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 was over at the Soap Queen’s blog, and there was a very lively discussion about starting businesses. I saw a few things in the comments that got me thinking and I thought it might make for an interesting discussion here… Experienced soap and bath and body makers will tell you not to run headlong...
Don’t underestimate the value of skin feel in your products. You can make the very bestest, seriously kicking bum kind of product filled with the very best cosmeceuticals, extracts, oils, and hydrosols, but if you hate the feel of it, you’ve wasted your time. When it comes to making lotions, whipped butters, lotion bars, and...
In this post, Anonymous asks about PEG-7 olivate: How is this in terms of non-toxic? Are there any concerns about health with this ingredient? I keep hearing some personal care products linked to a 1,4 dioxide carinogen for example. I wrote a post about 1,4-dioxane in the much maligned ingredients series, but I’ll write a little...
HIGH SHEAR AND GUAR GUM?In this post on high shear, Lucy Townsend asks: If using guar gum in shampoo making and oils, I just mix with a spoon, would this be considered to be a “low shear” method? Am I using the correct method? Are you using guar gum or cationic guar gum? They have similar...
Have a weekend wondering? Have a question for which you can’t find an answer or something that’s been bugging you for weeks? Visit this post and share your weekend wondering with us! DOES ANYONE KNOW WHAT MAGACAMIANUSSOL MIGHT BE?In this post, Lise asks: Have you ever come across this ingredient: Magacamianussöl (from an ingredients list...