Worth the effort...

There are a few reasons to go through the hassle of making your own bath and body products.  If you're like me, it's really no hassle at all- in fact it's a ton of fun!  It's like art-meets-science class in the kitchen and you get a great reward in the end.

The first and foremost reason behind creating your own products (at least for me) is knowing each and every single thing that is in it.  You know if it's fresh, organic, locally harvested.  You know all the things it does not contain- possible allergens or irritants, or simply stuff that is straight up bad for you.  You can make educated decisions on what to use for preservatives (a definite must).

I love the creative science behind making things like lotions and creams.  Testing oils and other ingredients and making discoveries for myself as to what works for my body.  I feel like a kid in a candy store when I start to pick out fragrances or essential oils.  I love pulling up my sleeve at work and making people touch my super soft elbows (haha).  It makes me feel good that I can make something that I can't get in a store.  It's way better than anything I could get at the store!!

Tonight I'm planning on whipping up some eye/face cream using Kokum Butter and Jojoba and whatever other nice oils I have around that are safe for my tempermental skin.  I have slightly sensitive, slightly acne prone skin.  If I'm careful with the oils I choose I don't seem to have problems.  But as it is winter, and just out of plain old curiosity- I'd like to see what kind of eye cream I can come up with.  I made toner last night with AHA, which turned out great.  I'll post up recipes tomorrow and take some pictures this time!


I'm once again gonna suggest to anyone who hasn't - please go check out Point of Interest! I have suggested pretty much everywhere I could to go read her blog.  It's fascinating stuff, science and fun all mixed together.  

Leave-in Conditioner

I have really dry ends on my hair- and I'm guilty of not using product after I wash it to keep it soft and smooth.  This is a first attempt to make leave-in spray conditioner based on Swift's recipe here.


A note: I had to modify it as I didn't have some of the ingredients.


First Time Leave-in Conditioner
Heated Phase:
80% Water
2% Incroquat BTMS
4% glycerin
1% aloe vera
2% hydrolyzed oat protein

Cool Phase:
2% honeyquat
2% panthenol
2% cyclomethicone
2% dimethicone
2% Silk Amino Acids
1% Mango Fragrance
0.5% Liquid Germall Plus

Mild AHA Lotion w/ Extracts

I wanted to create a face lotion with a bit of AHA in it.  For this recipe, I started out very mild.  Next time I will definitely go higher- probably more like 5% of the Multifruit BSC.  The goal for this lotion was to have something very very light- something that would sink right into the skin without leaving any greasiness or waxy feeling behind.  Normally my choice for an emulsifier would be BTMS-50 as it is drier feeling and almost powdery in finish.  BUT Multifruit BSC doesn't work well with this emulsifier so I had to go the route of Polawax.  Much to my surprise (due to my lack of experience) the Polawax did not impart any waxy feeling at all to this lotion.  In fact, it sinks in even better than the Sea Buckthorn lotion I previously posted.
All in all, I am a very happy camper with this lotion.  Next batch can only get better!


Face Lotion for Aging Acne Prone Skin
Water Phase:
144g water (48%)
545g aloe gel (15%)
45g neroli hydrosol (15%)
10g sodium lactate - humectant (2%)
10g cromoist hydrolyzed oat protein (2%)


Oil Phase:
12g Jojoba (4%)
6g Sea Buckthorn (2%)
6g Macadamia (2%)
12g Polawax (4%)
3g Cetyl Alcohol (1%)
1 pipette Vitamin E Oil


Cool Phase:
6g Panthenol (2%)
1 tsp honeysuckle powder (0.5%)
9g Multifruit BSC (Natural AHA) (3%)
6g Acai Botanical Extract (2%)
2 pipettes Liquid Germall Plus (about 2g or 0.75% which is a teeny bit high)
3 drops Jasmine EO - very mild scent


Yield about 16 ounces.  WONDERFUL texture.  Pale yellow colour with just a hint of mild fragrance.  It soaks in and leaves skin very soft.  Next time I am double the Multifruit BSC for a little more AHA power.  This would work well with any type of hydrosol as well.  I have been using this everyday for a week and I am really loving it.

Seabuckthorn & Extracts

Face Lotion for Most Skin Types (except very dry)


Water Phase:
240g water (48%)
50g aloe gel (15%)
25g neroli hydrosol (7.5%)
25g lavender hydrosol (7.5%)
10g sodium lactate - humectant (2%)
10g cromoist hydrolyzed oat protein (2%)


Oil Phase:
20g sunflower oil (4%)
20g jojoba (4%)
10g seabuckthorn (2%)
20g BTMS-50 emulsifyer (4%)
10g cetyl alcohol - thickener (2%)


Cool Phase:
10g Panthenol (2%)
1tsp Chamomile powdered extract (0.5%)
1.5tsp Honeysuckle powdered extract (0.5%)
2.5g Liquid Germall Plus - preservative (0.5-1%)


Pale yellow, smells slightly herbal.  Silky smooth, non greasy, suitable for all skin types except very dry.  Thicker texture than I expected- could be adjusted with the amount of cetyl alcohol (more for a cream, less for more liquidy).

New shipment of oils arrived!

Today I received my latest order from Voyageur Soap & Candle Company.
I ordered Camellia See Oil (To make a divine body lotion that I will put up shortly), some Kokum butter (gonna test this out in a face cream/eye cream as it's supposed to be non-comedogenic), some more Sea Buckthorn oil which I love, and a few other treats. Yay!

A note...

Most of my recipes, at one time or another, started with a basic recipe from this woman:   http://swiftcraftymonkey.blogspot.com/

To put it simply, she is a genius when it comes to chemistry and concocting delightful lotions, creams, and just about everything else.

If you have never made a lotion at home before, it is very simple.  But please before you start, read Susan's tutorial here:  http://dl.dropbox.com/u/1020026/introductiontolotionmakingthingie.pdf  She also has many other tutorials, lists, and references on her site.  Truly worth every minute of reading.  

If you do make your way to her site, and find it as useful as I did, please support her youth groups by donating.  You will be rewarded with a 305 page book about making lotions and creams AND the knowledge that you are helping a truly worthy cause.