Formulation Feedback: Reducing Stickiness in Your Water Essence

Thank you for sharing your water essence formulation. It sounds like you've included some excellent ingredients for hydration and soothing, which is great for your combination, dehydrated, flaky, and sensitive skin.

You mentioned the product feels sticky. Based on your ingredient list and concentrations, the primary ingredient likely causing the stickiness is 4D Hyaluronic Acid at 5%.

• 4D Hyaluronic Acid (5%): Hyaluronic Acid is a powerful humectant that draws moisture into the skin. While highly effective for hydration, especially at higher concentrations like 5% in a water-based formula, it is well-known for leaving a tacky or sticky feel on the skin. The '4D' blend, combining different molecular weights, aims for multi-layer hydration but doesn't eliminate the potential for stickiness at this percentage.

Other ingredients that can contribute to a sticky or tacky feel, particularly in combination or at moderate levels, include:

• Rhamnose (3%): This sugar molecule provides moisturizing benefits and can add a slight tackiness.
• Glyceryl Glucoside (3%): An aquaporin stimulant and humectant, it helps with hydration but can also contribute to the overall feel.
• Aloe Vera Extract (3%) and Sea Kelp Extract (2%): Natural extracts often contain polysaccharides and other compounds that can increase viscosity and contribute to a slightly sticky texture.

To reduce the stickiness while maintaining hydration and soothing benefits, the most effective adjustment would be to decrease the concentration of 4D Hyaluronic Acid. A usage rate between 0.5% to 2% is often sufficient to provide significant hydration without causing excessive stickiness. You could start by reducing it to 2% or 3% and see if the texture improves.

If reducing the Hyaluronic Acid isn't enough, you could consider slightly lowering the percentages of Rhamnose, Glyceryl Glucoside, Aloe Vera Extract, or Sea Kelp Extract, but start with the Hyaluronic Acid first as it's the most significant contributor to tackiness at its current concentration.

The other ingredients in your formula (EDTA, Plankton GP4G, Grape Seed Extract, Calendula Extract, and Microcare PHC) are less likely to be the main cause of stickiness and are beneficial for your skin concerns.

By adjusting the concentration of the key humectants, particularly 4D Hyaluronic Acid, you should be able to achieve a more comfortable, less sticky texture for your water essence.