Formulating Easter Raw Materials into your Cosmetics
When I was a kid, Easter used to be a much bigger deal holiday than it has become. We used to get baskets of candy,…
Category: Formulating
Can you make a spoon disappear?
I’ve been reading this book which is excellent called the Disappearing Spoon. It’s a historical account of the periodic table of elements. And I love…
3 Challenges to Formulating Natural Products
As a cosmetic chemist and formulator you will likely receive requests from your marketing group or your customers to develop an all-natural formula that is…
A List of Cosmetics that have FDA Monographs
On the cosmetic science forum someone posed this question, “Where can I find the monograph for cosmetics?” It’s an interesting question for a number of…
See the production of a bath bomb
I thought this was a pretty interesting video. It shows how Lush makes one of their bath bombs. [youtuber youtube=’http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r9SItFK7Vp8′] A few things are noteworthy.…
What is in a hand & body lotion, and why?
This is a guest post by Gary Neudahl. He is currently Product Application Manager, Personal Care Ingredients, for the HallStar Company and is based at…
Cetaphil - Gentle Skin Cleanser - Dissecting the label
Today we’re going to take a look at a cleanser that is fairly frequently recommended by dermatologists. This was a brand that I had heard…
Gladwell on Innovation
I like Malcolm Gladwell’s stuff. While it gets a little too story like and is more definitive about life than science would suggest, it is…
Midwest SCC technical symposium review
First talk was by Dr Sam Shefer about fighting acne using time release technology. He explained the problems formulating with salicylic acid and discussed a…
Cosmetic Chemists Baloney Detection Kit
I saw this excellent video about critical thinking and how you can detect whether a claim is bogus or not. This is an important skill…
Good stories for cosmetic chemists
Here are a few stories that caught my eye. 1. 2012 will be the year of skin care. Really? I think the fact that skin…
Innovation inspiration while traveling
Although I’m on vacation I continue to think of new product ideas. The idea I thought of was related to my running clothes. Whenever I…
Hot topics on the cosmetic science forum
Today I’m traveling to Utah for a little downhill skiing. Of course, I’ve got my sunscreen and travel toiletries as every good cosmetic chemist should.…
Cosmetic Formulating Checklist
Whenever you begin a formulating project there is a variety of information you need to establish before doing anything else. Some of these things will…
Formula optimization course coming soon
I’m traveling back to Chicago (from Florida) today so don’t have much time to post. But I thought I’d let you know about a couple…
Do hippos hold the key to new sunscreens?
I thought this was an interesting story that I stumbled on. It turns out scientists have isolated the proteins responsible for protecting hippos (who spend…
Useful Formulating Spreadsheet
We posted this a while back but there are a number of new readers do I though I would post it again. This video shows…
A cosmetic chemist at the beach
I’ve had the opportunity to spend the last couple weeks in Florida by the ocean. This means I’ve had many opportunities to go to the…
Are Hand Sanitizers Better Than Washing Your Hands?
This is a guest post by Shannon Romanowski While this winter has been mild and there is a spring-like feeling in the air, we are…
Old product new inspiration
Today, I was given a product that I didn’t know existed. It’s a product called New Skin liquid bandage and the premise of the product…