How To Make A Natural Homemade Facial Cleanser For Daily Use

A good homemade facial cleanser is the foundation of my skincare routine. It removes daily build-up, excess oil, SPF and makeup, and prepares my skin for the rest of the routine.

Over the past few weeks we’ve shared several specialised DIY cleansers designed for particular skin need, including cleansers for dry skin, oily skin, aging or mature skin, sensitive skin, and even a powdered face wash for glowing skin. Those recipes allow you to tailor your cleanser very precisely.

But sometimes what you really want is a simple everyday cleanser, something gentle, balanced, & suitable for most skin types. That’s exactly what this natural DIY face cleanser is designed to be.

Introduction

This is a lightweight foaming cleanser recipe, it uses mild plant derived surfactants to lift away dirt and excess oil built up through the day. 

The formula is super simple, making it perfect for beginners and easy to customize later if you want. If you’re just learning how to make a homemade facial cleanser, this is a wonderful starting point.

What is a foaming cleanser 

A foaming cleanser is a thin liquid formula that turns into soft foam when dispensed through a special foamer pump bottle.

The bottle itself does all the work of whipping air into the cleanser as it’s pumped out, this instantly turns the liquid into a light airy foam. The formula doesn’t need heavy thickeners or complicated ingredients.

Foamer bottles can sometimes be a little more expensive than standard bottles, but they are reusable and can last for years, making them a good investment for future recipes.

The result is a soft foaming face wash that spreads easily across the skin, cleans very effectively & rinses away quickly.

Key Ingredients & Why We’ve Used Them

We have formulated this homemade face cleanser so that it’s suitable for all skin types. You can tweak the recipe to tailor it to suit a specific skin type such as dry, oily or mature.

In addition there are lots of water soluble botanical and functional powders that can be added to elevate this recipe. However as this is a wash off product we don’t advise adding too many expensive ingredients.    

Water 

Distilled water is simply water that has been purified through a distillation process. It’s been boiled into steam and condensed back into liquid, which removes minerals, metals, microorganisms and other impurities. In skincare formulation, we use it because it’s clean, stable and predictable. It won’t react with your ingredients or affect your preservative system.

Glycerin

Although when cleansing the point is to rid the skin of dirt and oils we don’t want to strip it completely. The glycerin will help to draw moisture into the skin to keep it plump and hydrated. 

Even in a rinse off product like a foaming cleanser, a small amount of glycerin makes a noticeable difference to the finished cleanser. It softens the feel of the formula and helps counterbalance the surfactants   

Surfactants 

Both decyl glucoside and coco glucoside are mild, plant-derived surfactants made from sugar and coconut. They’re both considered gentle and suitable for sensitive skin, which is why they’re so popular in natural style formulations.

• Decyl glucoside is slightly milder and produces a light soft foam. It feels very gentle on the skin and is often chosen for sensitive or everyday cleansers.
• Coco glucoside is still gentle, but it has a little more cleansing strength and produces a slightly richer foam. It can make a formula feel a touch more “cleansing” without becoming too harsh.

Saliguard PPC Preservative

Because this is a water-based cleanser a preservative is essential. Saliguard PPC provides broad spectrum protection to keep the formula safe and stable during use, without being harsh on the skin.

Liquid Soap Coloring

This is a little optional extra. I like to change things up sometimes so I add one of drop soap dye.

Angela Wills

How To Make Natural Homemade Face Cleanser

5 from 1 vote

Learn how to make a natural homemade facial cleanser for daily use. This gentle foaming face wash is easy to make and suitable for all skin types.

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Active Time 30 minutes mins

Total Time 40 minutes mins

Yield: 100 grams (approx)

Course: DIY Skincare

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Video Ingredients Equipment Method

Ingredients

1x2x3x?

MetricUS Customary

• 88 grams Distilled Water
• 5 grams Glycerine
• 4 grams Decyl Glucoside
• 2 grams Coco Glucoside
• 1 gram Saliguard - or Liquid Germall Plus & adjust to 0.5g
• 1 drop Liquid Soap Dye - Optional
• Foamer Bottle

Equipment

• Digital Scales
• Glass Mixing Beakers
• Water Bath
• Stirrer
• pH Strips

Method

 

1. 88 grams Distilled Water, 5 grams Glycerine
   Combine the water and glycerin into a clean beaker. Stir well to combine
   
2. 4 grams Decyl Glucoside, 2 grams Coco Glucoside
   Pour the glucosides into the beaker with the water. Gentle stirring needs to be done here so as not to create too many bubbles.
   
3. 1 gram Saliguard
   Add the preservative and stir, once again trying not to create too many bubbles.
   
4. Finally we need to check our pH. When using surfactants we always need to check the pH of the finished product to check that it's not too high.

   Dilute a small sample of the cleanser (1 part cleanser to 9 parts distilled water). Dip a pH strip into the diluted sample and check it reads pH 5.0–5.5. We found most of our foaming cleansers needed a small adjustment of around 6 drops to lower it. (see how to adjust bellow)
   
5. Foamer Bottle
   Once you have the correct pH balance, transfer to a foamer bottle.
   

Notes

Optionally add one of drop of liquid soap dye to color your cleanser.

New to DIY skincare?

If you’re enjoying making your own products, you might like Radiance, my free email course where I teach the foundations of DIY skincare step by step!

How to lower the pH

If the pH is too high, add a couple of drops of a 10% citric acid solution to the main batch of cleanser and stir gently until fully combined.

Take a fresh small sample, dilute again (1 part cleanser to 9 parts distilled water), and re-test the pH. Repeat if needed until the pH is 5.0–5.5.

Recipe Adjustments For Skin Type

Mature skin

We can lower the surfactant to make it less stripping, and up the glycerin for more hydrating. We can also replace some of the distilled water with a Rose hydrosol that adds a soft, calming feel and makes it feel more luxurious.

The recipe looks like this; 45g Distilled Water – 44g Rose Hydrosol – 6g Glycerin – 4g – Decyl glucoside – 1g Saliguard PPC Preservative.

Oily skin

Our oily skin cleanser has a slightly higher surfactant for better cleansing power, but still gentle. We can substitute around half of the water for Witch Hazel Hydrosol, try to get the alcohol free one. You could also add an optional 0.2–0.3% of niacinamide if you wanted to elevate it more but for now lets keep it simple.

The recipe looks like this; 47g Distilled Water – 40g Witch hazel Hydrosol – 4g Decyl Glucoside – 4g Coco Glucoside – 4g Glycerin – 1g Preservative

Dry Skin 

Here we are adding a little extra humectant, and  lowering the surfactant. We also feel adding aloe vera gel would be a lovely addition.

The recipe looks like this; 82g Distilled Water – 5g Glycerin – 7g Aloe Vera gel – 5g Decyl GlucosidNo extras.

Sensitive Skin 

This one is super simple. We are going for low and only one surfactant. We are also going to lower the glycerin. This one is so mild that I often use it as an eyelash wash. 

The recipe looks like this; 93g Distilled Water – 2g Glycerin – 4g Decyl Glucoside – preservative.

How to use this foaming cleanser 

1. Pump 1–2 pumps of foam into damp hands. Because you’re using a foamer bottle, the product will already come out light and airy so you don’t need much.
2. Gently massage the foam onto damp skin using small circular movements. There’s no need to scrub. Let the surfactants do the work of lifting away dirt, excess oil and daily build-up.
3. Rinse thoroughly with lukewarm water, then gently pat your skin dry with a clean towel.
4. Follow with your usual toner, serum or moisturiser.

How to store it 

Store in a cool, dry place, away from direct sunlight, and place the lid on after each use. With a proper preservative such as Saliguard PPC, you can generally expect a shelf life of around 6 months.

Types of Homemade Facial Cleansers (And Which One Is Best?)

Not all cleansers work in the same way. The texture, ingredients, and cleansing strength can vary depending on the type of cleanser you choose. When making your own homemade facial cleanser, it’s helpful to understand the different styles so you can pick one that suits your skin.

Here are the most common types of DIY face cleansers.

Final Thoughts

This simple DIY foaming cleanser is one of the easiest ways to start making your own skincare. With just a few ingredients and a foamer bottle, you can create a gentle daily cleanser that feels fresh, effective and balanced.

The recipe is purposely minimal, so it works well for most skin types. From here, you can begin experimenting by swapping part of the water for hydrosols or adjusting the surfactants, or adding simple functional ingredients to suit your own skin better.