Rhassoul clay is an ancient clay which was formed under the Atlas Mountains in Morocco. The clay deposits are deeply buried which makes them very difficult to obtain.

Rhassoul clay has very long history of use in beauty care. It was used in ancient Rome and Egypt by the nobility. Even today it remains a favorite with upscale spas and resorts worldwide.

Rhassoul clay is a smectic or swelling clay. Smectites are three-layer clay minerals. They consist of two layers of interconnected silica-tetrahedrons which enclose a central Metal hydroxide -octahedron layer (M=Al, Fe, Mg and others). A water layer is sandwiched between the layers. The silicate layers have a slightly negative charge. This weak charge absorbs cations such as sodium, calcium and others in the natural state.

Rhassoul clay is very rich in trace minerals. These minerals detoxify the skin using by exchanging themselves for a variety of compounds including toxic metals and polar organic (oily) compounds.

The top structure in the illustration is repeated throughout the clay in layers. An essential characteristic of all smectite minerals is their ability to absorb tremendous amounts of water and other liquids into their sheet structures. This gives rhassoul clay extraordinary swelling properties. This combination of liquid and cation absorption and exchange is responsible for the unique properties of rhassoul clay. We recommend increasing the amount of liquids (water, etc) when using rhassoul in cold process soap. We suggest using no more than 2% rhassoul clay in most soap applications.

How can I use Rhassoul Clay?

Rhassoul clay can be used in a wide variety of applications from facial masques to soaps. Rhassoul clay had all of the free water removed when it was deposited millions of years ago. It is delivered as a dry powder which will absorb much water. You will need to compensate for absorbed water because the addition of the clay will cause substantial thickening. Natural clays have some variation in their properties from lot to lot making adjustments to the water content of formulations necessary.

Check the formulation to the left, or click here for more rhassoul clay ideas.