Hello there! 😀
I am not sure if I ever told you that there is a way to preserve our detergents with SUGAR 😀
Well, this is a recipe for a very very delicate face wash 😉
Why sugar?
Sugar at low concentration is very loved by bacteria, BUT at very high concentration (around 35%) it is definitely too much for them.
I use FRUCTOSE in this recipe simply because it feels the best on the skin (it makes the detergent feel very silky and smooth), while other kinds of sugars don’t make the same effect.
Another good news about using sugar in the detergent is that it actually makes the detergent much milder and thicker! 😀
So, no drawbacks?
Yes and no 😀
The thing is that we cannot use this preserving system in every cosmetic (obviously). Just imagine how sticky a cream would be, or how it would glue the hair if we used this in a shampoo or an hair conditioner 😀 BUT at the same time, for bubble baths, or face wash I think this is a very good preserving system 😉
Now… straight to the recipe! 😀
[If this is the first time you are on my blog… you might want to learn the basics first! Check HERE the list of all the recipes and the theory-posts. Also, if you have no idea where to buy these ingredients, I made a post with a list of online shops where you might find what you are looking for. Check HERE]
RECIPE:
Phase A:
Sodium Cocopolyglucoside Tartrate 5 (this is a very delicate surfactant. The bad side is that it might be a little bit smelly and it’s color is amber and therefore it doesn’t allow you to make a very clear detergent if that’s what you are looking for. The good news is that, with just a concentration of 5% it doesn’t bring too much bad smell or color to the detergent).
Decyl Glucoside 4 (I am also using a combination of glucosides: they are also quite delicate surfactants, specially at this concentration 😉 )
Lauryl Glucoside 3
Coco Glucoside & Gliceryl Oleate 2
Essential Oil or Fragrance oil (enough) 😀
Phase B:
Water to 100
Glycerin 2.5
Fructose 45 (it would be effective already at 35%, but I prefer to use higher amount in this recipe for a couple of reasons: the first is that I want to be really really sure that I have added enough sugar to have my face wash preserved, the second is that, being a face wash, it has very low amount of surfactants and they wouldn’t make my face wash thick enough… since the fructose helps thickening the detergent, I decided to avoid adding a gelling agent and I choose to increase the fructose percentage)
Phase C:
Cocamidopropyl Betaine 3 (this surfactant is to improve the foam)
Check the pH and (if needed) adjust to 5.5 (how to adjust? if it is too low (but it shouldn’t result too low) you can add a few drops of solution of water and sodium hydroxide; if it is too high you can add a little bit of citric acid) – obviously, once you add the pH adjusters… you check the pH again and continue until you reach your 5.5 pH. 😉
Procedure is extremely simple!
Here an easy “how to”:
[Notice that my picture show you how to make one Kg of face wash. The recipe above is simply for 100 grams but the procedure is the same]
1) Measure the Phase A in a becher
2) Mix it and put it aside
3) Measure the glycerin and the fructose
4) Add the water and mix
5) Mix the two phases together
6) Add the last ingredient (Cocamidopropyl Betaine) and stir
7) Check the pH and adjust to 5.5 if needed. [Yes, I added a couple of drops of food grade colorant 😀 if you didn’t notice 😀 😀 😀 ]
Hope you enjoyed this extremely simple recipe for face wash! 😀
For more recipes click HERE
To learn how to formulate cosmetics click HERE
For a list of online cosmetic ingredients suppliers click HERE
HAVE A GREAT DAY!! 😀
It's all in my hands 
Hi. Thanks for this great post. I have some questions:
1) Do 35% sugar level can preserve the product well? I did some research before and found that it needs at least 60% sugar to preserve a jam. (It is also included in FDA document I remember, but it may be wrong). What do you think about this?
2) I am trying to make a gentle facial wash with combination of Decyl Glucoside and CAPB (may include PEG-6 CAPRYLIC/CAPRIC GLYCERIDES if needed?), do you think this is a good combination?
I can find this blend: Water (and) Sodium Lauroyl Methyl Isethionate (and) Cocamidopropyl Betaine (and) Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate (and) Sodium Methyl Oleoyl Taurate (and) Trisodium Ethylenediamine Disuccinate if my blend above is not good.
P.S: I am loving your blog day by day, especially your writing style, a joy to read. Thank you again.
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Hello!
About the 35% this is what I learnt in a course but I wouldn’t be able to tell if it needed more fructose. With this I mean that I don’t have any scientific argument to support this right now (I am on phone).
However the 60% sounds very high in a jam as well. Might be that it is a very high limit they have written since we are talking about a food item (jam), so maybe to be extra sure. However you could try adding a higher percentage of sugar in your detergent if you wish (I added 45%) .
I have never used CAPB, so it sounds fine but I have never even seen it (no idea about viscosity). Just by theory it could work!
Thank you for your kind words!!
Sorry I couldn’t be more helpful!
Have a great day!! 🙂
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Oh, CAPB is Cocamidopropyl Betaine, I think there is a misunderstanding here, sorry he he.
You have a point about that high level of sugar in a fruit jam. With that amount of fruits, that level of sugar is required I think.
You did a great job in identifying how is a good shampoo, but how a about a good facial cleanser? 🙂 . I am dying to read your article about how to identify a good facial cleanser 😀 .
I still not understand why people include many surfactants in a facial cleanser, assuming that we dont need lots of bubbles for our face cleansing.
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Oh I am sorry!! Decyl Gl and… CAPB might work fine. You might have to work on the viscosity, but you just have to experiment and of course it depends on how liquid or thick you want your face cleanser!
I think the subject would be huuuge to write a post 🙂 however consider just this:
1) yes, mixing many surfactants (specially in low %) makes the detergent usually more gentle, however…
2) formulators for commercial products cannot make a simple and easy formula with few ingredients because it would look unprofessional/ they are expected to create a new formula that others will find hard to duplicate/ it looks more cool (for people who don t know much about formulating detergents) to have a huge list of ingredients: many people think that everything is functional.
Well often this is not the case 🙂 there are very good products with simple formulas so just experiment and try to find what is best for you! 🙂
Good Luck!! 🙂
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Thank you. You are absolutely right. But do you consider about cleaning property of the detergent? For ex my combination of Decyl Glucoside & CAPB might be very gentle, but will it clean enough? I am still learning about this 🙂
Hope you would write about making other types of facial cleanser in the future, as well as pros and cons 🙂 .
P.S: you seem to know EEting Ng, thus you might interested in Natural Skincare Formulation Group. 😉
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I have read that people talk greatly about this combination in a shampoo! I never tried it myself 🙂 all you have to do is calculate the Active Surfactant matter between 10%-15% and make a small batch and try it! 🙂
You will find out only by experimenting! 🙂
Yes I know Eeting 🙂
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Hi… I’ve been reading your blogs for awhile to get a better understanding about surfactants and all. I love your stuff!
I wanted to ask, sorry if you already made it clear but I couldn’t find the answer elsewhere in your site.
You have 3 different phases.
When you say water to 100 in phase B do I have to subtract from the other phases?
TQ
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Hi, I made a post which explains “water to 100”.
It means that you add as much water as it is needed to reach 100 grams (or 100%, depends how you look at it) in the FULL formula.
So, if A contains a total of 20 grams, C contains 15 and B contains 5 grams + “water to 100” your water will be 100 – 20 – 15 – 5 = 60 grams of water.
Hope it’s clear 🙂
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