Experiments in the workshop: Facial cleanser with a ton of extracts - modified

I know I'm always going on about only switching one ingredient when you make a product, but when I'm in the workshop, I get a little ingredient happy and tend to change a whole lot of things at once! This is kinda what happened here with this somewhat unappealing looking facial cleanser. But seriously, try it out if you have oily skin - I'm loving this hideous abomination!

FACIAL WASH WITH A TON OF EXTRACTS IN A FOAMER BOTTLE
HEATED PHASE
28% water
10% aloe vera
10% rosemary hydrosol
10% chamomile hydrosol
3% glycerin
2% Phytokeratin (or any other hydrolyzed protein)
0.5% polyquat 44 (or another cationic polymer)
15% LSB or other gentle surfactant of choice
10% cocamidopropyl betaine

COOL DOWN PHASE
0.5% grapeseed extract
2.5% liquid green tea extract (water soluble)
0.5% chamomile extract
2% panthenol
0.5% to 1% preservative of choice (I'm using Germaben II here)

Weigh the heated phase of the product and heat and hold in your double boiler for 20 minutes at 70˚C. Remove from the heat and let cool to 45˚C to 50˚C, then add the cool down phase. To dissolve the powdered extracts, put them into a little container, like a shot glass, and add a little warm water - 3 to 5 grams or so - and stir until the mixture is uniform.

I love this facial wash! I've been using it for almost a year and I never get that tight feeling that comes from the surfactants not rinsing off, and my oily skin doesn't feel too stripped after using it.

So why these ingredients? I like to include aloe vera for its anti-inflammatory and soothing abilities. I'm using rosemary hydrosol because it's great for oily skin, and chamomile hydrosol for the anti-inflammatory properties, as well as the reduction in irritation and reduction in transepidermal water loss for up to 48 hours. I'm using grapeseed extract - which offers that weird brown-red colour - for the anti-oxidant properties, but I also like the resveratrol, which behaves as anti-inflammatory as well. Green tea extract is always a good choice for aging skin - and we all have aging skin - and I've chosen liquid green tea extract because I'm feeling like I have too many powders in the product and I am worried about getting precipitate on the bottom.

Powders are about solubility, so if we have too much powder, we can end up with that gunge on the bottom of the container, which is the precipitate or stuff that didn't dissolve. You can see it showing up on the bottom of toner two. It's not necessarily a bad thing - shake it up and you're good to go - but it doesn't look all that pretty, and it can clog up the tube or nozzle/pump of a dispenser. 

Glycerin is always my first choice as a humectant for a rinse off product for two reasons. I don't need a really fancy or expensive humectant if I'm just rinsing it off, and glycerin actually resists wash off better than something like sodium lactate or sodium PCA. (Click here for a list of humectants.) I like to add a hydrolyzed protein - this time I've chosen Phytokeratin - as it offers film forming and hygroscopic properties, and I'm adding a cationic polymer - in this case, polyquat 44 because it's new, but you can use any cationic polymer at the suggested rate. I like to include panthenol for its proven wound healing and hygroscopic abilities.

As for the surfactants, I'm using LSB (INCI: Sodium Lauryl Sulfoacetate and Disodium Laureth Sulfosuccinate) and cocamidopropyl betaine. I like the sulfosuccinates for my oily hair and skin because they're considered very mild, with good foaming and detergent properties. Sulfosuccinates are recommended for oily hair as they can remove oil and sebum gently without stripping hair too much, but all hair and skin types can use them without fear of harshness. I like SLSa because it has excellent foaming, bubbling, and lathering properties, as well as great cleaning properties. As for the cocamidopropyl betaine, I always include this surfactant as a secondary surfactant to increase mildness/reduce irritation and it can behave as a humectant, which is a great thing. (It can also help thicken our products, but that isn't an issue with the foamy bottles!)

So there you have this incredibly ugly coloured but pretty awesome facial cleanser! If you don't have a foamy bottle, feel free to increase the surfactants to 40% to 50% of the water phase, remove the same amount of water, and add some Crothix or salt at the end to thicken! (Click here and scroll down for a version I've thickened with Amaze XT.) If you want to alter this recipe, feel free to alter the surfactants (click here), the extracts (click here), or pretty much anything else.

Join me tomorrow for more fun with products!

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Experiments in the workshop: ACI instead of SCI in my hand cleanser

I am so sick of having dry feeling hands after I wash them, so I thought I'd make my own hand cleanser. This one - orange & honey hand cleanser - was my favourite, so naturally I thought I'd tweak it some more by replacing ACI for the SCI.

Doesn't it look like this is supposed to be an artistic view of being hand soap? Like my cleanser is about to break out into song about a boy she has loved and lost or that her father has trapped her here in this castle until someone worthy of her love can save her? 

I'm not really sure why I'd want to switch out the SCI for the ACI in this case - this is quite a liquidy product until I get the Crothix in near the end, so using ACI instead of SCI should product a really liquidy product! But no matter! When I'm in the mood to experiment, I'm in the mood to experiment!


ORANGE & HONEY HAND CLEANSER WITH ACI
FIRST HEATED PHASE
10% cocamidopropyl betaine
11% polyglucose/lactylate blend
10% ACI
2% glycol distearate

SECOND HEATED PHASE
33.5% water
10% aloe vera
10% orange hydrosol
3% PEG-7 glyceryl cocoate
3% glycerin

COOL DOWN PHASE
3% honeyquat
0.5% liquid Germall Plus
1% fragrance
Crothix (optional)

Weigh the first heated phase into heatproof container and heat in your double boiler until the SCI and glycol distearate has melted. Weigh the second heated phase into a heatproof container and heat until the SCI has melted in the other container. Remove both from the heat and add the second heated phase slowly, stirring as you go, until it is well incorporated. You may want to heat it a little longer to ensure it is well incorporated.

When the temperature reaches 45˚C to 50˚C, add the cool down phase BUT DON'T ADD THE CROTHIX! (Read more about Crothix here if you've never used it before.) I didn't need Crothix in mine, but that will vary given the modifications to ingredients and fragrance you choose.

When the mixture has reached room temperature or has sat for at least four hours, test the viscosity. Add 1% Crothix, and mix very well. If you want it a bit thicker, add another 0.5% and stir well. Repeat until you get the viscosity you want.

So what did I think? I like it! I had to get to 4% Crothix to thicken it, and it's still a bit more liquid than I would want in a body wash or shampoo, but it works well in the pump bottle. The skin feels about the same. I think it looks a little less pearlized than the first version, and I know I didn't use enough colouring.

Considering I can get SCI locally (at Aquarius Aroma & Soap) instead of shipping it from the eastern part of the States, and considering it will thicken more than ACI, I don't think I'll be changing my recipe soon. But it was a neat to experiment, eh?

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Experiments in the workshop: Modifying the body wash with esters

I do love a good body wash, and I think I have versions for every skin type and every climate possibility. But my very favourite recipe is this one, the body wash with ester. If you don't have the ingredients for this recipe, use any one you want, but remember this - if you remove something like BSB that is very thick, you'll want to have a thickener at hand! And feel free to leave out the esters if you don't have them or don't like them - they are the important part of the moisturizing, but the body wash is mild enough without them that you won't feel you're stripping your skin! (Increase the water amount by the amount you've removed from the recipe. It will be thinner, but you won't have to find those ingredients!)

I get my esters at the Personal Formulator, but they are available at a lot of different suppliers. Look to your right and see the frequently asked questions section of the blog to find a supplier near you! 

This recipe is intended for normal to oily skin. If you have dry skin, this would probably be a good recipe for you as you will love the silky feeling of the ACI, but I would suggest replacing the C14-16 olefin sulfonate with something like SMC or SMO taurate. Polyglucose/lactylate blend would be a fantastic choice here! (Click here for a copy of the surfactant chart for some summaries!)


MOISTURIZING BODY WASH WITH ESTERS AND WHITE WILLOW BARK USING ACI
PHASE ONE
12% cocamidopropyl betaine
16% ACI
12% C14-16 olefin sulfonate
25% warm distilled water
10% aloe vera liquid

PHASE TWO
5% PEG-7 glyceryl cocoate
5% myristamine oxide
5% water soluble oils (1.2% PEG-7 olivate, 3.8% water soluble shea)
3% polyquat 7
3% glycerin
2% cromoist

PHASE THREE
2% panthenol
0.5% preservative (liquid Germall Plus)
0.5% white willow bark (or other powdered extract)
up to 2% Crothix

Put all of phase one and phase two ingredients into a heatproof container to heat and hold in your double boiler. While heating, mix them well with a fork or a spoon delicately - enough so they combine but not so much that you have tons of bubbles. Remove from the heat and stir until all the ingredients are combined. Let cool. Heat a little water (maybe a tablespoon) and add it to the white willow bark and mix that until dissolved. Add it to the container along with the panthenol, preservative, and fragrance oil. Do not add the thickener at this time!

Let it come to room temperature. If it's too liquid, add 0.5% of your favourite thickener. Mix well. Add a little more (0.5%) at a time until you get a viscosity you like. Crothix is a moisturizing ester that thickens our products and increases mildness, so it's not a bad thing if you get to 4% or so. It will reduce the lather and bubbles in your product, so you don't want to go overboard, but you can get up to 5% before you want to start worrying!

What do I think of this recipe? I love it! This is my favourite body wash of all time! It's not a pretty product - the white willow bark makes it a brown colour (picture above) that you really can't cover with colour (picture beside, and believe me you can see the brown tinges under the green in real life), but I love it. The ACI makes it a less thick product, but as you can see, it is a theoretically clear product as well. (The picture beside was taken shortly after pouring into the bottle and it hadn't settled, but it will go clear!)

I used 3% Crothix after scenting this with - yep, you guessed it - Clementine Cupcake fragrance oil. I think 3% liquid Crothix will be how much I generally use, unless I use a fragrance oil like lavender that generally thickens surfactant mixes.

If you want to make this at home, I consider the ingredients not to leave out in phase two to be the glycerin, cromoist, and polyquat 7. You can use any cationic polymer you want at the recommended levels and/or you could substitute the glycerin for propylene glycol, or you could use something like honeyquat at 3% in the cool down phase as both your humectant and moisturizer (so it's two great things in one!) You don't need to have all those fancy esters for this product to be nice, but it really does make a difference. I don't bother with moisturizer after a shower any more!

Join me tomorrow for more experiments in the workshop!

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Experiments in the workshop: ACI in place of SCI

Well, we're in for a party today, my friends! I've been experimenting with ammonium cocoyl isethionate (ACI) in place of sodium cocoyl isethionate (SCI) in my body wash, face wash, and hand wash! Yes, get on your party hats and grab some of those blowy things that make noise - but leave the confetti at home because I just did the floors - because ACI does, indeed, rock the party!

So what's the difference between ACI and SCI? Both are considered exceptionally mild surfactants. Both are considered tolerant to hard water and have a great skin feel. And both offer good bubbles and lather. But ACI is a liquid! Yep, it's a 30% active liquid that has a shelf life of 1 year (versus 2 years for the prills). ACI is considered more water soluble than SCI because it's in a liquid format. Which makes it easier to incorporate into your products! 

If you look at the picture above, you'll see the little M+ in the lower right hand corner. In SCI, that would be a sodium (Na) ion. In ACI, that's an ammonium (NH4) ion. That's the chemical difference! 

The main reason to use it is that it is a liquid form of SCI for those times that you want something to easier to incorporate that will allow to you make a clear product. (Having said that, I have had my products with up to 10% Jordapon prill SCI be clear, but this way it's a guarantee!) If you love the elegant silky skin feel of SCI but find it hard to melt, then ACI might be a great option for you.

As a note, if you find SCI hard to melt, try using cocamidopropyl betaine with it as it will speed up the process! 

I've been playing with it and, as you can probably tell, I'm already a fan. So let's get started with ACI!

Here's a link to the data sheet from BASF if you want to know more about ACI and SCI!
And here's an article about SCI and ACI and well they work with colour treated hair! 

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Creating products: Filling our bottles

Original post from July 13, 2009, modified today...

Filling containers can be such a huge pain in the bum! Here are a few things I thought I'd share...

Since I'm a surfactant junkie, I make a lot of bubble baths, body washes, and shampoos that need bottling. I find the easiest way is to get a funnel and pour it in. With a tottle or malibu bottle, I put the bottle into a Pyrex container and then pour it into the funnel. This keeps at least one hand free to clean up messes or get another bottle ready. (I try to have quite a few ready at a given time because once that funnel's full, I gotta move on very quickly!)

I find the bane of my existence is filling lotion containers. I always wait until the lotion has cooled completely before filling the bottles, and it's always a huge mess. I've taken to using piping bags - I have disposable and canvas ones - and I find these work well. I did try to use the cut-a-hole-in-a-sandwich-bag method, but I found I made a huge mess. (But then again, I am a very messy person, so it's not a surprise!)

I've tried using a syringe (sans needle) to fill the bottles and it worked very well. Syringe into container, suck up product, squish into bottle. The only problem is that the largest syringe I could find was 60 ml or about 1/4 cup. Fine for smaller bottles, not so much for larger ones as I found myself going back for more four or five times! It was great for topping off a container, like adding that extra teaspoon to a bottle! 

Again, line up the containers so you're ready, fill your piping bag, and go down the line. I usually fill them up about 3/4, then bang on the table to get the air out, then top it off. This is the annoying part - just as I think I've got a full container, I find another air bubble and have to top it off again!

If you're selling your products, you might have to weigh them before you cap them off. As I'm just giving mine away or keeping it for myself, I'm not that picky about bubbles or weights! 

I like filling jars...it's so easy! Scoop, bang on the table, and cap. If you want your jars to be very fancy, you can put these jar disk liners (also called dust covers or jar liners) on top of the product, then put the cap on it. When your friend/family member/customer opens it, she'll see this white cap making the product look very fancy and proper! 

If you have any suggestions, please comment! There are so many ways to fill bottles poorly, any ideas for doing it well are always welcome! (There are some great ideas in the original post, so I encourage you to check that out! But please comment as we're always looking to share great ideas!) 

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Question: Are the ingredients I mention on this blog safe to use in beauty products?

Anonymous wrote in this post: Are phosphate esters derived from chemical or organic? Are they safe in beauty products?

As there are really two questions here, let's take a look at each one. The quick answers are no, and yes.

From the post: Phosphate esters are a category of anionic surfactants that include alkyl phosphates and alkyl ether phosphates. We don't use phosphate esters in our bath & body products much as they are generally used in household cleaning products due to their low pH. They are very mild to the skin and might show up in facial or body cleansing products.

To answer the first question - phosphate esters, along with everything in the world, is a chemical. It is composed of elements, and is therefore a chemical. Technically, because it contains carbon, it is considered an organic chemical.

But I don't think this is what you mean. I think what you mean is it is organic in the sense of being "certified organic", and my answer would be no. I wouldn't consider any surfactants as being organic because of all the processing they go through with various other ingredients, but I think there are some that might qualify under some standards (I don't know about these standards as it isn't something I've researched, but you can do a search online to see if you can find some information.)

As for the question about safety - yes, they are considered safe by the Cosmetic Ingredients Review by their standards.

I'm asked this question regularly - is this or that ingredient safe? - and I have two answers for you. Check the "safe as used" list from the Cosmetics Ingredients Review (link above) and see if it is and at what level. If it's safe as used, this means that a reputable body somewhere did a study and found it was safe or not unsafe.

The second part of this answer is this - I use the ingredients I write about on this blog. I use them on my mom, my husband, my dog (sometimes), my best friend, people I know, the kids in my youth group, and me. If I thought they were unsafe, would I let the people I care about use these products? If I thought they were unsafe, would I suggest that you, my wonderful readers, try them on the people you love?

I know we read all the time about the horrors of "toxic chemicals", "chemicals", toxins, and so on, but always question your source and why they're saying something is bad or good for you. I know that science can't explain everything, but we do know that neither GSE (grapefruit seed extract) nor love are preservatives and there is no evidence that SLS (sodium lauryl sulphate) causes cancer, for instance. (We don't know about 85% of the bacteria that is found in our intestines or every chemical found in garlic, two things I find fascinating!)

These are my sources, in case you're curious...The Handbook of Cosmetic Science & Technology (3rd edition), Chemistry for Pharmacy Students, Surfactants in Personal Care and Decorative Cosmetics, Poucher's Perfumes, Cosmetics & Soaps (10th edition), as well as Beginning Cosmetic Chemistry and Surfactants. I refer to the web (scholar or books) for more information, and use Ebsco and the search engine at the university and library. I also refer to the manufacturer's data bulletins. I supplement my research with visits to various cosmetic science sites.

I don't consider writing a blog post about something unless I've found the information confirmed in at least two reputable sources. If I'm wrong, I admit it and correct the blog post.

I feel that I do my homework before I write about an ingredient, and I like to know everything I can about it before I even consider a blog post. I like to experiment with the ingredients - although some are too expensive or too obscure for me to source - and I like to give you my opinion (which you can take or leave as you wish!).

Here's a past rant about defining your products by what's not in it and a post on how to research ingredients, which is less ranty.

Would I use phosphate esters in my products? Sure, if I could find them to buy, but I haven't been able to source them anywhere. I would want to raise the pH to a decent level, though.

Join me tomorrow for more questions!

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Question: What does active mean in our surfactants?

Ruth wrote to ask me this question: What does it mean, when a ingredient says it is 25% or 30% or etc. active? Do you use them differently? Depending on the active %?

Great question, Ruth!


We see this mostly with surfactants in that the ingredient contains 25% of the active ingredient - something like cocamidopropyl betaine or sodium cocoyl isethionate (SCI) - with the rest being filler, such as water, preservative, glycerin, and so on. In theory, we use those ingredients differently. For instance, if the maximum safe usage level of a surfactant (let's call it foamy A) is 20%, and it's 40% active, then we'd use a maximum 50% of foamy A in a product. If another company makes their own version of foamy A at 80% active, we'd use 25% in a product to get to that maximum amount.

Let's stop and do the math for a second...If you need 20% active ingredient, and your bottle contains 40% active ingredient, then using 50% of the whole ingredient in your product will give you 20%. If you need 20% active ingredient, and your bottle contains 80% active ingredient, using 25% of the whole ingredient in your product will give you 20%. 

It's hard to say if the active will have a difference on the product or not. If you're using something like 25% cocamidopropyl betaine versus 30% cocamidopropyl betaine at 10% in your product (meaning you have 2.5% cocamidopropyl betaine in one product, 3% in the other), it might not be immediately noticeable, but using something like 40% active surfactant versus 25% active surfactant at 20% will be, so it's difficult to offer an across the board kind of statement about it.

Also heck what makes up the non-active percentage in the product. Is it water, alcohol, preservative, various humectants, and so on? In the case of powdered surfactants, does it contain extra fatty acids, extra fatty alcohols, or other emollients that bother someone with oily hair or skin? These things might have an impact on your product as well!

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Question: How can I increase the lather and foam in a facial cleanser?

In this post, The Fawn writes: I currently have coco glucoside on hand and would like to make a facial cleanser for myself. But I find that with coco glucoside at 30% as the single surfactant, there's very little bubble/lather and no foam at all. I am one of those people who wants LOTS of foam and lather if possible! :D I am looking at cocamidopropyl betaine, but not sure if it will give me enough foam and lather.
Could you advice me which surfactant I should add to the coco glucoside if I would like a cleanser that's gentle enough for sensitive but acne prone skin?

I'm not really sure why one would want a lot of foam and lather in a facial cleanser - don't you find it gets into your eyes and is hard to rinse off? - but we like a challenge around here. The easiest way is to put your product in a foamer bottle! Done! Lather and foam with even a small amount of surfactant! But I don't think that's the answer you wanted, so let's expand this further.

You'll want to use very mild and gentle surfactants for sensitive skin (click here for the posts on various skin types). Decyl glucoside is a mild surfactant and good foamer. Cocamidopropyl betaine is a great inclusion in any surfactant based products as it will increase the mildness and slightly thicken your product. If you have very oily skin, consider using C14-16 olefin sulfonate (maybe 5% to 10% in your product) and if you want creamy feeling lather, consider using SCI, which offers a moisturized after feel.

Here are a few ideas for facial cleansers...
Ideas for formulating facial cleansers
Creamy facial cleanser with SCI
Foamy facial cleanser
Some more ideas for a facial cleanser

If you're using coco glucoside on its own, you will need to make sure you alter the pH as it can be very high - between 7 to 11.5, check with your supplier to get the exact number - and we want our products to be between 5.5 and 6.5.

I really recommend spending some time getting to know your surfactants because our facial skin can get very grumpy at times. If you want to know more about surfactants, click here!

Let us know how it turns out!

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Why did I buy that again? SCS-CAB blend - recipe ideas!

I love working with surfactants and I thought I'd offer a few recipes in which you could include SCS-CAB blend. I haven't made these actual creations myself as I don't have any SCS-CAB blend and using SCS and CAB in a recipe won't have the same effect, but I have no hesitation in sharing them and assuring you they will work!

A bubble bath would be a fine thing with SCS-CAB blend because we'd normally use some kind of primary surfactant that likes to foam with cocamidopropyl betaine for thickening and increase mildness. (To see more about creating bubble baths, click here.)


MY USUAL BUBBLE BATH RECIPE
26.5% water
10% aloe vera
30% cocamidopropyl betaine
22% C14-16 olefin sulfonate
6% BSB (a surfactant blend)
1% glycerin
0.5% to 1% preservative
2% fragrance oil
up to 2% Crothix (read notes below)
Colouring, if desired

If you're using SCS-CAB blend, you could substitute it for the C14-16 olefin sulfonate and cocamidopropyl betaine at 40%, and increase the water amount by 12% or increase the other surfactant amount by 12%. You could use 5% cocamide DEA instead of the BSB for foam boosting, or use 5% SCI to thicken the product and make it more opaque!

If you want to leave out the aloe vera, feel free to do so. I add it because it increases viscosity of the product, meaning I need to use less Crothix. 

Mix your surfactants together until well blended, then add the water and blend well. Add the glycerin, preservative, fragrance oil, and colouring and blend well (but don't be overly zealous in your mixing, as we don't want to generate a ton of bubbles). Let it rest for a bit - say an hour or so - and check the viscosity. If you are happy with it, bottle and label it. If you aren't happy with it, then add 1% liquid Crothix and stir well. If you still aren't happy with it, add another 0.5% Crothix. You can go up to 2% Crothix, but ensure you stir very well in between additions.

If you wanted to try something different, how about this foaming scrub with SCI? I've been using this a lot lately and really loving it! I'm substituting the SCS-CAB blend for the cocamide DEA and cocamidopropyl betaine, but you could substitute any surfactant blend with the the SCS-CAB and see how it works out!


POSSIBLY A FOAMING BATH BUTTER BUT DEFINITELY A REALLY NICE FOAMING, LATHERY SCRUB
HEATED SURFACTANT PHASE
32% SCI
21.9% SCS-CAB blend
8.7% polyglucose/lactylate blend
8.7% glycerin
4.5% Cromollient SCE

HEATED OIL PHASE
2.5% glycol distearate
4.5% cetyl alcohol
8.7% soy bean oil

COOL DOWN PHASE
2.6% myristamine oxide
4.4% polyquat 7
0.5% liquid Germall Plus
1% fragrance oil

Weigh the heated surfactant phase into a heatproof container and put into the double boiler. Melt until it is kinda liquidy but mixes well. Also weigh the heated oil phase into a heatproof container and put into the double boiler. Melt until it is liquid.

Add the two phases together and mix well. You can add the myristamine oxide and polyquat 7 at any point, but wait until you reach 45˚C before adding the fragrance and preservative.

Mix this very well with a hand mixer - beaters, not whisks! - until it is fluffy. Add some exfoliants if you want. I added about 50% sugar and I really like it!

I call this a possibly foaming bath butter because I have no idea what that product feels like, but that's what it seems like to me. It's foamy and fluffy and feels very nice on my skin when I've used it in the shower. If you don't have the Cromollient SCE or myristamine oxide, don't worry - you can use some other water soluble esters, if you want, or increase your liquid surfactant amount.

A body wash would also be a great product in which to include SCS-CAB blend. I have a number of body washes on this blog...you can find one here, another one with SCI here, and another one with water soluble oils here. Substitute the cocamidopropyl betaine amount and all or a bit of one surfactant with the SCS-CAB blend. 

Want more ideas? Considering using it in a facial cleanser or a shampoo as well! (Do a search - upper left hand corner of the screen - or click on the hair care link to the right for recipes!) 

Join me tomorrow for more fun formulating with new ingredients!

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Why did I buy that? SCS-CAB blend (sodium coco sulfate - cocamidopropyl betaine blend)

Tara suggested the SCS-CAB surfactant blend as one of those why did I buy that ingredients (if you'd like to make a suggestion, please click on the link and leave a comment there!)

SCS-CAB blend is a surfactant blend of sodium coco sulfate and cocamidopropyl betaine (about 34% to 37% surfactants). It has a pH of about 6.0 to 7.5 (great range for making products) and the suggested use is at about 10% to 40% in our shampoos, body washes, and other lathery products.

Sodium coco sulfate is related to the most hated of surfactants - sodium lauryl sulfate - with some differences. Whereas SLS is derived from lauryl alcohol (from coconuts), SCS is derived from coconuts (hence the "coco" part of the name), but contains a number of different fatty alcohols in the mix, like lauryl, cetyl, and stearyl alcohols.

Because of these extra fatty alcohols and because of the increased molecular weight, SCS is more hydrophobic and less water soluble than SLS, so it feels more moisturizing and conditioning on our skin (the way SCI feels). It's a great foamer in hard water and boosts the foam of other surfactants. It's easy to thicken with salt and things like Crothix.

SCS has a Green Star Rating of 58 (rounded from 57.7%), which is a measure of renewable resource content in an ingredient.

When we find SCS in the flake or noodle format (I have the noodle format), it is considered a good thickener and pearlizer for our products. The pH ranges between 9.5 to 12.0, so make sure you test the pH if you're using this as a substitute for SCI (sodium cocoyl isethionate), which has a pH that ranges from 4.5 to 6.5 or so.

I've seen SCS used as a substitute for the SLSa and SCI in shampoo bars. If you're planning to do this - and I do plan to do it in the near future just out of curiosity - test the pH when you're still in the melty gloppy stage of the product. If you need to increase or decrease the pH of the product, please consult this post for more information.

The SCS in this product is found in liquid form (because it's in a liquid medium - water) and is combined with cocamidopropyl betaine. When SCS is combined with cocamidopropyl betaine, our products should have increased clarity, mildness, and foam volume, as well as some thickening.

So what should we expect out of this surfactant blend? We should expect a really great foamer that will also boost the foam of other surfactants, increased mildness, some possible thickening of the product, and a mild detergent. If you're using this blend, you will not need to worry about the pH level as it ranges between 6.0 and 7.5, which is where we want it to be.

Where can you use this surfactant blend? Wherever you want! It would work in any body washes, shampoos, bubble baths, and other surfactanty products you like! I think it would be especially nice combined with SCI to create a very conditioning and moisturizing body wash, or combined with something like polyglucoside/lactylate blend to create a really really moisturizing product (probably too moisturizing in a facial cleanser or shampoo for us oily girls!)

Join me tomorrow for fun formulating with SCS-CAB blend!

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A few notes on SCI (sodium cocoyl isethionate)

I love love love SCI! If I could choose only one surfactant for the rest of my life, it would be SCI! (Click here for more information on this surfactant.) I use it in shampoo bars, body washes, facial cleansers, and everything else that might benefit from a creamy feeling lather and extreme mildness. So I need to clarify something...

All SCI contains some fatty acids that are left over from the coconut fatty acids used to create them. Some have more, some have less, but they all have a bit of fatty acid left in the process. This fatty acid helps increase mildness in our products and might be a reason that it feels so lovely on our skin. Are these fatty acids stearic acid? Possibly. Coconut oil doesn't contain a lot of stearic acid - it's mostly lauric acid, which has a great affinity for hair, and myristic acid, with a titch of the other acids thrown in for fun! - but we could find any of the fatty acids found in coconut in the end product of SCI.

Some SCI has an INCI of sodium cocoyl isethionate and some has an INCI of sodium cocoyl isethionate (and) stearic acid. This means stearic acid has been added to the mix to make it more noodle-y or flake-y. But all SCI contains some free fatty acids in the mix left over from the process of turning coconut oil into a surfactant.

For instance, Jordapon CI prill contains less than 6% fatty acids (INCI sodium cocoyl isethionate). Geropon by Rhodia contains 60% actives, less than 10% coconut acid, and more than 25% stearic acid (INCI sodium cocoyl isethionate (and) stearic acid). Tauranot 1-78 contains 10% to 12% free fatty acids and is 80% to 82% active (INCI sodium cocoyl isethionate). And Elfan by Azko Nobel has 7% to 12% free fatty acids with 81% to 86% actives (INCI sodium cocoyl isethionate). 

It seems that some people have the idea that having stearic acid in our SCI isn't a good thing. Like everything in life, it depends upon the application (chocolate good in my mouth, not so good in my purse on a hot summer day). In my personal experience - and I recognize that the plural of anecdote isn't data - SCI with stearic acid in the INCI name doesn't agree with my oily hair when I put it into shampoo bars or liquid shampoo, but it's absolutely wonderful in body washes, facial cleansers, and other applications because it adds that wonderful creamy lather and lots of thickening to the product. So if you were to ask me if I thought SCI with stearic acid was a bad thing, I'd say no! It's great! But it doesn't work well for me in a shampoo for very oily hair.

In the interest of complete disclosure, I am writing this post because I received a phone call from Angie at the Herbarie. She has been asked the question about the SCI with stearic acid a number of times and was worried that I was saying that SCI with stearic was bad and wanted me to clarify this on the blog. SCI with stearic acid is not a bad thing. It's a very creamy feeling product with emolliency that will help thicken your products if you're making liquid surfactant mixes. And yes, all forms of SCI will have free fatty acids in them and the amounts differ depending on the manufacturer and the addition of extra stearic acid. Please stop asking her about her SCI! 

I hope I've clarified this!

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Iron Chemist: LSB

Welcome to Workshop Stadium. This week the Chairman, Raymond (my lovely husband), has chosen the third Iron Chemist ingredient - LSB (surfactant from Stepan). I'm grateful he chose this one; I accidentally bought two bottles of it, forgetting I had already purchased the first, so I have tons with which I can play!

Here are the rules. Every week I will ask my husband to roll a 10 sided die, each number representing a box of supplies in my workshop. He will choose an item randomly from that box and I must make 2 - possibly 3 - products that include that ingredient. I will post the ingredient on Sunday and the products I've made out of said ingredient Saturday (January 15th) along with the recipes. (If you wish to play along, you aren't limited to the same time frame and you don't need to make 2 or 3 products.) The only exception will be preservatives - I use them in everything anyway, and it won't end up being a very interesting product! Unlike Iron Chef, you don't have to make the featured ingredient the main ingredient because we don't want to use our ingredients at unsafe levels.

So what the heck is LSB? It's a surfactant from Croda containing Sodium Lauryl Sulfoacetate (SLSa) and Disodium Laureth Sulfosuccinate (DLS mild). It's about 25% active ingredients to 75% water, and it has a pH of 6.0 at 10% active. It can cause mild skin and eye irritation at 10% active (which is about 40% usage), and it's biodegradable. This product will thicken up with salts (DLS mild won't thicken with salts, but the SLSa makes it possible). It works well as a primary or secondary surfactant, and because it's a blend, you can use it with a secondary surfactant like cocamidopropyl betaine or disodium cocoamphodiacetate without adding a third surfactant (it's two great things in one!).

Sodium lauryl sulfoacetate (SLSa) is generally found as a powder, but here we find it as a liquid. SLSa is an excellent foamer, latherer, and bubbler, and it offers mild but great cleansing properties.

Disodium laureth sulfosuccinate (DLS mild) is considered a very mild surfactant with good foaming and good cleansing properties. It's a poor solubilizer, which means it won't incorporate a ton of oils without some help from our polysorbates or other solubilizers. It's recommended for oily skin and hair because it removes sebum gently, but all skin and hair types can use it.

When we combine them, we get a mild cleanser with amazingly great foaming, lathering, and bubbling properties that will thicken with salts and will solubilize small amounts of oils. It's very stable in hard water, and it's a great inclusion in just about any surfactant based product.

Here's the data sheet on LSB for those of you who are interested! And as a note, when you buy the product, it won't look this creamy and white. This is because it's in my very very cold workshop. This has to do with the titer point of the surfactant - when it becomes a solid - and I've reached that temperature with this product. In surfactants, they call it the cloud point, which is around 12˚C or 53˚F for LSB. I will have to heat it up to make sure all the solids are well incorporated back into the mix before using it! (I did mention the workshop is very cold, right?) I'll take some pictures after it's heated as a comparison!

Join me next Saturday to see the results!

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Iron Chemist results: SCI

Last Sunday, my lovely husband chose SCI as the ingredient for this week's Iron Chemist! And here are the results!

SYNDET BODY BAR
50% SCI
33% SLSa
10% cocamidopropyl betaine
3% cocamide DEA
2% glycol distearate
2% fragrance oil

Weigh the SCI and cocamidopropyl betaine in a heatproof container and place into the double boiler. Weigh the cocamide DEA and glycol distearate in a heatproof container and place into the double boiler. Heat both until they are melted. Mix together, and add the SLSa slowly, so you aren't kicking up a lot of dust! Heat until they are nicely melted together and mix well. Add the 2% fragrance oil, then glop into moulds and put in the fridge or freezer. When hardened, remove.

As a note, I was going for a bubble bar here, and it works well in that capacity, but some it will end up floating around in the bath and you'll have to crumble up the last of it with your fingers if you want it to disintegrate completely. The bubbles come fast and furious and last quite some time, but I wouldn't want to call it a bath product if it won't completely dissolve. It's a very hard product, but the bubbles are fairly amazing!

I have been enjoying this body bar in the shower all week. It's very creamy feeling and doesn't make my skin feel dry or tight afterwards. When I make it again - and I will - I'll add some cationic polymer to the mix (3% polyquat 7 or honeyquat) and a humectant (glycerin at 3%) and reduce the SLSa by 6% to make it more body friendly. I didn't put those in the original recipe as I was going for a bubble bar, and I didn't want any humectants to draw water to the product while it sat in the workshop or a plastic bag!

If you're thinking that a syndet body bar is weird, that's what Dove is! It's a syndet bar with "1/4 moisturizing" included. I didn't get to the 25% moisturizing part, but I will next time!

POSSIBLY A FOAMING BATH BUTTER
HEATED SURFACTANT PHASE
32% SCI
17.4% cocamidopropyl betaine
4.5% cocamide DEA
8.7% polyglucose/lactylate blend
8.7% glycerin
4.5% Cromollient SCE

HEATED OIL PHASE
2.5% glycol distearate
4.5% cetyl alcohol
8.7% soy bean oil

COOL DOWN PHASE
2.6% myristamine oxide
4.4% polyquat 7
0.5% liquid Germall Plus
1% fragrance oil

Weigh the heated surfactant phase into a heatproof container and put into the double boiler. Melt until it is kinda liquidy but mixes well. Also weigh the heated oil phase into a heatproof container and put into the double boiler. Melt until it is liquid.

Add the two phases together and mix well. You can add the myristamine oxide and polyquat 7 at any point, but wait until you reach 45˚C before adding the fragrance and preservative.

Mix this very well with a hand mixer - beaters, not whisks! - until it is fluffy. Add some exfoliants if you want.

I call this a possibly foaming bath butter because I have no idea what that product feels like, but that's what it seems like to me. It's foamy and fluffy and feels very nice on my skin when I've used it in the shower. If you don't have the Cromollient SCE or myristamine oxide, don't worry - you can use some other water soluble esters, if you want, or increase your liquid surfactant amount.

In case you're curious about the weird amounts in this recipe, it's because I started off making one recipe, then changed it when I realized it was hardening far too fast, so I had to re-calculate the amounts to make them add up to 100%. 

Here are a few of my favourite recipes using SCI (but not created this week!)
Conditioning shampoo for dry hair
Conditioning shampoo for normal to oily hair
Solid shampoo bars for all hair types (visual tutorial)
Shampoo bars for dry hair
Shampoo bars for oily hair
Body wash with polyglucose/lactylate blend & salicylic acid
Body wash with SCI
Creamy, moisturizing body wash with SCI and esters
Creamy facial cleanser for dry skin
Creamy facial cleanser for normal skin

Join me tomorrow as our chairman chooses the third Iron Chemist ingredient!

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A possible shampoo for dandruff prone hair

My friend Ken asked if I had anything for dandruff prone hair. I said I didn't, but I'd be willing to give it a shot! Again, I'm not making any claims here, but I thought it would be interesting to look at the theory behind why people have dandruff prone hair and try to make a product that addressed those issues.

(From this post) Dandruff is defined as excessive scaling of the scalp that results in flaking of our skin. There are many different things that can cause dandruff but the general consensus is that it is a low-grade underlying inflammatory process resulting in proliferative activity of the scalp, meaning there is some kind of inflammation that is leading to excessive scaling. A person with dandruff might see a scalp skin cell turnover of as short as 7 days, whereas someone without dandruff might take up to a month. People with oilier scalps with an excess of oleic acid and a microbe (Pityrosporum species Malassezia ovalis) are more susceptible to dandruff. (The microbe processes the oils and causes an inflammatory response in our stratum corneum.) It's more active in the colder months than the summer. Dandruff treatments should include anti-microbial agents (like Tinosan or quaternary compounds), keratolytic agents (like salicylic acid or sulfur to increase scalp desquamation) and anti-seborrheic compounds (things that reduce sebum levels, like coal tar).

So with this in mind, I set out to make him a shampoo for his fine, oily, dandruff prone hair!

A POSSIBLE SHAMPOO TO HELP WITH DANDRUFF (BUT I'M MAKING NO CLAIMS HERE!)
HEATED WATER PHASE
24.5% water
20% aloe vera liquid
5% sodium lactate
2% polyquat 44
2% Phytokeratin

HEATED SURFACTANT PHASE
10% cocamidopropyl betaine
15% C14-16 olefin sulfonate
15% DLS mild

COOL DOWN PHASE
0.5% white willow bark
1% tea tree oil
1% oily hair blend (equal parts lemon, lime, rosemary, sage, and cedarwood)
3% panthenol
0.5% liquid Germall Plus

2% Crothix added after cool down

I chose the aloe vera because it thickens the shampoo, makes it milder, and can help with moisturizing and increasing cell proliferation. It's also anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory, both of which sound necessary for a dandruff product.

I chose polyquat 44 because I find it to be a really good cationic polymer that won't build up on fine hair. I figure he can use this product as a 2 in 1 as he has really fine, short hair and doesn't really need to use a conditioner. (Which means I couldn't use Tinosan as an anti-bacterial as it doesn't play well with cationic ingredients or clear bottles, and I don't have any opaque bottles right now.)

I chose sodium lactate at 5% because my hand slipped as I was making it (it happens!) and because at over 3% it acts as a mild AHA, which can cause sloughing off of our cells. Since it will rinse out of his hair, I don't have to worry about it making him sun sensitive.

And I chose Phytokeratin because it's a blend of various hydrolyzed protein, and I figure his scalp needs some moisturizing without oils because he's oily enough!

I chose my surfactants because this is the blend I always use for oily hair. The cocamidopropyl betaine is great at thickening, increasing mildness, and increasing the foam. It can also behave as a humectant, which is great for fine hair. Disodium laureth sulfosuccinate (DLS mild) is considered a mild surfactant with great degreasing qualities for oily hair. C14-16 olefin sulfonate (I use Bioterge AS-40) has great flash foam and good cleansing, and it's recommended for oily hair.

I always include panthenol as it behaves as a humectant as well as a moisturizer and it can increase the size of the hair shaft, making hair look thicker. I chose tea tree oil as it is supposed to be good as an anti-bacterial ingredient, and I included my oily hair blend of essential oils because this is a product for oily hair! I included white willow bark as it behaves like salicylic acid without all the hassle of trying to dissolve the latter and it offers good anti-inflammatory and exfoliation properties. (I leave a little of the hot water phase out to melt it, then add it at the cool down phase!)

Finally, I added 2% Crothix when the shampoo came to room temperature to thicken it and increase mildness. You can use any thickening product or process you wish - I just find liquid Crothix so easy to use!

So what do I think? It works well as a shampoo, but I don't know how Ken feels about its possible dandruff battling action, so I'll have to wait for his e-mail saying yay or nay!

Remember, treating dandruff is a medical claim, so I'm not sure what those of you who sell might say about it. I'm calling it "A Possible Dandruff Shampoo" because I want to make sure that Ken knows what I've given him and not mix it up with other products I've given him (the white willow bark makes it a browny colour and my body wash looks the same way, although it does smell different). 

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Experiments the workshop: Using disodium cocoamphodiacetate & decyl glucoside

Sorry, I didn't get around to formulating with the emu oil as I've been running around testing everything with my pH meter, and got into the surfactants bin in the workshop! I'll have some posts on emu oil shortly!  My husband has started calling me "magpie" because I'm easily distracted by shiny things! 

Now that I have my fancy new pH meter, I can finally do some formulating with disodium cocoamphodiacetate (pH 9 according to the data sheet, but mine tested at 7.7) and decyl glucoside (pH between 7 and 9, I forgot to test it). I thought I'd throw a little polyglucose/lactylate blend into the mix because it does feel really nice and moisturizing on my skin!

I decided to make my usual body wash but switch the disodium cocoamphodiacetate for the cocamidopropyl betaine, and the decyl glucoside and polyglucose/lactylate blend for the other surfactants. I've kept every other ingredient the same - including my usual fragrance, lemon curd - so I could see what each ingredient brings to the mix. I accidentally added 1% more than I wanted of the decyl glucoside and I only had 30 grams of polyglucose/lactylate blend left, hence the amounts I used in this recipe. Next time I'll make the body wash with esters - which is my new favourite recipes - with just the disodium cocoamphodiacetate in place of the cocoamidopropyl betaine.

EXPERIMENTAL BODY WASH RECIPE
10% disodium cocoamphodiacetate
21% decyl glucoside
10% polyglucose/lactylate blend
10% aloe vera
10% chamomile hydrosol
28.5% water
4% glycerin
3% polyquat 7
2% hydrolyzed oat protein
2% panthenol
0.5% liquid Germall Plus
1% fragrance oil

I mixed it all together, then tested the pH - 8.6! That's way too high! So I mixed up 0.2% citric acid with a titch of warm water to dissolve and added it to the mixture. New measurement - 7.74. Still too high. We want 6.5 or lower. So another 0.2% citric acid with a titch of water and added to the body wash. Success - we have 6.51!

As a note, it seems like 0.2% citric acid will take the mixture down about 1 pH level (give or take), so if you make this recipe and don't have a meter, 0.4% will bring the levels down to a reasonable level. The main ingredients that mess with the pH are the decyl glucoside and disodium cocoamphodiacetate as the polyglucose/lactylate blend has a pH of 5 to 7. So if you use the first two surfactants and use any surfactant with a pH between 5 and 7 as your third surfactant, then the 0.4% should bring the pH down enough. 

What's the viscosity like? It's thin. Very very thin. I could put this in a foamer bottle and not have to thin it out at all! Normally the Lemon Curd fragrance oil thickens it quite well, so I need to add a little Crothix. I added 1%. Not enough, so I added another 0.5%. Still not enough, so I added another 0.5% for a total of 2%. It's still on the thinnish side and could use a little bit more, but I don't like to go over 2% because it's so easy to turn it into Jell-O, so let's leave it there.

How does it feel? It feels really nice. I think thanks in part to the polyglucose/lactylate blend, but I did find it to feel very moisturizing. It foamed and lathered very nicely, and I think this would be a great product for someone with normal to oily skin. If I were to make it for my dry skinned friends, I'd increase the polyglucose/lactylate blend to 20% and reduce the water amount by 10%.

FINAL RECIPE FOR EXPERIMENTAL BODY WASH
10% disodium cocoamphodiacetate

21% decyl glucoside

10% polyglucose/lactylate blend

10% aloe vera

10% chamomile hydrosol

28.1% water**

4% glycerin

3% polyquat 7

2% hydrolyzed oat protein

2% panthenol

0.5% liquid Germall Plus

1% fragrance oil

0.4% citric acid

**Save about 5% of your water to dissolve the citric acid.
Add Crothix or salt as necessary to increase viscosity. I used 2% and it wasn't really thick enough!

As a note, I think this would make a fine 2-in-1 body wash and shampoo for those inclined as it has all the goodies you'd put in a shampoo!

As a note, I coloured it pink despite its lemony deliciousness so I would know that it wasn't my usual body wash because the labels tend to fall off in the shower and I don't make anything else that's pink!

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Surfactants: Disodium cocoamphodiacetate

I've bought a new surfactant to play with over my two week holiday at Christmas! It's disodium cocoamphodiacetate (aka Amphosol 2C by Stepan)!

Disodium cocoamphodiacetate is a mild amphoteric surfactant, much like cocamidopropyl betaine. The "ampho" part in the name indicates it's amphoteric, meaning it carries a different charge in different pH levels. If it's acidic (below 6), it behaves as a cationic surfactant that will be substantive to our hair and skin, offering moisturizing and conditioning properties. If it's alkaline (above 8), it behaves as an anionic surfactant with good foaming and detergency properties. (Click on the link for cocamidopropyl betaine if you want more information on the chemistry!)

It's generally used as a secondary surfactant to boost foam and viscosity, and it can be used as a very gentle cleanser for sensitive skin, babies, and facial products. It has a pH of 8.5 to 9.5 (which is higher than cocamidopropyl betaine), so I'll have to make sure I alter the pH if I'm using a lot of in my products with citric acid (just a titch). It comes as about 38% active in our products, and the suggested usage rate is up to 50%!

You will likely see this surfactant used as a primary surfactant for baby products as it's non-irritating to eyes at up to 5% and because it's very mild. And you'll likely see it combined with decyl glucoside in a lot of natural products or cleansers for sensitive skin as this combination creates a very gentle cleanser that won't strip a ton of oil off your skin! If you want to use this combination, you will have to test the pH and alter it slightly with citric acid.

If you want to use it as a secondary surfactant, it works with any combination of anionic or non-ionic surfactants, much like cocamidopropyl betaine. It will increase the mildness of your surfactant blend and it will increase the viscosity of your product. It does have a slightly yellow tinge, so if you want a completely crystal clear product with no colour, it might not work for those applications. But really, when you have a very gentle cleanser that offers moisturizing and conditioning, increases the mildness and viscosity, and doesn't strip the oils from our hair and skin, is a hint of yellow really going to make that a big a difference?

Click here for the data sheet from Stepan.

Join me tomorrow for fun formulating with this new surfactant!

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