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.
Susan Barclay-Nichols My friend Melissa once asked me why shampoos didn’t seem as harsh or bubbly as they were when we were kids. It has to do with the surfactants we use and the ingredients we use to increase mildness. In the olden days, most – if not all – products used SLS, which is considered a...
What an amazing trip! Thanks for all the suggestions! Powell’s is always a stop on any trip to Oregon – I spent $132 on books, and that’s only because I stopped myself! – and it is what I think heaven will be like, only you don’t have to pay for the books and dogs are...
PPG esters are known as polypropylene glycol esters, and they are (according to this link) “a mixture of propylene glycol mono- and diesters of saturated and unsaturated fatty acids derived from edible oils and fats. The products are produced either by direct esterification of propylene glycol with fatty acids or by transesterification of propylene glycol...
We’ve already taken a look at how to use cetyl esters in a leave in conditioner, so let’s take a look at combining them with a few other esters like C12-15 alkyl benzoate, ethylhexyl palmitate, and PEG-7 olivate the way we did yesterday with the intense and rinse-off conditioners. Why use esters in leave in...
I know we’ve taken a look at using cetyl esters in a rinse-off conditioner, so let’s take a look at incorporating other esters into the mix! Ethylhexyl palmitate is a good inclusion in hair care products if you’re trying to avoid silicones (for a few more silicone replacement ideas, please click here). It’s considered a...