1. Mask crumbles on your face
Two fixes for a mask that crumbles on your face:
1. Add more oils and/or
2. Add more titanium dioxide
Adding more oil to a mask makes the mixture smoother and it retains more water
which all counter the crumbling effect. Use between 5-8 percent oil by weight to
keep your mask smooth. Make your adjustments cautiously because using too
much oil will make your mask greasy and null the detoxifying effect of the mask.
Like oils, titanium dioxide helps the mask retain water which mitigates the drying
effect of the mask.
2. The overly itchy and irritating mask
If a crumbly mask vexes your skin, it’s probably because the mask also itches your
skin. Removing the crumbling effect from your mask as describe above is one way
to stop the itching.
If that does not work, try these options:
1. Remove essential oils additives, one at a time from your mask. Combined
in a clay mixture, your skin may not respond well to certain essential oils.
2. Reduce the percentage of ascorbic acid. Adding a tad too much ascorbic
acid may irritate your skin. Use between 2-3 percent ascorbic acid.
Alternately, you do not need to add the ascorbic acid at all.
3. Use a different main clay material. As mentioned earlier, every clay bears
its own chemical and therapeutic properties. If you find that one clay
irritates your skin, try another clay.
4. In some cases, your preservative may irritate your skin. If you find that the
parabens in your clay mask irritate your skin, you can opt to skip the
preservatives and just store your clay mask in the refrigerator for one to
two weeks.
3. Mask is too thick or difficult to mix
If you find it too difficult to mix your mask, slowly add more water to the mix.
The amount of water needed to create a mask depends on your local climate. So
make certain to add water slowly to your clay mask while stirring. This way you
will not have a puddle of mud in your bowl, but a smooth clay mask.