Does stress cause grey hair?
It is commonly thought that stress causes grey hair but the evidence has been mostly anecdotal. This is unsurprising as many “facts” in the world…
Have you ever seen the Kaye Effect?
If you work with surfactants and formulas like shampoos or body wash, you may have occasionally noticed when pouring it out the stream will unexpectedly…
Episode 31: Scott Taylor - Chemists Corner
Interview begins at 12:25 +B32 Scott Taylor is the President and Regulatory Affairs Consultant at The Regulatory Department, a one-stop international food, supplement, and cosmetic…
How to pick a cosmetic formulation benchmark
Whenever you start a new project it is a great idea that you find an existing formula that will serve as a benchmark for your…
SCC Midyear Symposium in St Louis Wrap-Up
Last week was the Mid-Year SCC Scientific Symposium held in St. Louis, Mo. It was an excellent event that featured two days of fascinating talks…
Here is a new cosmetic science program
I did a couple of guest lectures for this program. They are new but they are doing things the right way. [youtuber youtube=’http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LbMXj-94S1w’]
What can you eat or drink for better skin?
To tell you the truth, I’m skeptical there is much evidence at all that eating or drinking some specific thing is going to have a…
Beginning Cosmetic Chemistry in the Internet Age
For everyone in the New York area, I wanted to let you know that I will be giving a one-day course about cosmetic chemistry. It…
Top causes of skin allergies
Many people complain of being sensitive to chemicals or even having allergic reactions. So as a formulator you’ll want to avoid using ingredients that might…
Using Knockout Experiments to reduce formula costs
I don’t know how I stumbled on the knockout experiment but it is by far the most useful formulation exercise. I think I was inspired…
$100 Dollar Start Up - Book Review for cosmetic chemists
I learned about the $100 Startup book while listening to some podcast. I don’t recall which one, but the author made the book sound interesting…
How to evaluate cosmetic raw material marketing
Last week was the annual Suppliers Day for the New York chapter of the SCC. It’s always a huge event and you can find thousands…
Cosmetic Innovation in Sun Care
There haven’t been many new technologies introduced into sun care in the last few decades. There was the introduction of mexoryl sunscreen in the mid…
Is the end of gray hair near?
I saw this interesting news story about a group of European researchers who say they have found a treatment that can eliminate gray hair. Two…
How to influence people
As a cosmetic chemist or cosmetic entrepreneur, you need to develop the power to influence other people to get the things done that you want…
Are gold nanoparticles causing wrinkles?
Scare stories about the dangers of cosmetics always grab headlines. Whether they are put out by fearmongering groups, politicians or even researchers, these stories are…
Cosmetics Ingredients are not all the same
As a beginning chemist, one of the most frustrating things for me as I started my career was the product ingredient lists. While all the…
The upside of fear induced cosmetic formulation
I saw a story indicating that the shareholders at Avon were going to vote on whether to remove “dangerous chemicals used in their beauty products…
Anti-Cellulite - Cosmetic Products of the Future
The future of cosmetic chemistry may be changing. While being able to mix surfactants, emollients, occlusive agents, and other cosmetic raw materials in the proper…
How to Select Overhead Stirrer Mixing Tools
By Bob Wilcox In an earlier article on cosmetic mixing with overhead stirrers I outlined how these lab tools are used to provide a fast…