Chemists Corner podcast is about cosmetic science and is broadcast to help educate, entertain, and inspire current and future cosmetic scientists. Each episode we’ll talk about news in the cosmetic industry, answer some of your questions, and discuss a topic in-depth, usually with an industry expert interview.

In this episode…

1. News

• Discuss the passing of skin research pioneer Albert Kligman.
• Dermatologist gets warning letter from FDA

2. Listener question
Why is fluid viscosity important to cosmetic chemists?

3. Weekly Challenge.

Which headline is the FAKE?
a. Drinking tea can protect your skin
b. Music is good for your skin
c. Spent oil from French fries can repair your skin.

If you’ve got an answer to the challenge, have a question, or have any topics you’d like us to cover, leave a comment below.

Here are the details

SCC Midwest Chapter TEAMWORKS 2010

March 31, 2010 – 8:30 AM-6 PM
Donald E. Stephens Convention Center
5555 N. Des Plaines River Road
Rosemont, IL (Chicago)
Educational Program March 31 8:30 AM – noon

New colleagues are waiting, new concepts abound and innovations are within reach – discover
them in Chicago. The Midwest Chapter Society of Cosmetic Chemists (SCC) will host TEAMWORKS 2010, the premier exhibition for formulators among the specialty chemical allied trades, on March 31, 2010, at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, Illinois-conveniently located near O’Hare International Airport.

Chemists, chemical buyers, engineers and technologists in the cosmetic, personal care, pharmaceutical and other allied industries will mingle among 130+ booths representing prime technology suppliers in the industry. TEAMWORKS 2010 is an opportunity to gather for an exciting learning experience, and to foster friendships in a bond of cooperation and success.

Education, innovation and networking are key focal points during this event. The half-day educational program will highlight the latest material launches to give formulations an added edge, and technology exchanges will occur throughout the exhibition. See below for more information.

Networking opportunities will also abound-grab a colleague during the buffet luncheon, sit down together and debate product development strategies; or arrive a day early to network during the Social Night with some of the great minds in the industry.

A buffet lunch, raffle prize drawings, BINGO card prizes, and a well-appointed networking area will be provided. Pre-registered attendees are also eligible for a raffle prize. (must register by March 16, 2010)

Attendance is FREE! Register online –
Educational Program: Formulating for Marketing Demands – 8:30 AM – noon
8:30-9:00 Continental Breakfast and Networking

8:50-8:55 Opening Remarks
Gene Frank, Raani Corp.

9:00-9:30 Keynote Presentation: A Corporate Strategy for Sustainability
Peggy Ward, Manager of Corporate Sustainability Programs, Kimberly-Clark

9:30-9:35 Q&A

9:40-10:00 Addressing the ‘Free-from’ Conundrum-paraben-free, sulfate-free, etc.
Tim Kapsner, Senior Research Scientist, Aveda Corp.

10:00-10:05 Q&A

10:05-10:20 Coffee Break

10:25-10:45 Formulating for Sensitive Skin
Russell Walters, PhD, Johnson & Johnson

10:45-10:50 Q&A

10:55-11:15 Formulating for Ethnic Care
Ali Syed, CEO, Avlon Industries

11:15-11:20 Q&A

11:25-11:45 Improving Sensory Benefits in Hair Care
Michael Wright, Senior Research Scientist, Nexxus Salon Hair Care/Alberto Culver Co.

11:45-11:50 Q&A

11:55 Closing Remarks

*The education session will open with a continental breakfast at 8:30 am, followed by opening remarks with the keynote presentation beginning at 9:00 am.

Online Exhibitor Guide!

Plan your visit ahead of time and check out the exhibitors today! All exhibitors are listed alphabetically on the online exhibitor guide. Contact exhibitors to set up appointments during the show!

Information is provided about the products and services they offer along with a link to each exhibitor’s website. Check it out anytime and plan your trip through the exhibitor hall.

This was a question I received in an email from someone who was doing some research about different chemist careers. And if this person wanted to know about it, it makes sense that some of you might be wondering the same thing. So, here it is, 75 things that a formulation scientist or cosmetic chemist might do on any given work day, conveniently presented in four categories.

Cosmetic product development

Create formulas
Gather raw materials
Get equipment for making batches
Make batches
Restock lab supplies
Keep notes in notebook
Write experimental results in notebook
Clean glassware and lab
Research formulation topics
Generate new product ideas
Create prototypes
Create dye solutions for color matching
Make samples for marketing
Supervise / make batches for home use tests
Supervise first production batches
Solve stability problems
Generate test ideas to substantiate claims
Figure out ways to make formulas less expensive
Attend focus groups
Participate in brainstorming meetings
Review product label copy
Assist in writing product concepts
Present new technologies to non-scientists

Cosmetic product testing

Take pH readings
Take viscosity readings
Fill and label glass and plastic bottles
Wash & comb hair tresses
Color matching
Bleach and color hair tresses
Conduct foam tests
Run stability tests
Conduct skin moisturization tests
Run project specific, customized tests
Try formula prototypes
View samples under a microscope
Observe salon tests
Conduct odor tests
Participate in product panel testing
Get samples for testing
Evaluate competitive products

Personal Training

Read trade journals
Read Chemists Corner and other useful blogs in your RSS reader
Attend meetings with suppliers
Go to SCC meetings
Go to industry trade shows
Take continuing education courses
Attend conferences
Review latest patents
Listen to podcasts like the Chemists Corner podcast
Read industry text books
Take online training courses
Pursue an advanced degree in cosmetic science

Business stuff

Respond to emails
Create presentations
Attend corporate meetings
Attend project planning meetings
Respond to phone calls
Do desk side interviews with beauty editors
Conduct training sessions for non-scientists
Write business travel reports
Fill out expense reports
Write monthly reports
Go to office celebrations
Engage in “water-cooler” chat with co-workers
Write memos
Sign and review contracts
Give instruction to people who report to you
Meet with your boss to update them on your progress
Interview candidates
Entertain kids during Bring Your Kid to Work week
Keep track of project progress
Engage in debates with regulatory & legal departments
Write patent applications
Write employee reviews

Whew! My brain is fried and I might be able to go on, but I think I covered practically everything I did as a cosmetic chemist.

Is there anything we missed? Leave a comment below

Perhaps by the end of this post, you might experience that look too.

What are puffery cosmetic ingredients?

In the cosmetic science business, non-functional ingredients that are added to your formula to support marketing stories have a variety of names; puffery ingredients, featured ingredients, woofle dust, and pixie dust have all been used to describe these ingredients. They usually have some of the following features.

1. They sound impressive
2. They provide a story that consumers find compelling
3. The are trendy and probably featured in a magazine article
4. They are endorsed by some “expert”
5. They are expensive
6. They are used at low levels

Basically, these ingredients are added to help convince consumers that their beauty product is special and will provide miraculous results.

Which of these sounds more compelling to you?

“Our product combines a blend of naturally charged biominerals with powerful botanical ingredients to create an exclusive anti-aging technology”

Or

“Our product combines petrolatum with cetyl alcohol to create an exclusive anti-aging technology”

Obviously, the first one. But the truth is, the functional claims of this product are provided by ingredients like petrolatum, mineral oil and cetyl alcohol. They just don’t sound as good.

Examples of puffery ingredients

There are a wide variety of cosmetic ingredients that are added as puffery ingredients but they roughly fall under one of the following types.

Vitamins – Everyone knows that vitamins are good for your diet and you need them to live, but consumers also have the erroneous belief that if something is good to eat, then it’s good to put on your skin & hair. The truth is there is very little evidence that topically applying most vitamins to your skin will have any effect. (Vitamins A & C are exceptions and can have an effect if properly formulated). There is no evidence that vitamins in your hair care products will have much effect. Some claim Vitamin B can increase hair strength but I’m not convinced by the available science and my own experience.

Whether they are functional or not, adding vitamins makes your cosmetic products more appealing to consumers

Proteins – These are another type of compound that consumers know about and are naturally inclined to believe they are good for them. When eaten, they are good for people. When slathered on their skin and hair, not necessarily. Proteins like collagen and elastin are added to skin creams. Silk, keratin, and other exotic hydrolyzed proteins are added to hair products. These ingredients aren’t added because of the effect they have (they don’t do much). They are added because consumers and marketers like the stories they convey.

Natural ingredients – Some beauty product companies are so enamored with natural ingredients, they add dozens and dozens which make their ingredient statements look like novellas. These include extracts from all kinds of plants from fruits, vegetable and herbs, taken from exotic places in the world like the Amazon rain forest or the mountains of Switzerland. You’ll find things like marine extracts and organically grown strawberry extract. If it’s natural and someone can squeeze some juice out of it, someone might ask you to put it in your formulas.

These ingredients rely on a belief in folklore to convince people they do something. More often than not, they are non-functional.

High tech ingredients – Sometimes marketers like to impress consumers by telling them a high tech story. To help support this story, you’ll be asked to add things like Stem Cells, Nanosomes, or ingredients with completely made-up high-tech sounding names. As with the other puffery ingredients, these high tech wonders frequently have some science to back up the story but almost never to back up their functionality delivered from a product.

Is cosmetic ingredient puffery right?

Admittedly, ingredients like this have always made me a little uneasy. It seems like trickery and worse, like lying. But the truth is, people who buy beauty products do not always want the “truth”. They don’t want to think that chemicals like Sodium Lauryl Sulfate or Petrolatum are what really makes their cosmetic products work. They would rather like to believe in the story that it’s Aloe that moisturizers their skin or it’s the Coconut Oil that gently cleanses their hair.

This is what people buy.

Whether we like it or not, as a cosmetic scientist we are in the business of creating great, functional products that people buy. If you create a brilliant formula that no one ever purchases, you’ve failed. Puffery ingredients entice people to buy products.

The ethical cosmetic chemist

Here are a couple of guidelines to use when adding pixie dust ingredients to your formulas.

1. Stay honest with yourself. Be careful not to fall for your own story. If you think the great high-tech ingredient you’re adding to your formula is really making a difference, be sure to conduct a blinded, placebo controlled study to see what effect it really has.

2. Stay honest with your marketing people. Your marketing department desperately wants a product they can tell consumers is vastly different (and superior) to the competition. They will believe the marketing of other cosmetic companies. Resist the temptation to mislead your marketing group by telling them that these puffery ingredients will actually have a significant benefit. In the vast majority of cases, they won’t.

3. Always make great products. Don’t use the stories available from puffery ingredients to cover-up some low quality formulation. It is your responsibility as a cosmetic chemist to create the best formulas you possibly can.

See this article for more on what the FDA has to say about cosmetic puffery.

What do you think, is it right to add ingredients to your formulas that you know are not adding a functional benefit? Leave a comment below.

TRI Princeton presents the 4th International Conference on Applied Hair Science
October 5-6, 2010
Princeton, New Jersey

TRI’s Conference on Applied Hair Science promises to provide a unique forum for the discussion of state-of-the-art science relevant to those practicing applied hair science. This year’s conference will inspire the hair care industry through an innovative selection of speakers from industry, academia and government.

Participants will have the opportunity to:

• learn from recognized leaders in hair science and technology presenting fundamental principals, an understanding of the evolution of current technology and contemporary experimental techniques
• interact with an international group of panelists, preseners and attendees to discuss category relevant topics in raw materials, claims and regulations
• experience demonstrations bringing the academic topics to the practical clarity of in-use observation

Key topics include:

Hair Care

*Mega trends in Naturals and Efficacy
*Multicultural Hair Solutions
*Performance Profiling
*Sensory Profiling & Consumer Perception

Actives and their Benefits

*Penetration of Fibers – Effects of Small Molecules on Hair
*Hair Growth
*Nutrition for Hair

Product Technology

*Silicone and Silicone Alternatives
*Deposition of Actives via Rinse-off Applications
*Hair Damage – Cutting-edge Technology, New Methods, Treatments
*Color Fading and Protection

Style – Devices and Formulations

*Curl Management/Treatment
*New Devices from light therapy to steaming irons
*How Devices are used on Hair
*Basic Research

Call For Papers

Abstracts for oral or poster presentations must be submitted by June 1, 2010. Please email your abstract to the Conference Organizer at info@triprinceton.org or complete the abstract submission form on the conference website. Proceedings of the Fourth International Conference on Applied Hair Science will be published as a special volume of a peer-reviewed journal.

For further information on the conference visit the TRI website.

Chemists Corner podcast is about cosmetic science and is broadcast to help educate, entertain, and inspire current and future cosmetic scientists. Each episode we’ll talk about news in the cosmetic industry, answer some of your questions, and discuss a topic in-depth, usually with an industry expert interview.

In this episode…

1.  News

• Colorado Safe Personal Care Products Act – The state of Colorado is proposing a bill that could limit the cosmetic chemist’s ability to formulate.

2.  Listener question – How do you do a Freeze / Thaw stability test?

3.  Cosmetic Science - Top 10 problems in hair care science

4.  Interview – Amanda Foxon-Hill of Realize Beauty.

• Amanda Foxon-Hill is a longtime cosmetic chemist who’s worked in both Europe and Australia. She has experience formulating a wide range of products and is currently the Director of Realize Beauty, which features a website dedicated to de-mystifying the cosmetics industry for the consumer. She works as an instructor for the Institute of Personal Care Science which offers a certified diploma course in cosmetic chemistry. Additionally, she runs workshops called Cosmetic Kitchen for adults and kids where they make a few basic products. Her latest project is writing a book called “Realize Beauty” which is a philosophical look at our relationship with our bodies.

5.  Weekly Challenge.

Perfume manufacturers are bringing out new fragrances for the coming season.

Ralph Lauren has four new fragrances, Christian Dior has five, and Givenchy has two.

How many new fragrances will be promoted by Yves Saint Laurent?

If you’ve got an answer to the challenge, have a question, or have any topics you’d like us to cover, leave a comment below.

What I found most interesting was the way that forensic scientists use cosmetics as evidence in crimes.  Here are some examples.

Lipstick prints

You probably know forensic scientists use fingerprints for solving crimes, but did you know they can use lipstick prints and smears as well? By comparing the composition of a lipstick smear with that of a victim, forensic scientists can demonstrate indirect proof of contact or a relationship between victim and suspect. Also, it is sometimes possible to extract saliva DNA from the print. See this article published in the April 2002 issue of Forensic Science Communications a paper on how they do it.

Idea: Could lipstick manufacturers add an ingredient to their cosmetics that would help forensic scientists better identify prints?

Foundation smears

Like lipstick smears, make-up foundation can easily be transferred to clothing or other surfaces just through contact. Forensic scientists can discriminate between different types by using FTIR, SEM-EDX and GC-FID analysis. According to this paper in the Journal of Forensic Sciences, they can get up to 99.7% accuracy.

Idea: Could cosmetic scientists modify their formulas to help make identification even easier without impacting performance?

Shampoo identifications

Although it is thought to be a myth that your hair gets “used to” a certain shampoo, there is some evidence that components from your shampoo will accumulate in your hair. Using HPLC, forensic scientists have found that they can determine the type of shampoo that may have been used on a hair sample. The technique requires only a 5 to 10 cm single hair and is non-destructive.

This technique could be used for making cosmetic claims about your hair products

Hair bleach interference

Forensic scientists can use hair to determine whether a person has been taking illicit drugs. It’s really quite amazing what kind of things get trapped in your hair. They analyze samples using GC-MS and can detect codeine, morphine, cocaine, and opiates. Bleaching, perms and other hair treatments were found to significantly reduce the detectable amount of many of these compounds.

New ideas

While thinking about the intersection between forensics and cosmetic science, it occurred to me that this could be a rich area for new product ideas. The idea of putting something in your cosmetic formula to make it easier to identify seems like a pretty good one. In addition to helping law enforcement, it could also help stop product counterfeiters.

Think about your own products. How could you change them to make them more useful for forensic scientists?

The following 6 steps will help you take your ideas and convert them into functioning cosmetic products.

Step 1 – Define your product

Before you get started, you need to think about what you are going to make. Figure out what functions you want your product to achieve. Is it a cleansing product, a moisturizer, a coloring product, or maybe a combination of factors? Also think about the aesthetic characteristics like color, thickness, clarity, etc. and the cosmetic product form. Write these parameters down so you’ll know when you done whether you’ve been successful.

It is always helpful to have a target product with characteristics that you are trying to match. Be sure to get a sample to look at and feel.

Step 2 – Find a starting formula

Next you need to figure out a good starting formula. Starting formulas can be found from a variety of sources. You can look at some of the most useful cosmetic science books. You can also look at online formularies like the one from Happi.com or Chemidex.com. Raw material suppliers like Croda and Rhodia also have formularies that you can use. Another useful source is patents. You can use Google patents or the USPTO.gov website to find formulas. Of course, you can also talk to a colleague who may be able to share one of her starting formulas with you. Finally, if you work at a big company, they will have a big archive of old formulas that will give you a great starting basis.

Remember, starting formulas are not meant to be finished formulas

Step 3 – Prepare for your batch

Once you have your starting formula, you’ll want to determine how much you want to make and create a spreadsheet which lists out how much of each ingredient you need. Then you’ll need to list the specifications that you will test when the batch is finished. After that you’ll have to gather up all the raw materials and processing equipment needed to make the batch. Next, put on your safety glasses & start making your batch.

Step 4 – Making the batch

Making a cosmetic product is much like cooking. You weigh or measure out your ingredients, mix them together as dictated in the procedure and heat & cool as required. During the entire process you should be writing detailed notes and observations in your lab notebook. These will come in handy when you need to make refinements for future prototypes.

You almost never make a perfect batch on your first try

Step 5 – Test your batch

Once you’ve finished your formula, you’ll want to test it to see how successful you were. After letting the sample equilibrate to room temperature, take appropriate measurements like pH and viscosity to see if you are within specifications. Also, weigh the batch to see how much water weight you lost during the heating and cooling process. If you’ve lost more than a few % of water you may want to add water to make up the difference. In addition to specification tests, you should also do some performance tests to see how well the product functions. At the very least try the product on yourself. If the formula meets your satisfaction then you’ll want to do a stability test.

If you won’t use the product you made, why should anyone else?

Step 6 – Revise formula and Repeat

After you’ve tested the product and determined where it doesn’t quite measure up, you’ll need to make adjustments to see if it can be improved. I’ve found that knockout experiments are the most helpful way to figure out the effect that every ingredient has on the final formula. Once you know what the ingredients do, you’ll know which ones to increase or decrease to improve your formula.

After a dozen or so revisions, you should have a formula that meets your needs.

Cosmetic formulating is as much an art as it is a science. As you gain more experience, you’ll find ingredients that you like to work with and others that you avoid. You’ll develop your own style and ideally make products and formulas that are genuinely unique to you. I always liked to add a “signature” in my formulas by using some ingredient at a % that included the number 44. It didn’t usually have much affect on the formula but it did make me feel like the formula was my own creation. And it was.

Good luck in your formulating career!

Chemists Corner podcast is about cosmetic science and is broadcast to help educate, entertain, and inspire current and future cosmetic scientists. Each episode we’ll talk about news in the cosmetic industry, answer some of your questions, and discuss a topic in-depth, usually with an industry expert interview.

In this episode…

1.  News – Nutricosmetics for skin

2.  Cosmetic Science - How to get useful formulation info when shopping

3.  Weekly Challenge.

Which of these beauty science headlines are false?

a.  Hair makes a good plant fertilizer
b.  Asian hair is the easiest type to simulate on computers.
c.  All natural hair colors come from 2 pigments
d.  Some 80-year-olds have no gray hair.

If you’ve got an answer to the challenge, have a question, or have any topics you’d like us to cover, leave a comment below.