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.
So I went a little nuts and decided to make one colour and try every single filler I had with it. My choice was this grind – Paper Cut from TKB Trading. My logic? I thought it was a great name…and it is composed of just two colours, so it’s easy to make and easy...
It’s the first day of school and it’s not like you’re trying to keep them busy now, eh? But here are some ideas about crafting with youth! One of the most popular classes I offer to youth is mineral make-up creation. The girls love to create their own eye shadows and blushes, and we’re going...
I had some samples of super sterol liquid and Crodamol STS lying around the workshop – I know, I’m a lucky girl, eh? – so I thought I’d try Croda’s recipe for a lip balm with these products. What is super sterol liquid? The INCI reads C10-30 cholesterol/lanosterol esters. It’s a light emollient that is...
It seems there are dozens of waxes to choose from for personal care type products, which it makes it both confusing and exciting for formulators! Waxes give structure to our products, keep them firm – in the case of lip balms or lotion bars – and help our products be flexible but not brittle. There...
This is my beloved double boiler. From left to right, clockwise, you see the lip balm base, the classic base, and Croda’s super sterol base. Although I really like the lip balm base for a lipstick base, I couldn’t resist trying this recipe for a (supposedly) less greasy, more dry, stiffer recipe than the lip...