Techniques

Demythifying the myths: A super simple method to melt BTMS in a double boiler!

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There’s this weird idea out there in the DIY world that we can’t easily melt ingredients that contain behentrimonium methosulfate (BTMS), found in Incroquat BTMS-50, Incroquat BTMS-25, Rita BTMS-225, and many BTMS emulsifiers, in a double boiler. It seems that no matter how times I demonstrate it in a class or Zoom meeting or post,...

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Let’s talk about making substitutions for preservatives in my formulas! (Very long post!)

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This is a long post that didn’t have a logical place to make cuts, so rather than spend time re-writing it, here’s a few days of posts in one!  For a while now, I’ve shared charts with you so you can make substitutions for the preservatives that you have in your workshop if you can’t...

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Let’s talk about potential restrictions on preservatives!

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Six plastic bottles containing preservatives sit atop a metal plate on a digital scale

There may be restrictions on certain preservatives in your part of the world, something to keep in mind when you’re following formulas or creating new ones. I do my best to keep up to date on these things, but I can’t possibly know every single restriction outside of Canada or the USA because I only...

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Q&A: What’s the process to thicken surfactants with salt?

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In the monthly Q&A, Chavi asked, Hi Susan, I often see you mention if a surfactant blend can be thickened with salt. Could you describe the actual process of thickening with salt? Thanks! Adding salt – sodium chloride, table salt – is a good way to thicken certain surfactants and blends! It does this in two...

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Let’s talk about what it means for an ingredient or product to be vegan!

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This came up the other day, and I thought it’d make for an interesting post. What does it mean for an ingredient or product to be vegan? Quick summary if you don’t want to read the whole post: When it comes to making products, most of our ingredients are plant- or mineral-derived (like sand or...

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