Colloidal Oats - Let's Make Our Own!

This is simply a matter of patience and a couple of good tools. And, if you happen to bake, there's double bonus here (all shall soon be revealed!).

Today, we're going to make our own version of colloidal oatmeal! Shall we get started?

What's Colloidal?

The word colloidal comes from the word colloid, which is a mixture in which one substance (such as oats) is microscopically dispersed in another (such as water, hydrosol, or any liquid).

Here's an illustration of a stable and an unstable colloid

Colloidal Oatmeal

As oats in their natural state (and size) will tend to act like the example you see on the right, the object of this exercise is to create an oaty powder so fine and light that it disperses evenly and effortlessly in our chosen liquid.

To disperse perfectly (and to make true colloidal oats) takes a bit more equipment and doing than we can do in a DIY setting. But we can approximate colloidal oatmeal and create a more evenly dispersible ingredient by grinding, sifting, and sifting some more.

Method

You'll need

• a coffee grinder (I used my dedicated cosmetics grinder) 
• a sieve
• bowls
• container 

Start by grinding the oats thoroughly.
Tip: You're going to be using a bit more than you might think, so grind up a fair sized portion.

Pass the ground oats through your sieve.
Pass them through again.
And again.
And again.
As you continue sifting, remove the large oat bits and place them into a separate bowl.
Below: what was left in the sieve after 3 passes.

When you have achieved the silkiest, smoothest powder you think you can possibly achieve, your oats are ready to be packaged in an airtight container and labelled with a date until you choose to use them in your bath, face cleansing powder, or other lovely product.

Yield

If you check the picture at the very top of this post, you'll see how much there was left after grinding, sifting and sifting some more.

The cup on the left holds the sifted oats. The bowl on the right is the leftovers.

Now, if you're anything like me, you can't bear the thought of tossing the leftovers and want to find something to use them for.

Here's a Few Edible Oaty Ideas

Baked Oatmeal Cake by WholeNewMom
Oatmeal Pancakes by Chow & Chatter
Lowfat Oatmeal Banana Bread by MakeitBakeitBuyitFakeit

Enjoy!

More Info

Colloid: Wikipedia
What Makes Colloidal Oatmeal Colloidal? (this blog)

Do Tell

Do you use ground or colloidal oats in any of your skincare products? Please share in a comment below.

Attribution: Illustration of colloid: SunKart at en.Wikipedia