Why Cold Cream Is Suddenly Hot

Cold cream is history’s vanity OG, a multitasking moisturiser, cleanser, and balm that our ancestors’ ancestors slathered on with zeal.

The incredible history of cold cream

“It’s the Big Momma of skincare,” says dermatologist Ava Shamban. “If you look at the most ancient versions, such as from Egypt, cold creams were made to nourish the skin.”

Around AD 170, Greek physician-philosopher Galen codified the recipe—a simple blend of beeswax, olive oil, and rosewater that you churned and churned until, as with mayonnaise or meringue, you created a sum much fluffier than its parts.

“Cold cream was originally very nutrient-dense,” Shamban says. “But then it became mass-produced in the 19th century with petroleum jelly and mineral oil, ingredients that don’t provide any nourishment. So these types of cold creams became viewed strictly as cleansers.”

And what a cleanser! We have cold cream to thank for Kleenex, which was invented in 1924 as a hygienic way to remove it from the face. Cold cream advertisers encouraged magazines to launch the first beauty sections.

In the ’20s Pond’s created what could be considered the world’s first skinfluencers, signing European royals and Vanderbilt Row It girls, as well as social activists, as spokeswomen.

By the ’30s, cold cream was ubiquitous on movie sets, both behind and in front of the camera, and its popularity persisted through the 1960s (both Marilyn Monroe and Jackie O were devoted to Pond’s).

Why does it work as a cleanser?

“Cold cream is both lipophilic and hydrophilic, so the oil sticks to the dirt and sebum in the skin, and then water helps rinse it all away,” says Libby Banks, co-founder of the Seated Queen.

Shamban notes that cold cream shouldn’t clog pores, and anyone using potent actives could benefit from switching to a cold cream cleanse: “It can help maintain a healthy skin barrier as well as prevent irritation and dryness caused by retinol or acids.”

Next gen cold creams

“There’s a hugely glamorous side to cold cream,” says Stephen de Heinrich de Omorovicza, founder of Omorovicza Budapest.

“I grew up loving classic movies, and I always associate cold cream with those screen sirens, amazing Hollywood actresses sitting at some vanity, smoking, drinking, and having an argument while applying cold cream.”

Now his Queen Cleanser, a decadent whip of sweet almond oil, soothing calendula, and Omorovicza’s signature Hungarian thermal water, is part of a new generation of creams that combine that stone cold glamour of Old Hollywood with the comforting, skin-cocooning nutrition found in Galen’s original recipe.

Queen Cleanser is intentionally packaged in a generous jar, de Omorovicza says, “so you can really go for it, get a really big four-finger scoop in your hand. There’s something about the gesture, the texture, the ritual that I find compelling and immensely cool.”

He’s not alone. There has been a tremendous resurgence in the popularity of cold cream, which is popping up all over social media feeds and new product launch rosters. Cold cream is dopamine dressing applied to the skin. On days when I need an extra hug from the world, I use a ping-pong-ball-size scoop of one of my favorites, and massage away.

The Seated Queen co-founders, fashion journalist Banks and her sister Josephine, a fashion buyer, set out to formulate a face wash that wouldn’t aggravate Josephine’s eczema. By replacing traditional mineral oil with the same healing oils found in top luxury facial oils—borage, argan, rosehip seed—they invented something much more, a deeply soothing all-in-one cleanser--moisturiser-mask.

“Our a-ha moment was when we realised that with the right high-quality ingredients, you could use a beautiful cold cream in many different ways. If you put it on dry skin and remove it with a damp cloth, it works as a gentle but effective cleanser.

“If you put it on damp, cleansed skin and leave it on overnight, it can do something completely different. The amazing oils penetrate, and you wake up deeply hydrated.”

Can one jar really do it all? “Yes, if it contains nutritious ingredients, 100 per cent,” says Shamban. “That’s the magic of cold cream.”

Prevention Australia Picks

Ego QV Ceramides Cream

Ego QV’s hydrating powerhouse is for both the face and body and is even suitable for sensitive, eczema-prone and acne-prone skin. It's fragrance free and formulated with a blend of three ceramides, glycerin and niacinamide.

Uriage Cold Cream

Formulated for dry and fragile skin, the Uriage Cold Cream nourishes, softens and soothes the skin thanks to its high concentration of glycerin and Beeswax.

Ella Bache Intensive Recovery Cream, $82

This is a multi-purpose, intensive recovery cream that comforts and relieves extremely dry, flaky and chapped skin. Ingredients include fish oil, thyme oil and lanolin.

CeraVe Moisturising Cream

This moisturising cream helps strengthen the skin's protective barrier. Suitable for sensitive skin, this oil-free, paraben free and fragrance-free cream also helps the skin hold on to moisture.

This is an edited extract of a story from the March 2023 issue of Town & Country.