The home of SwiftCraftyMonkey Formulating Inc.! Join Susan as she obsesses about cosmetic chemistry and other things (some possibly related to monkeys). Often strange, occasionally useful, and always worth a stop as a point of interest on your journey through the Intertron.
Working out right now is an adventure in sweaty grossness, and I have to wash my hair every single day right now (not a good thing, I know)! This morning I found I had forgotten to pack my leave in conditioner and anti-frizz, but rather than dash home, I thought I’d do a little test...
In this post on stearic acid, Louise asks: I hate the idea of anything “unnatural” in a skin or face cream. Stearic acid is natural. (It’s also known as octodecanoic acid.) It’s one of the things that makes our butters stiffer than oils – look at cocoa butter, mango butter, shea butter, or other butters – and...
We took at look at what decyl glucoside is and the pH and thickening problems associated with it last week. Let’s take a look at a few questions about this ingredient, then look at how we can substitute it into a recipe. Why is the pH so high? I’m sorry, but I have no idea why...
I stumbled upon this scrub, Fresh Brown Sugar Polish through Sephora.com, while reading the newspaper this morning. At $65, it claims to be anti-bacterial and hydrating for “thirsty skin cells”. The site claims that it offers the “restorative, antibacterial properties of sugar”. The paper claimed that the scrub has become a “cult-classic in the beauty...
MAKING INFUSIONS?The post I wrote about not making our own teas or infusions caused quite the controversy earlier this week. In that post, MsClogs asks: What would you say a professional cosmetic scientist would do to make a “safe” botanical oil infusion that the home crafter would potentially not do or be able to do?...