A low molecular weight, tertiary amide terminated polyamide may be blended with a liquid hydrocarbon to form a transparent composition having gel consistency. The tertiary amide terminated polyamide may be prepared by reacting 'x' equivalents of dicarboxylic acid wherein at least 50 % of those equivalents are from polymerized fatty acid, 'y' equivalents of diamine such as ethylene diamine, and 'z' equivalents of a monofunctional reactant having a secondary amine group as the only reactive functionality. The stoichiometry of the reaction mixture is preferably such that 0.9 ≤ {x/(y+z)} ≤ 1.1 and 0.1 ≤ {z/(y+z)} ≤ 0.7. The gel contains about 5-50 % tertiary amide terminated polyamide, with the remainder preferably being pure hydrocarbon. The gels are useful in formulating personal care products and other articles wherein some degree of gel-like or self-supporting consistency is desired.