Welcome to the home of SwiftCraftyMonkey Formulating Inc.! Join Susan as she obsesses about cosmetic chemistry and other things (some possibly related to monkeys)! Here you’ll find over 5,000 posts and formulas written over the past 16 years for everything from lotions, creams, and body butters to hair care products to fancy facial products filled with actives and cosmeceuticals! Enjoy the site without distractions – no ads, pop ups, sponsored posts, affiliate links, “one weird tricks” – all supported by readers like you.
I thought I’d share an update on my plans for what we’re making next. I’m sorry we got off track recently, but I think I planned more than I could handle given what’s been happening with our family lately. I think this schedule I’m planning out here is do-able, although there may be side trips...
I found a few resources that might interest you if you’re interested in learning more about formulating with salicylic acid in your products, something I’ll be discussing as we get back to making toners in the Newbie Tuesday series on facial products, which starts again on Monday, January 16th. What you see here is willow...
What’s the difference between these two bath bombs? Same recipe, same colourant, similar fragrance oils, same fractionated coconut oil, same molds. Why did the one on the right work out and the one on the right is making me sad with its powderiness? It’s all about the climate! I became aware of this issue back...
In this post, Why did I buy this again? Cera bellina, CJ asks: Can you tell me the shelf life of Cera bellina? I think it would be several years, but would like to be sure before wasting any ingredients! Also, if it’s not too much to ask, can you also tell me the approximate life...
In this post, Road trip essentials: Solid scrub bars, Neha asks: Can I use sodium benzoate as a preservative in emulsifying sugar scrub? My local vendor is unable to understand optiphen. Or can you help me with any other name for this preservative? If you want to know more about preservatives, the first thing to...