PROCEDURE.

Technical Field

The invention relates to a cosmetic product, its packaging and a process for making it.

In the cosmetics sector, products can be packaged in very different ways: from large formats for wholesalers and supermarkets to disposable packaging suitable for immediate use.

Prior Art Technology

One end-use product that has caught on in recent years are ready-to-use single-dose packages of face, body and hair cosmetics containing active ingredients, mostly dissolved in an aqueous solution. These products thus have a liquid - or nevertheless non-solid - form, inside of pearls, capsules and sachets, based on the quantity of product required for a single treatment.

The main limitations of these products are tied to the presence of liquids, which brings about numerous limitations from various perspectives.

First of all, in many parts of the world, climatic conditions can cause health issues for water-based products, due to both their limited preservation time and their proneness to attack by germs and bacteria.

Furthermore, the liquid component has a proportionally high impact on both overall weight and volume, which can thus give rise to transportation and usage issues for the end user when travelling by air, as well as shipping and storage problems for professionals in the sector.

Background of the Invention The aim of the present invention is therefore to remove the abovementioned drawbacks.

The invention, as it is characterised in the claims, achieves this aim thanks to a freeze-dried powder with a high concentration of active ingredients.

The main advantage obtained by the present invention is essentially that the product does not contain water or other liquids and, therefore, has a very small volume and weight, thus facilitating its transportation, shipping and storage.

Despite its small size, once mixed with the water available at its place of use, the contents increase in volume to become an actual single dose rather than just a "sample".

The absence of water also means that climatic conditions do not affect the preservation of the product and that the expiry times have more than doubled.

Furthermore, the product packaging enables a cosmetic compound to be made and used, entirely autonomously and hygienically, anywhere where there is even a very small amount of water available.

Further advantages and features of the invention will become more apparent from the detailed description below, including non-limiting embodiments.

Best Mode of Performing the Invention

The invention relates to a single-dose cosmetic product comprising a containment capsule, which contains a water-soluble powder comprising:

- at least 50% of a hydrocolloid substance;

- between 5% and 15% of unmodified starch;

- between 5% and 20% of oily active ingredients;

- between 5% and 20% of unmodified clay. The hydrocolloid substance is preferably selected from sodium carboxymethyl starch, or CMS, and sodium carboxymethylcellulose, or CMC; in both cases, its percentage should preferably be between 60% and 75%.

The percentage of unmodified starch, such as rice starch, is preferably between 5% and 10. This small quantity, preferably in a ratio of between 1 to 6 and 1 to 16 relative to the quantity of hydrocolloid (CMS or CMC), makes the starch easy to mix and dissolve in water, and suitable for forming a stable and homogeneous gelatinous compound even in the presence of oily active ingredients.

On the other hand, the presence of clay and a very small quantity (between 0.1% and 1%) of poly epsilon L-lysine allows a base to be formed for fixing the active ingredients.

The active principles preferably used are of varying natures, depending on the type of cosmetic compound to be obtained.

By way of example, when intending to obtain cosmetic compounds for face care, a complete line can comprise a face cleansing product based on micellar water, a lifting product based on anti-aging active ingredients such as marine collagen, an exfoliating product based on purifying active ingredients, a filler product based on hyaluronic acid, an illuminating product based on illuminating active ingredients, a moisturising product based on moisturising active ingredients.

For hair care compounds, the treatment can comprise remineralising products, products giving shine and volume; for body care, anti-cellulite products, draining and toning products. A packaging of these such products comprises a casing, which contains a capsule for containing the water-soluble powder and a hermetically sealed measuring bag. The measuring bag can contain the quantity of water necessary to dissolve the water-soluble powder contained in the capsule until obtaining a ready-to-use compound.

If the compound is a make-up remover, cotton pads or another support can simply be dipped into it and, once it soaks up the make-up remover, used to remove make-up.

If the compound is to be applied to part of the body, the measuring bag should have an openable portion, preferably at its vertex, so as to create a way out for the compound.

In one possible embodiment, the casing also acts as a measuring bag, thus making it possible to have an openable portion.

A process for making a single-dose cosmetic product of the type described comprises at least the following steps:

- pour 10 to 20 ml of water into a bowl or measuring bag, depending on the purpose of the compound to be obtained;

- open the containment capsule to pour the water-soluble powder into the water;

- mix the powder and water for 1 to 3 minutes.