Deep Cleansing, Zero Tightness, No Double Cleanse? The Secret Behind OTCM’s Micro Oil Cleansing Balm
2026,09.11
By
OTCM
September
2026, NO.34
OTCM 뉴스레터
Can a cleansing balm deliver powerful cleansing without
leaving skin feeling tight?
Hello, This is Dr. M, OTCM’s OTC expert.
The first thing consumers expect from a cleansing balm is effective cleansing.
After all, makeup needs to be removed thoroughly.
The heavier the makeup or the higher the UV protection of a sunscreen, the more
difficult it is to remove with just soap or water.
To thoroughly remove these products on a daily basis, a cleansing balm with
powerful oil-based cleansing properties is often necessary.
But this is where the challenge begins.
Powerful cleansing does not only remove makeup and sunscreen from the skin. It can
also dissolve and remove some of the skin’s natural lipids in the process.
And that is why skin can feel tight after using a powerful cleansing balm.
For a long time, this has been a technical trade-off - almost like an “ice-cold hot
Americano.”
Increase cleansing power, and skin can feel tight.
Reduce the cleansing power to make it gentler, and the product may not rinse off
completely, leaving a slippery residue that can make a second cleanse
necessary.
It has often seemed like a combination where one side had to be sacrificed to
achieve the other.
point 1
Why have powerful cleansing and a gentle after-
feel been
considered incompatible?
The principle behind removing makeup and sunscreen with an oil-based cleanser is
simple: Oil dissolves oil.
The next step is to remove that oil from the skin with water.
To wash away the oil effectively, cleansing products have traditionally relied on
the power of surfactants.
The more surfactant is used, the stronger the cleansing performance can
become. However, this can also remove some of the skin’s natural surface lipids,
which mayleave the skin feeling tight after cleansing.
On the other hand, when less surfactant is used, the oil itself does not readily mix
with water and can remain on the skin.
Because oil is naturally not water-soluble, making a cleansing balm
gentler can sometimes result in a slippery, oily residue that does not rinse away
completely.
Until now, cleansing balms have largely approached this challenge as if
“cleansing power” were a single dial.
Turn the dial up, and the skin can feel tight.
Turn it down, and the product can feel slippery or leave residue.
OTCM took a different approach.
Instead of treating cleansing as a single variable,
we separated the challenge into three independently controllable factors:
Cleansing Performance. Skin Protection. Rinse-Off.
Each one needed a different solution.
point 2
The Secret to Cleansing Performance -
It’s Not
Surfactants, It’s Oil Particle Size
A common way to increase cleansing performance is to increase the amount of
surfactant. But that can also increase the potential for skin discomfort.
OTCM took a different approach.
Instead of simply increasing surfactants, we reduced the size of the oil
particlesthemselves, making them approximately three times
smaller than conventional natural oil particles. This is our Micro-Oil
technology.
Smaller oil particles can penetrate into narrower spaces, including pore areas,
helping dissolve sebum more effectively.
point 3
Why It Doesn’t Feel Slippery - The Rinse-Off
Experience That Drives Repurchase
A gentle oil-based cleanser can leave residue on the skin because oil does not
naturally mix well with water.
Rather than compromising the cleansing performance of the oil itself, OTCM designed
the formula with water-affinitive ingredients that allow the oil to rapidly emulsify
and turn milky when it comes into contact with water.The result?
Less oily residue during rinsing and a clean, fresh finish - without the need for a
second cleanse.
point 4
Why It Doesn’t Leave Skin Feeling Tight -
CERAPLEX Replenishes While You Cleanse
Even with carefully designed cleansing performance, some of the skin’s surface
lipids can inevitably be removed during cleansing.
The real question is :
What happens to the space left behind?
Do we simply leave it as it is - or do we help replenish it?
The skin barrier is structured much like a brick wall, with components such as
ceramides, cholesterol, and fatty acids closely organized together.
OTCM incorporated these key barrier-supporting components into the formula as
CERAPLEX™.
As cleansing can remove some components from the skin surface, CERAPLEX
helps replenish them during the cleansing process.
Keep the cleansing performance strong - and help replenish what is lost.
Rather than making the cleanser gentler by compromising cleansing performance, we
designed it to help address the tight after-feel through replenishment.
point 5
The “Force of Rubbing” Matters as Much as the Ingredients
3-Step Transforming Melting Formula
The three technologies discussed so far have all been answers to the question of
which ingredients to use.
However, even when gentle ingredients are used, irritation can occur from the
process of rubbing the product onto the skin.This means that, separate from
ingredient-related irritation, the force of rubbing itself can also be a source of
irritation.
OTCM applied the principle of how ice melts, designing the balm so that it does not
immediately turn into oil, but instead passes through an intermediate “sorbet”
stage.
Because the texture transitions gradually through these three stages, there is no
need to suddenly apply force at any stage. Reducing the force of rubbing itself is
as important as making the ingredients gentle when it comes to creating a cleansing
experience without irritation.
point 6
We Confirmed It Through Testing, Not Words - Efficacy Test
OTCM directly tested these effects on human skin and confirmed them.
When applied over heavily drawn makeup, we confirmed that it was thoroughly removed
with just a gentle massage.
By comparing photographs of the skin before and immediately after use, we visually
confirmed that sebum and dead skin within pores were removed and refined.
Point 7
Why OTCM?
A cleansing balm that has strong cleansing power but does not leave skin feeling
tight has been considered a combination that does not make sense, much like a “hot
iced Americano.”
This is because cleansing power, skin protection, and rinse-off
have been considered as if they were controlled by a single dial.OTCM separated
these three factors and addressed each one with a different technology.
We made the oil particles smaller to increase cleansing power (deep cleansing).
We designed the formula to emulsify immediately when it comes into contact with
water, eliminating slipperiness.
We used CERAPLEX to replenish what has been removed, eliminating tightness.
We reduced the force of rubbing itself through the 3-step melting process,
eliminating irritation caused by friction, independent of the ingredients.
As a result, we created a cleansing balm that has the cleansing power to remove
heavy makeup and daily sunscreen, while leaving skin feeling comfortable rather
than tight, and rinsing off cleanly without the need for a second cleanse.
A cleansing balm that brings together a combination that once seemed impossible.
Experience it yourself with OTCM’s Micro-Oil Cleansing Balm.
If you are interested in a sample, please contact us now.
