Tag: testing

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Lotion Formulations – 01 Feb 2021

These are the formulations presently being tested:

Lotion No. 10a is made with meadowfoam, mineral, and jojoba oils, isopropyl myristate, stearic acid, BTMS, and allantoin. Scented with Litsea Cubeba. Litsea is a refreshing, rejuvenating essential oil with a lemony aroma.

Lotion No. 11a is made with macadamia nut, hempseed, and jojoba oils, stearic acid, BTMS, and allantoin. Scented with a blend we call Musk Rose.

Lotion No. 12a is made with fractionated coconut oil, monoi butter, isopropyl myristate, stearic acid, and BTMS. Scented with Monoi. Monoi oil is derived from the Tiare flower, also known as the Tahitian Gardenia.

Lotion No. 13a is made with fractionated coconut and tamanu oils, isopropyl myristate, olive squalane, stearic acid, BTMS, and allantoin. Scented with rosemary. The tamanu oil has a unique earthy smell of its own.

The Tamanu oil, used in No. 13a,  is reputed to have special healing qualities, as does olive squalane. That said, all of the oils we use are chosen for some skin friendly quality.

Lotion No. 14a is made with walnut, olive, and jojoba oils, isopropyl myristate, stearic acid, emulsifying wax, and allantoin. Scented with  Rockrose (Cistus ladanifer essential oil).

Lotion No. 15a is made with cocoa butter, fractionated coconut and jojoba oils, isopropyl myristate, stearic acid, emulsifying wax and BTMS, glycerin, sodium lactate, chamomile hydrosol, calendula extract, and allantoin. Scented with a blend of German and Roman chamomile and helichrysum essential oils.

Lotion No. 16a is made with shea butter, walnut and jojoba oils, isopropyl myristate, stearic acid, emulsifying wax and BTMS, glycerin, rose hydrosol (rose water), silk amino acids, and allantoin. Scented with sandalwood essential oil.

Lotion No. 17a (samples only at this time) is made with karanja, shorea, andirobab, and nigella seed oils, isopropyl myristate, stearic acid, emulsifying wax and BTMS, glycerin, rose hydrosol (rose water), and colloidal oatmeal. Scented with rose geranium essential oil.
(Note that although we are sending this out for testing I am concerned that some may not care for the unique smell of the karanja and nigella seed oils. It may only be that I smell them because I know they are there. I won’t sell this though until we get some feedback. If you like the smell of rose, which is evident in both the rose water and the lovely Bourbon variety geranium we use, you may really like the powdery feel of the colloidal oatmeal coupled with the skin-friendly glycerin. Nigella seed (aka black cumin seed) oil is supposedly very healing, by the way, and Karanja too. – John)

  • Vitamin E and a preservative/germicide is added to each lotion.
  • All (at this time) have a medium consistency, neither thick nor thin, although there is some variance between them. ANY lotion we make can be thickened if desired.
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Lotion Update – 18 Nov 2020

Now available for sale is Lotion No. 10a which is made with meadowfoam, mineral, and jojoba oils, isopropyl myristate, stearic acid, BTMS, and allantoin (see link below). We add vitamin E and a minimal amount of preservative to all our lotions.

This batch is lightly scented with litsea cubeba, which is a refreshing, rejuvenating essential oil with a lemony aroma. We will have unscented lotions available as well.

No. 10a is a moderately thick* lotion. It absorbs moderately quick and leaves a soft powdery feel. Hands stay comfortable even after washing.

*Update – 29 Nov 2020: I would no longer classify this lotion as thick. Like all of the lotions we have made recently this one is about right in the middle, neither thick nor thin. – John

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New News on Lotions – Allantoin

We recently made our first batch of lotion using an ingredient called allantoin. I wanted to post a little information about it so you would know what it was. The following description is from one of our suppliers…

Allantoin is a synthetic, free-flowing hygroscopic powder widely used in cosmetic, dermatological and pharmaceutical formulations for its soothing and anti-irritating properties. Allantoin has a moisturizing and keratolytic effect, increasing the water content of the extracellular matrix and enhancing the desquamation of upper layers of dead skin cells, increasing the smoothness of the skin; promoting cell proliferation and wound healing; and a soothing, anti-irritant, and skin protectant effect by forming complexes with irritants and sensitizing agents. Allantoin stimulates healthy, normal tissue formation even at low concentrations.

While allantoin is present in botanical extracts of the comfrey plant, it is generally chemically synthesized to meet worldwide demand. Our Allantoin is a nature-identical, synthesized product made to USP specifications. It is non-toxic, non-irritating, and non-allergenic.

Allantoin has been classified by the FDA as an Over-The-Counter (OTC) Category I (safe and effective) active ingredient skin protectant. It is FDA approved for this use at 0.5% to 2.0% in formulations. If you include it in your formulations and on your ingredient labels, but make no drug claims for it, it remains a cosmetic ingredient and need not be declared as an “active ingredient.”

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Now Testing Liquid Lip Balms

We are now testing a series of liquid lip balms. This bulletin is posted for those doing blind testing who did not receive a printout of what may be in any of the numbered samples you received.

Any of them may contain: Lanolin oil, Macadamia Nut oil, Mineral oil, Squalane (derived from olive oil), Arnica oil, or Mixed Tocopherols T50 (natural vitamin e). All of them are blends.

A friend commented recently that he loved the Balm No.3, but that he had to apply it relatively often. I said I would get him a little baby dropper bottle of what I used on my own lips, and that is how this began.

I myself use the Balm No.3 mainly on my hands. The single largest ingredient in No.3 is Shea Butter, followed by Macadamia Nut oil, Beeswax, and Jojoba, with T50 (vitamin e). It absorbs well, at least on my skin, and is non-greasy. It is because it absorbs well that regular application becomes necessary.

Every test pack also included a small dropper of Organic Unrefined Hempseed oil. It will not have a long shelf-life and should be used up within 6-8 weeks. Apply to cuts, scrapes, or dry skin and see if it lives up to its hype or not. It has a beautiful dark green smell and color.

– John

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On Testing Batches — S-No.s170 Cananga Silk

from behind the curtain…
By the time I mixed batch # 170 I was sure that this combination of oils, at these ratios, would create a soap that was equal to or better than any batch yet. Maybe we succeeded with this formula, or maybe not — soap is a pretty subjective thing. That said, I was initially disappointed in this batch when I tested the first bar at about a 3 week cure time. It just didn’t lather like it should have. In hindsight, this was great information. On a whim however, I grabbed a bar off the rack a few weeks later, and, having had more time to cure, it performed beautifully.

Regarding this particular soap, the custom blend of Bergamot, Tangerine, and Ylang essential oils is reminiscent of orange mixed in vanilla cream. Ylang has always seemed overpowering to me, and I was determined to appreciate it… to use it in a way that accentuated its lustiness, while maintaining good form. In this I believe I succeeded.

I hope this soap — this formula, No.s170 — becomes a great seller, but if it doesn’t that’s okay. We have so many great soaps, and many of our simplest formulas are some of our best. Please try a number of them, and let us know what you think. Thank you for your business.

— John, Lost in Minnesota