Playing with new ingredients

I just got my new order from LotionCrafter. I've been waiting forever to try some of these ingredients. I feel like a little kid at Christmas time when I'm digging through my package to see what's inside!

This week I'll be experimenting with new ingredients, and will be posting about each one. I've got Behenyl Alcohol which I'm probably the most excited for, Aluminum Oxide (microdermabrasion) Crystals, Cetyl Esters, Gingko Extract, Hibiscus Extract, Cyclomethicone, LipidThix, Olivem 300, Sodium Lactate Powder, and Lotionpro 165. I've got plans for each one of these. Sometimes I order things and when I get them, I forgot why I wanted them in the first place. I suggest writing down what it is you want to do with each ingredient when placing an order, so you don't get your lovely new ingredients and have no clue what to do with them!

Speaking of keeping notes, in my opinion that is probably the single most important thing for any homecrafter.  You need to keep good notes on everything you make, every idea you have, thoughts about the products you make, and most importantly your recipes! I've heard people say they made something they loved and didn't take notes on it, and were never able to recreate it, even years later. So make sure you take  good notes! You can also look back and see if something went wrong, why it happened. You can make any changes that need to be made, and recreate your product exactly each time.

Some things we'll be looking at this week are formulating with behenyl alcohol, cetyl esters, and lotionpro 165. I'll be writing about each ingredient. What they are used for, what they do, and what each brings to the table.

So tomorrow we'll begin with behenyl alcohol. We'll also be looking a little at adsorption and substantivity and how conditioner works, before getting into our first experiment: formulating a conditioner with behenyl alcohol. Tune in tomorrow for fun with formulating!

Check it out!

Soapcaked! A brand new blog about B&B products, the science behind it, and fresh ideas!

I am continuing my journey of handmaking bath & body items, and with the addition of this blog I'll have the entire experience journaled and noted with ideas, recipes, lessons, thoughts, and pictures of the process! Join me and learn more about your craft, and from the inevitable mistakes made along the way. Or if you're new to this and want to learn how to make your own products, this will be a great place to start!

Stay tuned for my first post, we'll be learning about emulsification. How it works and what we use it for.