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Formulating rosewater toner
I love the combination of rosewater or hydrosol, witch hazel and distilled water with nothing else added however, now I notice that I need a preservative. The potassium sorbate and citric acid lowers the ph of the toner to 3. Won’t this undue the good properties of the simple ingredients of the toner? I ordered Optiphen plus to keep the ph a bit higher but it seems that it may make the solution too clumpy any ideas? My main concern is what the ph is doing to the skin as a toner at ph 3.
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4 Replies
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Citric acid is not a preservative (although reducing pH can improve preservation in some circumstances) so you can reduce the citric acid. Only add enough citric acid to achieve your desired pH.If you want to use optiphen plus you may need to add a solubiliser such as Polysorbate 20. -
Thank you ozgirl I will look into the Polysorbate 20 addition. I just received the optiphen in the mail today so I am anxious to try it in a batch.
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May i know dosage of peg 20 i have to add?
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Using a PEG derivative to solubilise a preservative sounds like a bad choice. It will be locked in micelles leaving your water phase basically unpreserved.Try adding Optiphen plus very slowly and under constant good mixing (for DIY batches, add it dropwise). Only add more once everything has fully dissolved. At recommended usage levels, it is soluble in water but not the easiest to incorporate. Once it starts clumping, you’ve lost the game.
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