oil emollient: Avocado oil, rich in oleic acid and plant sterols. It is one of the heavier plant oils, which suits dry skin and cleansing balms.

14 more explained

Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil emollient: Jojoba Oil is a liquid wax rather than a true oil, and its structure is close to human sebum, which is why it absorbs so readily. It is an emollient that leaves a soft, non-greasy finish.
Squalane emollient: Squalane is the stable, saturated version of squalene, a lipid human skin already makes. It is a light emollient that absorbs quickly, does not oxidise, and is one of the few oils widely considered safe for blemish-prone skin. Most cosmetic squalane is now from sugarcane or olive rather than shark.
Sorbitan Sesquioleate emulsifier: Sorbitan Sesquioleate is a water-in-oil emulsifier and pigment disperser. Cleansing oils use it so water can be worked into the oil at the rinse.
Pentaerythrityl Tetra-Di-T-Butyl Hydroxyhydrocinnamate antioxidant: This is a stabiliser that keeps the oils and fragrance in a formula from oxidising. Its job is the shelf life of the product rather than any effect on skin.
Polyglyceryl-3 Polyricinoleate emulsifier: Polyglyceryl-3 Polyricinoleate is a castor-derived emulsifier that lets a formula hold a high water content inside an oil or wax base.
Gardenia Florida Fruit Extract plant extract: Gardenia Fruit Extract is the traditional East Asian yellow dye plant. In skincare it is used as an antioxidant extract, and it can tint a formula.
Panthenol humectant: Panthenol is pro-vitamin B5: skin converts it to pantothenic acid. It is a humectant that holds water and leaves skin feeling soft and less tight, and it is one of the ingredients formulators reach for when a formula also contains something harsh.
Glycerin humectant: Glycerin is the most used humectant in skincare. It draws water into the outer layer of skin and holds it there, and it is one of the very few ingredients whose hydrating effect is settled science rather than marketing. Higher amounts feel tacky, which is why it is usually blended.
Aluminum Hydroxide absorbent: Aluminum Hydroxide is a mineral powder used to coat pigments so they disperse evenly, and to absorb a little oil. It is not an antiperspirant salt.
Triethoxycaprylylsilane silicone: Triethoxycaprylylsilane is a coating applied to mineral powders so they disperse evenly and resist water rather than clumping.
1,2-Hexanediol humectant: 1,2-Hexanediol is a glycol used for two reasons: it holds water like glycerin, and it makes a formula harder for microbes to live in, so less traditional preservative is needed. Korean formulas use it heavily for that second reason.
Lactobacillus Ferment ferment: Lactobacillus Ferment is the liquid left after lactobacillus bacteria have fermented a plant or milk substrate. It carries the small molecules the fermentation produced, including lactic acid and amino acids, and is used for the look of dull, uneven skin.
Palmitic Acid fatty acid: Palmitic Acid is a saturated fatty acid present in skin's own lipids. It thickens a formula, stabilises the emulsion and softens skin.
Stearic Acid fatty acid: Stearic Acid is a saturated fatty acid from plant fats, and one of the three lipid classes skin's own barrier is built from. In a formula it thickens, stabilises the emulsion and can be turned into a soap-style cleanser by adding a base.

Inside the formula

Ingredients declared

Fragrance on the list

Worth knowing

Patch test this cleansing balm on a small area and wait a day before using it more widely, especially with Lactobacillus Ferment on the list.
This list names Fragrance, so skip it if fragrance components are something you avoid.

Complete the routine

This itemBANILA CO Clean It Zero Enriching Butter Cleansing Balm 100ml$32.50
Cleanse first, so the next step meets bare skinBANILA CO Clean It Zero Calming Gel Cleanser 200ml$32.50
An as-needed step, in place of the prep layerBANILA CO Overnight Soothing Cica Sleep Mask 100ml$37.50

Total for 3 items$102.50

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BANILA CO Clean It Zero Enriching Butter Cleansing Balm 100ml

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BANILA CO, Korean-market original

The Original Korean Formula cleansing balm from BANILA CO, 100ml formulated with Lactobacillus Ferment and Pentaerythrityl Tetra-di-t-butyl Hydroxyhydrocinnamate, shipped from California or direct from Korea.

Verify your unit when it arrives

Korean-market stock with the original barcode and batch code intact, exactly as it left Korea.

On the unit itself

The Korean-market barcode, unaltered from the retail package.
The manufacturer’s batch code, exactly as the maker printed it.

정품Genuine article, Korean-market stock

What professionals say

What skin-care professionals say about skin care, quoted from the medical sources linked beside each.

Your skin barrier is basically your outer layer of the skin.
Melissa Piliang, MDDermatologist, Cleveland Clinic
Pretty much every step of a Korean skin care routine is going to have some component of hydration.
Alok Vij, MDDermatologist, Cleveland Clinic