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.
“Winterized olive oil is any grade of olive oil that has had the waxes removed so that it doesn’t solidify in the cold weather (or in the refrigerator).” (Reference) This is done a lot for edible products that’ll be stored in the fridge, like a salad dressing, and for oils that may have a lot...
Cupuacu butter (INCI: Theobroma grandflorum seed butter) is a relative of cocoa butter, with a less greasy skin that leaves a less shiny appearance. Its melting point is more like refined shea butter at 32 ̊C to 36 ̊C (89˚F to 96.8˚F), so melts in contact with skin, which is lovely. It can be used anywhere you might...
It’s summer, so get your oils, butters, solid oils, and other fine meltables into a cool, dark place or fridge lest you suffer the curse of melted coconut or babassu oil coating everything in your oils box! Babassu and coconut oils melt at 24°C or 76°F, which is barely above room temperature for some buildings!...
I’ve been playing with tamanu oil (INCI: Calophyllum Tacamahaca Seed Oil) for a while now, so let’s take a look at this interesting oil! Tamanu oil is a thick, rich oil with a distinctive smell and colour. It is reported to be an anti-microbial with anti-oxidant properties, and works well as a skin or hair conditioner....
In my newest formula for an emulsified sugar scrub, I used myristyl myristate to thicken it and offer a more glidy and less greasy skin feel. Let’s take a look at this ingredient! Myristyl myristate is a simple ester, a waxy one with a melting point of 38-40˚C. It’s slightly polar and non-ionic ester. It...