Tag: active ingredients

Pink Sugar Frosting Body Lotion (Recipe)

LAB NOTES & SAFETY NOTICE
These are personal experiments for educational use only— not instructions and not for commercial or consumer use. By proceeding, you assume all risks related to safety, testing, and regulatory compliance.
[Full Legal Disclaimer & Safety Requirements]

DSCF3571

Silk-Touch Body Cream

Hello Hello! 😀 My goal for this one was to make a super emollient cream—the kind that feels really luxurious on the skin. I didn’t want to pack it with a million actives; I just wanted it to do good for the body! We spend so much time on our faces, but our body skin deserves some love too, right? 😉

The “Grease-Fall” (My Oil Selection):

Since this is for the body, I wasn’t worried about oils being comedogenic. I used 5% Shea Butter (which is comedogenic, whatever you read online! :P) because it is absolute heaven for body skin.

For the rest, I created a “Grease-Fall” using light and extra light oils. Most of these are synthetic or waxes (like Jojoba) because they make the cream feel so much better on the skin. If you want only natural oils, it won’t feel quite as silky, but Jojoba gets you pretty close!

The Formula:

Phase A:

  • Water to 100

  • Glycerin 5

  • Carbopol Ultrez 21 – 0.1 (A little gelling agent to keep it bouncy!)

Phase B (The “No-Heat” Emulsifier):

  • Abil Care 85 – 2 (This is a silicone-based emulsifier. I don’t use it on my face because it gives me tiny pimples, but for the body? I totally enjoy it! It makes the cream velvety and it’s almost impossible to fail with it! :D)

  • Tinovis ADE – 1.5 (This is the thickener/gel maker that works at room temperature—no heating needed, yeheee!)

  • Shea Butter – 5

  • Safflower Oil – 3

  • Borage Oil – 3

  • Jojoba Oil – 5

  • Dicaprylyl Ether – 5 (Extra light synthetic oil)

  • Cetiol Sensoft – 5 (The lightest oil ever—it feels like silicone but it isn’t!)

  • Tocopherol – 1 (Vitamin E)

Phase C (The Actives):

  • Allantoin – 0.35

  • Oat Hydrolyzed Proteins – 1.65 * Panthenol – 1 (Vitamin B5)

  • Preservative (The amount needed for yours!)

  • Fragrance Oil (I used “Pink Sugar” from Gracefruit… mmm! :D)

Notes from the Beaker:

  1. The Allantoin Hack: Allantoin can be a pain to dissolve—it gets gritty! But I found a trick: if you mix it with the hydrolyzed proteins first, it melts in so fast! That does the trick every time! 😀

  2. No Double Boiler: Since I used Abil Care 85 and Tinovis ADE, I didn’t have to heat anything up! It’s a fast way to get a professional texture.

  3. Mixing: I just poured Phase A into Phase B and mixed. It gets thick and silky almost instantly.

  4. Substitution Note: If you swap the emulsifier for one that does need heat, you have to move the Tinovis to Phase C because it hates heat!

Final Verdict: I am so satisfied with the “Silk-Touch” on this one. It’s emollient without being a sticky mess. ENJOY!!! 😀

Buying online COSMETIC INGREDIENTS

Buying Cosmetic Ingredients Online

LAB NOTES & SAFETY NOTICE
These are personal experiments for educational use only— not instructions and not for commercial or consumer use. By proceeding, you assume all risks related to safety, testing, and regulatory compliance.
[Full Legal Disclaimer & Safety Requirements]

Maybe you’ve been reading my posts thinking “yeah right… and where on earth am I gonna find these ingredients?!”
Well I guess it is time for me to show you a few online shops of raw material of cosmetic grade!
This is obviously very important because if you use a fragrance oil which is not of aimed in cosmetic use… well, don’t be surprised if you get a strong allergic reaction or even something worse… same goes if you use urea which you find in gardening shops: that won’t do! 😀

This said, of course in the online shops which sell raw materials for cosmetic use… all the ingredients are of cosmetic grade… but here a few tips in case the online shop you found is not in my list:
– maybe before you purchase, read around the internet if there are experiences of other people
– for each ingredient they sell, they are supposed to own a MSDS which is the Material Safety Data Sheet. The MSDS should be available for each ingredient on their website or they should send it to you after purchase: if it is not available on their website, before you place an order contact them and be sure they are going to send you one. This is important.
– Before purchasing try asking some information about one of the ingredients they sell: for example at what percentage it should be used, if it shouldn’t be used with certain ingredients and so on. Usually they have this information on the ingredient page but sometimes they don’t. A serious supplier will be able to give you some information, however, don’t expect too much: don’t expect suppliers to be formulators.
– If it is the first time you want to buy raw material… DON’T BUY EVERYTHING you find! Make a small list of ingredients that will be really useful (an emulsifier, a thickening agent, a gelling agent). Start planning to make simple creams, pick few active ingredients (maximum 3!), really: keep it simple! 😀
– do NOT go for the “nice name” ingredient: for example, if an ingredient name is “NO MORE WRINKLES concentrated active ingredient” 99% of the time it is a big NO NO NO 😀 If you click on it and look for the INCI name, probably it comes out that this “concentrate active ingredient” is actually made of “water, lecithin (emulsifier), some kind of oil, the great ingredient” and you can be sure that your great ingredient will be at minimum %.

Ok… after having warned you… 😀
Let me put some links! 😀
NOTE: I am not publicizing any website, I am just posting some websites I know of… that might help you in starting your serious COSMETIC DIY! 😀
I have bought only from some of these websites and obviously I am not responsible if something on your order goes wrong.

Here we go:

Asia:
http://www.bulkactives.com – good website! It has some ingredients which are very difficult to find somewhere else. Prices are a little bit higher than in other places.
http://stores.skinessentialactives.com/

North America: 
http://www.makingcosmetics.com – many ingredients and also sells in bulk!
http://www.ingredientstodiefor.com
http://www.lotioncrafter.com/

Europe:
http://www.gracefruit.com – UK – Has many many ingredients for soap-making and also some ingredients. Long list also of fragrance oils. Prices are quite high compared to other websites but some fragrances are difficult to find somewhere else.
http://www.activeformulas.com – UK – website mostly about active ingredients. It has a vast choice.
http://www.aromantic.co.uk/home/products/active -ingredients.aspx – UK 
http://www.thesoapkitchen.co.uk/ 
http://www.phoenixproducts.co.uk/
http://www.sensoryperfection.co.uk/ – if you click HERE you will find my review of some of their fragrance oils 

http://www.zrobsobiekrem.pl/pl/i/Information-for-foreigners/129 – PL – This website is from Poland and you can use Google Translate to translate everything written on the page. It sells cheap plant extracts and also some emulsifiers and active ingredients!

http://www.glamourcosmetics.it/ – IT – Probably my favourite Italian website that sells ingredients. Very serious, ship extremely fast, have good variety of ingredients – if you click HERE you will find my review of some of their fragrance oils.
http://www.dermolife.it/shop/index.php – IT – Italian website with good prices about tensioactives. Many active ingredients (vitamins, minerals, aminoacids) also.
http://www.farmaciavernile.it/ – IT – good ingredients (also some special ones which I couldn’t find on other websites).

http://www.dragonspice.de – DE – website from Germany.
http://www.manske-shop.com – DE – website from Germany. It has mostly ingredients about making soaps, therefore a lot of butters and oils, many fragrance oils, essential oils and only few cosmetic ingredients (but basic emulsifiers and active ingredients are there) – if you click HERE you will find a review on some of their fragrance oils.
http://www.alexmo-cosmetics.de/
http://www.aliacura.de/

http://www.aroma-zone.com – FR – French website. Many kinds of oils and butters (very exotic), emulsifiers, essential oils and some active ingredients (but read the INCI of each, before purchasing).

http://www.jabonariumshop.com – SP – website from Spain mainly about soap-making. Good prices.

http://kosmetikmacherei.at – AU

http://www.candlemaking.gr/ – GR

Australia:
http://stores.skinessentialactives.com/
https://www.escentialsofaustralia.com/
http://www.n-essentials.com.au/
http://www.aussiesoapsupplies.com.au/
http://www.heirloombodycare.com.au/

Please let me know if you know any good shop from your own country.
Notice also that if you make an order from a website which is not in your country, you might have to pay custom duties… so get informed about it before you make your order! 🙂

Formulating lotion: Phase C & ACTIVE INGREDIENTS- THEORY pt.6

LAB NOTES & SAFETY NOTICE
These are personal experiments for educational use only— not instructions and not for commercial or consumer use. By proceeding, you assume all risks related to safety, testing, and regulatory compliance.
[Full Legal Disclaimer & Safety Requirements]

My Lab Notes: Phase C—The “Cool Down” & Active Ingredients

Hello Hello! 😀

If Phase A and B are the “body” of my cream, then Phase C is the personality! This is the “Cool Down” phase where I add all the fun stuff, but it’s also the part that makes me the most nervous. Why? Because most of these ingredients are total divas—they hate heat!

The “Waiting Game” Protocol

Sips water. Patience is everything here. I’ve learned that I absolutely have to wait until my emulsion drops below 40°C. If I get impatient and add things too early, I’m basically just cooking my expensive actives!

  • My Checklist: I usually keep my total “active load” under 10% to make sure the emulsion stays stable and doesn’t get “cranky.”

1. The “Antioxidant Cocktail” Theory

I’ve been reading that it’s better to use a team of antioxidants rather than just one.

  • My Observation: Mixing Vitamin E (Tocopherol) with something like Resveratrol seems to create a much stronger defense. It’s like they protect each other while they protect the oils in my cream!

2. Acids & The pH Balance

I use things like Lactic or Citric acid to either exfoliate or just fix the pH.

  • Safety Note: My notes are very strict about this—if I use chemical exfoliants like Salicylic acid, those batches are for NIGHT USE ONLY. I don’t want to mess with photosensitivity!

3. Niacinamide: The “Flushing” Constraint

Niacinamide is a hero in my oily-skin research (I usually use 1–4%), but it has a very specific rule: pH 5.0 to 5.5. * The Risk: I’ve documented that if the pH goes too high or too low, it can turn into Nicotinic Acid. If that happens… PHEW! It can cause the skin to flush and turn red. Not what I’m going for! 😀

4. Soothing & The “Grit” Problem

I love adding Panthenol (B5) and Allantoin for that soothing feeling.

  • Lab Lesson: Allantoin is a tricky one! It only dissolves at 0.4%. I’ve had batches where I used too much and ended up with “grit” in the cream. It felt like a scrub instead of a lotion! Now I’m much more careful with my measurements.

5. Eye Area Experiments (The Caffeine Boost)

For my eye creams, I’ve been experimenting with Caffeine and Escin. They are fascinating because of their “vasoprotective” properties—basically trying to help with puffiness and drainage.

**The “Reality Check” on Sourcing 😉 **

This is where my inner detective comes out. Marketing can be so deceptive!

  • The Q10 Case Study: Pure Coenzyme Q10 is a bright, intense yellow. Even at 0.1%, it turns the cream yellow.

  • My Thought: When I see a “Pure White” Q10 cream in a store, I just smile and shake my head. I know the concentration must be almost zero!

  • Check the SDS: I’ve learned to always check the Safety Data Sheet. “Liquid Q10” is often mostly filler with just a tiny bit of the real stuff. I want to know exactly what I’m putting in my beakers!

It really is a science, and every time I cool down a batch, I feel like I’m learning a new secret. It’s all in my hands! 😉

HAVE A GREAT DAY! 😄