Home Cosmetic Science Talk Formulating Please critique my hair conditioning mask formula :)

  • Please critique my hair conditioning mask formula :)

    Posted by abierose on January 17, 2021 at 5:59 am

    Hello! Just looking for any advice on my formula and would like to know what I can change or add to make it more conditioning. I haven’t made this yet but it is similar to one I created prior. Thank you!

    INGREDIENT  %:
    Distilled Water - 72.5
    Vegetable Glycerine - 5
    Coconut Oil - 5
    BTMS-50 - 5
    Babassu Oil - 5
    Cetyl Alcohol - 2.5
    LuxGlide N350 - 1.25
    Liquid Germall Plus - .5
    Papaya Fragrance Oil - .5
    Peppermint EO - .25
    KeraRepair - 1.5
    NaturePep Amaranth - 1
    abierose replied 3 years, 2 months ago 4 Members · 7 Replies
  • 7 Replies
  • fekher

    Member
    January 17, 2021 at 3:56 pm

    It can be acceptable  

  • Cafe33

    Member
    January 17, 2021 at 5:10 pm

    With BTMS-50, I prefer to combine it with cetearyl alcohol instead of cetyl alcohol to make it thicker. You can add 2-3%  Polyquat-7 in the cool down phase.  

  • abierose

    Member
    January 17, 2021 at 7:31 pm

    Thank you! I know that the “kera repair” does list polyquaterium 7 in the INCI…would it still be ok to add 2-3% more? Thanks in advance!!

  • Cafe33

    Member
    January 18, 2021 at 5:58 pm

    I will say this, I’ve been down this path and I think you should create base formulas that make financial sense before you add exotic and expensive ingredients. You should find out if you plan on commercializing the product. 


    KeraRepair, NaturePep Amaranth

    Replace these items with 2.5% Polyquat 7 and see for yourself.

    And to answer your question, yes you could simply add Polyquat 7 while including these items in your formulation.  

  • oldperry

    Member
    January 18, 2021 at 6:39 pm

    2.5% Polyquat 7!?  That’s overkill.  0.5% is plenty.

  • oldperry

    Member
    January 18, 2021 at 6:49 pm

    Just looking at your formula, I will offer this advice.

    You have too many ingredients.  Start simple.  Fewer ingredients are better to start with because that way you know what ingredients are providing what impact. Once you get the primary function of the formula working, you can go back and add the “fluff” ingredients.

    So, start with…

    INGREDIENT  %:
    Distilled Water 
    Glycerine 
    Coconut Oil
    BTMS-50 
    Cetyl Alcohol
    Liquid Germall Plus

    You could put Polyquat 7 in if you like. 

    Then test it to see where you are. See what property you want improved. There is no point in adding ingredients that overlap in function. Glycerin is a humectant.  Coconut oil is an emollient. BTMS is a cationic surfactant. Polyquaternium-7 is a cationic polymer. Each of these will affect the hair in different ways.  But there is no reason to include Babassu Oil if you are also including Coconut oil. The have almost the same fatty acid distribution.

    When you are starting…keep it simple!  Fewer ingredients are a better way to start.

  • abierose

    Member
    January 19, 2021 at 6:35 pm

    Thank you all so much for the feedback! This formula is one I have been working on for a few weeks now and actuallyit did start out pretty simple :) But I am guilty of purchasing a bunch of “fluff” ingredients when I first started out a year ago. I’ve learned so much since then but obviously I have a long way to go still! It’s really nice to have this community of chemists and the like to help me and answer my questions!! Thank you! I’ll try simplifying this formula again :)

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