Lactobionic Acid Cream DIY

Hello there!
This is a recipe for an amazing cream (I have used it for few months now, so I edited the beginning of this article) 🙂

Lactobionic Cream 10

[If this is the first time you read on this website, here are many articles about how to make REAL creams at home. Learn a little bit of theory and this page will start making sense too 😀 GO HERE you won’t be sorry! ]

This cream has a quite consistent oil phase (or Phase B) because I needed it for winter, however (after one month of trial) I don’t think it is enough greasy for people with dry skin or who live in very cold countries (I find myself in Finland at the moment and at -20°C my skin was still dry 😀 ).
For this cream I tried to formulate a different grease-fall compared to what I usually make because, even though I have a quite oily skin, I have found out that low-density oils appear on my skin much more easily than more heavy ones: that’s because the lower the density of an oil, the higher the spreading ability. So that’s it, I tried adding more butters than I normally do and I must say my skin liked it, even though I am still not totally satisfied with the feel of this cream and I will definitely have to experiment much more before I find the “perfect grease-fall”.

Now a comment on the active ingredients 😀
In this cream there are quite a bunch 😀 but the PRINCE ingredient here is LACTOBIONIC ACID! This acid is a strong antioxidant (it should therefore have also a good action again light pigmentation of the skin, so to say: if you have little brown spots “after pimple”), it has good hydrating properties and, being a (mild) acid it also helps the exfoliation of skin and therefore its renewal 😀
It can be used from 2% up to 15% and it is usually used in substitution of other stronger acids (let’s say, for instance, glicolic acid) because it is not as strong and therefore it is more suitable for sensible skins.
Instead of leaving this Lactobionic Acid alone, however, I paired it with another good active ingredient: GLUCONOLACTONE! Also this one is a mild acid and doesn’t become aggressive once on the skin. Lactobionic acid and gluconolactone together, help fighting pigmentation of the skin caused by oxidation.

Because this acid would make the cream have a too low pH for the carbomer (carbopol ultrez 21) to work, I decided to simply omit it and rise the % of Xanthan gum up to 0.2%.

Now, TO THE RECIPE! 😀

Phase A:
Water to 100 (HERE the explanation)
Glycerin 1.5 
Xanthan gum (non transparent grade) 0.2
Lactobionic Acid 3 
Trimetilglicine 3 (it has soothing properties, you can omit it if you don’t have it)

Phase B:
Cetiol Sensoft 3
Tocopherol (Vitamin E) 1
Murumuru butter 2
Kokum butter 2
Jojoba oil 1
Metil glucose sesquistearate 3
Cetyl alcohol 1
cetyl palmitate 0.5

Phase C (oily): 
Safflower oil 3
Dry flo 0.5
Aperoxid 3 drops

Phase C (hydro): 
Gluconolactone acid 2 
Water 10
(caustic soda solution 20% to bring pH up to 4.5)

Sodium Lactate 3 (helps hydration of the skin, you can omit it)
Cosgard 0.6 (or any other preservative used at the concentration needed for 100 grams)

HOW TO:
1) Measure the Phase A and warm it up to 70°C (for the record: you add glycerin, you add xanthan gum to it, you mix and then add the water where you have already poured lactobionic acid and trimetilglicine little by little)
Lactobionic Cream 2
It will form a light gel.

2) Measure the Phase B and warm it up in a double boiler (notice my extra professional double boiler system 😀 ) up to 70°C.
Lactobionic Cream 1
3) Once both the Phases have reached 70°C pour the Phase B into Phase A and mix with an immersion mixer like we have always done with any other cream
Lactobionic Cream 3
It will be very liquid and it is fine.
DON’T PANIC and keep stirring it until it cools down to room temperature (might take 30 min).

4) Add the Phase C (oily)
Lactobionic Cream 4

5) Make the Phase C (hydro) checking that the pH is not lower than 4.5
Lactobionic Cream 5

6) Add it to the cream, add also the preservative and the sodium lactate (you can also add few drops of cosmetic grade fragrance oil or essential oil) and use the immersion mixer again, then check the pH (it should be 4.5, if it is not… adjust it so it becomes 4.5 😀 )
Lactobionic Cream 6

7) Keep it in the container for a couple of days, mixing it every now and then (of course cover the becher with some plastic wrap paper so nothing will fall inside, specially not dust 😀 ), this is because the cream will thicken up in a few days.
Lactobionic Cream 7

ENJOY!!! 😀 😀 😀

Lactobionic Cream 9

Comment on the cream:
I like this cream a lot but the consistency is more liquid than I expected and I would like to find another gelling agent which will resist acid pH (Xanthan gum is not the best: it gives a weird finish to the cream 😀 ). I will also have to improve the grease-fall, probably increasing even more the butters and lowering the cetiol sensoft 😀

Let me know what you think and if you try making it and if you have any idea on how to improve it! 😀

Cheers!
UPDATE!
I am IN LOVE with this cream!!! I have been using it for months now and I truly truly truly love it! 🙂 
It is hydrating, it doesn’t make my skin oily, it makes my skin glow… I made so much (I think I made 500 gr of cream 😀 ) that I have been using it also as a mask and I adore it! 🙂 
Let me know if you try making it! 

For more recipes click HERE 
To learn how to formulate cosmetics click HERE
For a list of online cosmetic ingredients suppliers click HERE 

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20 thoughts on “Lactobionic Acid Cream DIY”

  1. Nice Information, thanks for sharing. Hope we will read many other good things from you in future also.
    Regards

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  2. Hi, this formulation looks wonderful. I’m curious as were you got your acids at, (gluconolactone .) Once I get my hands on the acids, I am going to make it.

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    1. Hello! 🙂
      I posted a list of websites that I have tried (I haven’t tried all, though) where you could find the cosmetic ingredients 🙂
      The name of the post is something like “Buying cosmetic ingredients online”.
      However, I found the acids very cheap on the Polish website (the name is difficult to remember for me but the website names is the only one in my list starting with a “Z” 😀 you will find it for sure! 🙂

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  3. Hi! I’ve got both of those acids, bought from the same website, but i have no all of “Yours” ingredients for cream. I have some items that i can create serum, can i count on your help? I formulated already one with gluconolactone, seems fine, but it my first creation, and i’m not sure it’s done correct. I would appreciate of advice from someone experienced.

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  4. Pingback: Blog-blog DIY – djubid

  6. Have you found a perfect emulsifier for a low PH?

    When can you make a face toner. Keep up the good work.

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  7. just saw your reply. Am dancing like seriously. Thanks for replying.
    You talked about the cream being softer than you would like, thats why i asked if u got a substitute for it(emulsifier). Could HEC do a better job in this reciepe?

    Its hard to find lactobionic acid here. Could i use lactic acid in place of it? If yes, what will make a good synergy with lactic acid. Thank you.

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    1. Lactic acid is something else. The thickness of a lotion depends on the thickeners and not the emulsifiers, that’s why I didn’t understand the question 🙂
      I haven’t made this cream again but I have made many different ones! Lactobionic acid is “essential” for making this cream but it is not essential to make a good cream.
      You can use other actives that suit your aim. What do you want from your cream?

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  8. I want to make a cream with exfoliating properties to fade my dark spots from pimples and also make my skin glow. I dont mind a little bit of lightening action.
    I have the following
    Lactic acid
    Alpha arbutin
    MAP
    L ascobic
    Willow bark extract powder
    Niacinamide
    N-acetyl glucosamine
    But i am open to a suggestions for my purpose in my face cream and hope to hunt down the necesarry ones even if it means ordering from abroad. I love to have my face back, i know it will take time but i am patient. Thanks so so much for your response

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    1. Niacinamide is good at 5% for brightening skin (and not just that).
      For a night cream you can use the arbutin.
      If you still have pimples niacinamide and willow bark extract powder are good.
      The acids you have, are not easy to use.
      You could do the L ascorbic acid serum on my blog, but now it is not the best time in the year to use acids actually. The sun makes the skin sensitive and acids make things worse. Wait when it is autumn or winter for these “treatments” 🙂

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  9. Thanks so much for your Advice.am in Africa. Its Rainy season here and a great season for skin pampering😙. Is it paramount to combine the niacinamide with n-acetyl? Whats the best approach for chemical exfoliation? I want to do it atleast 2 to 3 times a week and follow up with the night cream and sunscreen when goin out in the morning. Sorry if asking too much😣😣

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    1. No I never used N-acetyl Glucosamine so I have no idea what the combination of it with Niacinamide would do.
      I wouldn’t combine too many ingredients, specially if it is the first times you make lotions: better to make simple cream. As I said, niacinamide at 5% can already have good effects, so don’t add too many things unless it is stated somewhere that they work in synergy. Did you read somewhere that Niacinamide and N-acetyl Glucosamine work in synergy? What kind of synergy? Does the effect make sense for the cream you want to obtain? (you don’t need to reply to these questions to me, they are just examples of questions you should ask yourself when you formulate a cream 😉 ).

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  10. What % of arbutin and willow bark extract would give the effect? Thanks and sorry for plenty questions😣😣

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    1. Arbutin no more than 2%, willow bark extract you have to check at what percentage it is suggested its use. I have never used it nor owned it, so you will have to make sure that the suggested pHs are compatible (of both these ingredients)

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