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.
p asks in this post: I’m really confused about one thing, though – the melting point of stearic acid is pretty high, 69 C, or so. So how can the melting point of a butter that contains stearic acid be lower than 69 C? Cocoa butter is about a third stearic acid and its melting point...
As we know, a balm is a product intended to help with a condition of some sort intended to be rubbed in, so we need to modify these recipes to help with some condition. What condition could we choose here? How about sun exposure? Let’s say you’ve been in the sun a little too long...
We’ve turned our whipped butters and lotion bars into balms by using specific essential oils and using specific oils and butters (click here and here). Let’s take a look at creating balms that are really softer versions of lotion bars that we’ll store in jars or tins. (Because there’s no water in this balm, you...
As I’ve mentioned, I’m not an expert on essential oils – I’ve done some reading, but I’m not what you’d call knowledgeable on the topic – so I recommend whenever you’re using essential oils, please read up on said oil before using it. A lot of people start off by using essential oils as we...
Choosing the right oils and butters can turn your anhydrous product into a balm. For instance, choosing an oil high in phytosterols like sesame seed, soy bean, or apricot kernel oil might help with inflammation. Choosing olive oil might help with post-sun exposure. Or choosing an oil high in Vitamin E, like wheat germ oil,...