All or any part of this article is not to be copied or reprinted without the express permission of the author for commercial purposes: soapcraft@xtra.co.nz
If you are a newcomer to making your own cosmetics, first read our information and instructions on Making Lotions and Creams and also Preservatives. After you have digested this our formulas will make sense to you, and you will understand why we use weights for our measurements.
Creating Lotions and Creams that suit your own individual needs can be most rewarding. Once you get the basic steps down it is quite simple and takes just a short period of your time. Here are some basic instructions to get you started.
Lotions and Creams have 3 components:
Water
Oil
Emulsifying Agent which allows them to combine (not unlike mayonaise source from scratch with eggs and oil)
Most formulations have what we call “Phases” or “Parts”:
The “Oil Phase” includes all your oil-soluble ingredients.
The “Water Phase” includes all the water- soluble ingredients
“Final phase” consists of all the ingredients you want to add after the emulsion has cooled to between 50 and 40 degree C or less. This is the typical temperature when applying a preservative.
An emulsion is comprised of little droplets of one phase surrounded by another.
A stable emulsion is the key to a good lotion or cream. Most formulas need primary and secondary emulsifiers to create stable emulsions that won’t separate over time. Other typical emulsion systems include the following primary and secondary emulsifiers.
Palm Stearic (vegetable based Stearic Acid) and Cetearyl Alcohol (vegetable based emulsifying wax)
Palm Stearic, Polysorbate 60, and Cetearyl Alcohol
Sorbitan Monostearate, Polysorbate 60 and Cetearyl Alcohol
Sorbitan Monostearate, Polysorbate 60
Beeswax and Borax
Lecithin and a secondary emulsifier
or there are two other emulsifiyers that maybe used as they have already been formulated with a mixture of emulsifiers. Such as
AS102 and SAMe click on the name to read the product lists.
The combinations are many and what you use is up to you. Starting simple is recommended. As you gain confidence you may start formulating your own recipes and add what you have in your own garden. Since all the components you are dealing with are chemicals (including your plants and oils) one may react with another. For this reason start with a minimum of ingredients until you know what you like. Here are some basic guidelines when formulating your own:
Emulsifiers 5-8% The exception is SAMe which maybe used a t the low rate of 4% to minimise waxiness.
Oils 12-20%
Water, Additives, and Botanicals to 100 %.
This means that if your emulsifiers and oils add up to 30 then you add 70 of water for eg 30ml of emulsifiers and oils will mean 70 mil of water.
Fragrances, Essential Oils, Botanicals and Actives are gernerally mixed in last when your lotion or cream has cooled to between 40 and 50 degrees..
Mixing
There are three important points to remember when mixing your oil and water phases.
You must heat both your water and oil phases separately (I have provided one recipe to the exception to this rule)and they must be at least 65-70 degrees C. If it is not hot enough your emulsifiers will not dissolve properly and you may land up with a “gritty ” lotion. For this reason it is important to have a thermometer to measure the temperature of your liquids.
You will need a scale to measure your ingredients with. Cosmetic formulas are measured by weight rather than volume. When measuring under 4 grams I usually measure up to 10 grams and then convert it to teaspoon or Tablespoons to get an accurate measurement. The total weight of the ingredients should add up to 100. You then multiply them by the amount you want to make. (For example to make 1500 grams multiply each weight by 15.
After you combine the oil and water phase, mix by hand, with a stick blender or a juice blender till the emulsion has cooled to between 40 to 50 degrees. You may then add your vitamins, fragrances and preservatives. Before your cream or lotion has completely thickened put it into your sterile containers. Unless your contianer is bought steralised we always recommend that they be sterlaised. If you are recycling containers they should be washed well and then rinsed in a 25% bleach solution or may be sprayed and wiped down with alcohol.
The creams and lotions will thicken as they cool. If you are using a hand blender use a container where your beaters are fully immersed to keep as little air from being incorporated as possible.
You may not cap your products before they have completely cooled as condensation collects on the lids and provides a lovely growth medium for fungus. I like to spray the inside of my caps with alcohol. However if making small manageable batches you may cap straight away BUT only as long as you continue to shake regularily until it has cooled completely and not allow any condensation to form under the lid or on the sides.
ALWAYS WORK WITH CLEAN EQUIPMENT AND WORK AREA.
Beginning in a clean work- space. Wipe your counters down with a bleach solution before starting. Sterilize your equipment beforehand as you would when you are canning. Some ways of doing this are to place them all into a dishwasher first, or by using 1 part bleach to 4 parts water as a rinse and or spraying well with pure alcohol.
Use glass or stainless steel to mix in.
Never use wood or plastic utensils as they harbor bacteria
Use sterilized or bottled water If you are using bottled water make sure it is Distilled water and not regular drinking water or spring water.
Package quickly and avoid touching the product
Avoid fresh botanicals/use dry
Always use preservatives or refrigerate (refrigeration is only suitable short-term).
Formulary Creams
Making lotions and creams with non-ethoxylated and peg-free emulsifiers takes a bit more care in preparation but the end product is well worth the effort. If you have been using other emulsifying compounds (generally called e-wax) you will notice some of these differences:
· When you combine your oil and water phase the two phases will layer out. They may continue to do this until the emulsion is cooled. Keep mixing and a stable emulsion will occur in the end. I generally mix with a high speed hand mixer such as a Braun stick blender. I don’t mix till the emulsion is completely cool but mix and then come back to it every so often until it’s completely cooled.
· When using high speed mixers pulse them off and on. This will keep air from getting into your creams and lotions. An emulsion with pockets of air will deteriorate faster.
· Lactymulse™ has a low melting point (50°C or 120°F). Make sure you use a thermometer to make sure you don’t overheat it. Overheating will cause graininess in the end product.
· When using hard fats such as Cocoa Butter or Mango Butter they may have a higher melting point than the Lactymulse™. Heat the oils first and then add your Lactymulse™ to the oils and melt.
· I generally only use naturally hard fats such as Mango, Kokum or Cocoa Butter versus hydrogenated butters such as Avocado, Aloe etc. Many of these are hydrogenated with pegs.
· Here are some sample formulas to follow. Please read our Instructions on making emulsions and weight versus volume measurements.
note: mix the potassium sorbate into the water first and make sure it’s fully disolved before adding other ingredients.
| Ingredient | #1 | #2 | #3 | #4 | #5 | #6 |
| Oil Phase | ||||||
| Emuslifier | ||||||
| SAM-E | 4 | 6 | ||||
| Emulsifying Compound | 8 | 6 | 8 | |||
| Deleted | 2 | |||||
| Lecithin | 2 | 2 | 2 | |||
| Cetearyl Alcohol | ||||||
| Plant Oils or Fats | ||||||
| Solid Oils | 5 | 8 | 8 | 20 | ||
| Plant Oils | 20 | 15 | 12 | 10 | 12 | |
| Luxury Oil | 2 | 5 | ||||
| Anti-oxidant | ||||||
| Water Phase | ||||||
| Hydrosol (floral water) | 60 | 60 | ||||
| Lactic Acid | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | ||
| Sodium PCA | 2 | 2 | ||||
| Jojoba Aqua | ||||||
| Honey or Glycerin | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | ||
| Pure distilled water | to100% | to100% | to100% | to100% | to100% | to100% |
| Potassium Sorbate | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0.25 | 0.5 | |
| Xanthan Gum | 0.25 | |||||
| Naturagard™ | 1 | 1 | 0.5 | 1 | 0.5 | |
| Phenxoyethanol | 1 | 1 | 1 | |||
| Provitamin B5 | ||||||
| Naturactive cmplx™ | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | ||
| Essential Oils or Fragrance | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
1. #1 is a simple formula with just emulsifier, liquid oil, pure distilled water and preservative. It turned out as a light white creamy cream with soft peaks. It took a couple of minutes to sink into my skin but was not overly greasy. It left my hands feeling soft for several hours.
2. #2 is basically the same formula as #1. I have added some botanical actives, fragrance and 0.25% of potassium Sorbate to bump up the preservative action. It was a bit yellower than #1 and formed stiffer peaks. I did not really notice any significant difference in skin feel.
3. #3 I’ve used lecithin as a secondary emulsifier. Not only does lecithin help nutrients pass the skin barrier it created a barrier on the skin to keep the moisture in. I have used a trio of preservatives including phenoxyethanol into the mix. In addition to lactic acid I have added Sodium PCA a great Humectant and moisturizer. It will also help preserve the water phase.
I have created these examples so you can see how easy it is to modify your Recipes once you get the hang of the proportion of oil to water and usage of weights to100. You might want to make up a similar spreadsheet for yourself while you are testing your own formulas.
Keep in mind if you want a light cream that spreads easily use light oils and less oil. If you want heavier creams use more oil and heavier more solid oils. If you are selling your products we always urge you to thoroughly test your products for stability and safety. See our Lab and Testing category for tools.
