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 should share an update with you on where I am in my monthly cycle of posting. I’m doing okay physically – I’m still in a lot of pain every day with muscle spasms, but the ones in my hip flexor, piriformis, and glut med muscles have quieted down to a dull roar,...
In the August Q&A, Allison asked: I’ve noticed that salicylic acid is an ingredient in some anti-dandruff shampoos (I’m guessing because it helps with flakiness) but it’s also used in a color-protection shampoo that I like. I’m wondering if you know what benefit it might have in hair care other than as a dandruff treatment? I’d...
I’m doing my best to respond to your comments, but considering the other day I made it through three comments before spending a morning researching and writing yesterday’s post on cetrimonium chloride, it’s not as simple as writing a few lines and being done if I want to offer you the most information I can....
I get this question all the time, so I thought I should write a post that’ll come up in searches for future reference… Cetrimonium chloride is a positively charged or cationic ingredient that acts as a good detangler by reducing combing forces, which reduces friction on our hair. We can use it as the main...
On September 7th, we started this series off by looking at why xanthan gum might pill or ball on your skin when used in lotions. Then we started this series, for which I’ve also created a glossary of terms as we’ll be using them a lot in the future… Defining some scientific terms: Solubility, viscosity,...