Cream

A cream is an emulsion: oil droplets held evenly through water by an emulsifier, thickened until the formula holds its shape on a fingertip. The oil phase does the work you feel. Emollients smooth the gaps between surface skin cells. Occlusives such as shea butter, petrolatum or dimethicone slow the water escaping from skin. That is why a cream still feels comfortable an hour later where a gel has gone.

Body heat is the application tool. Cream blush, cream shadow and cream contour soften on contact with a warm fingertip. They blend into a skin-like film with no brush at all. The formulas then set only partially, which keeps them movable for a minute or two. Sponges and dense brushes work as well, though they absorb more product than fingers do.

Weight is the cost. On oily skin the oil phase migrates through the day, so a cream base slides toward the nose and creases by mid-afternoon. Jars add a second problem. Fingers carry bacteria into the pot each time, and light and air degrade sensitive ingredients such as vitamin C and retinol. A tube or an airless pump protects a cream better than a wide-mouth jar. Some rich creams bring closed bumps along the jawline within a couple of weeks. When that happens, the formula is too heavy for that zone rather than for your whole face.