[abierose]

This is an interesting article:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3500065/

I haven’t investigated any further but I’m sure you can find more information via the links to the studies that are noted in this article.????‍♀️

[abierose]

@PhilGeis it never ceases to amaze me the ability for some to just read something once on the internet and believe it without question. The internet is a treasure trove of misinformation, but with a little extra time and effort, you can use it to dig a little deeper and research these outrageous claims and actually educate one’s self. It’s so frustrating to read some ridiculous statement or claim regularly and know that there will be people who will read the same thing and believe it. I’m sure I’ve been guilty of it too in the past but I can say that anytime I read something questionable, I will research it to death before taking it as truth! And my research includes asking the experts on this forum ????

[abierose]

PhilGeis said:

abierose said:

@Henry @MarkBroussard Or you could use Sea Salt and market it for its “beneficial” uses in hair and skin products…. ????  A quick Google search shows some people are already working this angle…

Good point - your choice - which bunch of gullible folks will be your target.

Exactly, ????

[abierose]

@Henry @MarkBroussard Or you could use Sea Salt and market it for its “beneficial” uses in hair and skin products…. ????  A quick Google search shows some people are already working this angle…

“Salt shampoos are great on natural hair for removing product buildup, adding volume, and giving the hair incredible shine,” stylist Sunnie Brook Jones tells us. “I also like to suggest applying a hair mask to just the ends before getting in the shower to shampoo.” Aug 7, 2017

https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2017/06/165954/best-salt-shampoos

“Yes, salt in shampoo is used by people who want to boost their hair growth. This trick is also used to stop hair loss. So, if you’re having hair loss, then try to use this trick and see the result. All you need to do is, wash your hair and massage the scalp with the sea salt in shampoo thoroughly” Jul 6, 2017

https://m.dailyhunt.in/news/india/english/youngisthan-epaper-youngeng/yes+adding+salt+in+your+shampoo+will+solve+all+your+hair+problems+and+here+s+how-newsid-69923345

….Re-mineralize your hair and promote growth with our Newly Formulated Pink Blush Himalayan Sea Salt Shampoo! 

????????????

[abierose]

Paprik said:

I think the only proven ingredient for hair grow is Minoxidil. 

In my opinion, no oil can help with grow.
I even read an articles talking about silicones in hair care products and it said, that silicone prevents water loss too well, that in the end the hair follicle swells and dies. 

Wow! Could you by chance send me a link to that article? Thank you!

[abierose]

@Cafe33 one more question….does the beard balm you make offer enough hold for your husband’s beard? Originally I was also trying to formulate a product that would be both a leave-in conditioner as well as offer some hold but at some point I decided to just make two separate products ????‍♀️ I am definitely into going back to the drawing board on this one and attempt a 2-in-1 product again if it works!

[abierose]

@Cafe33 thank you so much for taking the time to give me some feedback!!

[abierose]

@Cafe33 have you ever tried LuxGlide N350 (INCI: Diheptyl Succinate (and) Capryloyl Glycerin/Sebacic Acid Copolymer) as a dimethicone alternative? I really like it, although I do still prefer dimethicone ????

[abierose]

And also culture test for microorganism contamination like @PhilGeis suggested

[abierose]

Personally, if you’re wanting your lipsticks to be used for longer than a year…or two or three…I would probably include a lip-safe preservative due to the probability of moisture contamination…

[abierose]

@chemicalmatt and @Cafe33 what percentage of Dimethicone 350 do you recommend? I’ve never used over 4% in any product I’ve made, which is probably a bit conservative…

[abierose]

Cafe33 said:

abierose, I have a very coarse beard combined with very sensitive skin. I let it grow without cutting it and I have been testing conditioners this last few weeks as well as using a variety of products over the last year or so.

Simple emulsified oils/butter/balms are utterly useless for me and have a very unpleasant feel. 

BTMS-25/Dimethicone 350cst has been the most successful for me. I have also had some success with Polyquat-7.  I also found Natrasil to be a fairly good “natural” alternative to silicones if that is of interest to you.  I found panthenol to be a good addition in leave on conditioner. I have experimented with DANOX HC-30/Dimethicone and found it to be underperforming as compared to BTMS. 

For a fairly thick product (Butter), I use around 6-8% BTMS-25 w/ 2-3% cetyl alcohol. You don’t need 30-50% Shea and other plant butters as some will have you believe. From a user standpoint (me!), those types of products are greasy and underperforming.

This information is so appreciated, particularly because it sounds like your beard is exactly the type of beard I am making this product for.

I have also tried many different versions containing all different kinds of butters, emolients, humectants, etc. but the benchmark product, and the one that got the most positive feedback (although still not very conditioning), contains a polymeric emulsifier along with glyeceral stearate and peg-100, as well as the standard butters (Coconut, Shea, cocao). But having made versions of both, and still not getting to where I’d like to be with this product, is what led ask on the forum ????

So, it sounds like I will be going back to cationics, but this time increasing the silicones (I have Natrasil as well as a couple of other silicone alternatives and also Dimethicone). 

I guess my question(s) to you now is, do you prefer BTMS-25 over BTMS-50? And do you use any butters or specific oils in the one you make that you like? 

[abierose]

chemicalmatt said:

Cationics work best with hair conditioning no matter where that hair is found. The combo of behenetrmonium chloride emulsifying dimethicone 350 cst is the workhorse.  Add Polyquaternium-10 and lactic acid-neutralized stearamidopropyl dimethylamine and you have a top-shelf product. This is all based on cost considerations. If money is no object then we’d need a lot more space here: like 60 pages more.

This is EXACTLY the information I was looking for! So, do you feel that BTMC or BTMS-25 are better than BTMS-50? I have BTMS-50 on hand but can essily purchase one or both of the other emulsifiers if you think they perform better. I have the other ingredients you listed except the stearamidopropyl dimethylamine…would I use this in addition to the btmc/s or in place of..? What would be the top 5 or 10 ingredients you recommend if, say, money is no object…?
Thank you SO MUCH for your input! 

[abierose]

@emma1985 ah, so which option do you prefer? Are there any specific limitations to either one of those options? I know that cationic and anionic ingredients do not play together, but in addition to your suggestion above, are there any other combination of ingredients that can work as well as or even better than cationics?

I was also under the impression that cationics have the most conditioning capabilities but then one of the commercial beard products that I decided to use as a benchmark uses Glyceral Stearate and Peg-100 and a polymeric emulsifier, along with some very common butters, oils, and esters….

Thank you for your feedback!! I appreciate it!

[abierose]

@Pharma I remember reading that statement on some drug literature years ago…that the “..mode of action isn’t quite understood…” or something along those lines…and thinking, is this real? That “they” really don’t know how or why this drug works? How can they know it’s really safe? But after taking a few classes (online and just for personal enrichment) I learned that we really don’t know much about the human brain at all…it is so complex and so difficult to study that we really probably only understand maybe 2% or less of it..? Anyway, brains are awesome, lol ????

[abierose]

MarkBroussard said:

Highly volatile essential oils such as peppermint, but more so, menthol, camphor … the reason they work in pain topical products is that the evaporation of the oils creates a cooling effect on the skin and it tricks the brain into focusing on the cooling effect and less so on the pain.  The effect is primarily sensorial and psychological, but real.

????. This is absolutely correct. 

[abierose]

LuxGlideN360 (INCI: Diheptyl Succinate (and) Capryloyl Glycerin/Sebacic Acid Copolymer)
or
Daikon Seed Extract

Both of the above ingredients can be used as a sub for NatraSil, although they are all different ingredients but are commonly used as a natural alternative to silicone.

[abierose]

@raiyana I wish just smelling it would work for me!! It’s actually the cold/hot/Peppermint feeling on my head that helps ease the pain ???? this doesn’t work by itself to cure my headache but in conjunction with an NSAID or other pain relief medication…along with being able to rest in a quiet, dark room ???? basically it just eases the symptoms. 

[abierose]

Graillotion said:

The long and the short on EO’s….you probably can’t put enough of them in there, while keeping the product skin safe….to do much good.  All the heavy lifting in my pain cream is done through more traditional ingredients.

This is a good point. I’ve tried using Peppermint oil diluted with a carrier oil for my headaches but it just isn’t effective…I have to use undiluted Peppermint oil, directly on my forehead, neck, or wherever the pain is coming from and try my best not to get it in or even near my eyes ???????? 

With that in mind, I could probably make the assumption that most, if not all, commercially available cosmetics that use EO’s are only using them in very little amounts…as claim ingredients..

[abierose]

Here’s an article on WebMD:

https://www.webmd.com/baby/is-it-safe-to-use-essential-oil-in-babies

Here it states that Eucalyptus, along with a few other essential oils, should NEVER be used on infants. It also states:

“Don’t use peppermint oil on children less than 30 months old. Peppermint oil may increase the risk of seizures in younger children.”

Peppermint oil has helped ease the pain of my frequent headaches, however I would NEVER use ANY essential oil on my toddler. Dont get me wrong…I’m all for natural alternatives to things… but like WebMD says, “You should always err on the side of caution when it comes to your baby.”
I think about how strong Peppermint essential oil is when I use it and common sense says it would not be ok for my toddler ????‍♀️

Additionally, there are companies that sell “essential oils” on Amazon that ARE NOT essential oils at all…for example, Strawberry Essential Oil…I learned that one the hard way…and it turned out to be the one thing in my face cream formula that was causing an allergic reaction.

Anyway, that’s just my opinion ????

[abierose]

This is what good marketing can do:

https://www.trulybeauty.com/collections/body-moisturizer/products/acai-your-boobies-lifting-boob-butter

I got it as a gift…and is hands down the thickest, greasiest product I’ve ever used…the morning after using it I still had butter everywhere that hadn’t soaked in! On the plus side, it smells amazing, lol ????

Similarly and relating more to the direction this thread is going:

https://www.trulybeauty.com/collections/most-popular-bundles/products/booty-bundle

????

Not quite as shockingly awesome as anal bleaching/tightening/smoothing though…????

[abierose]

@MarkBroussard unfortunately I think there IS market for pubic perms by judging from doing a Google search for aforementioned terms ???? And apparently you can buy pubic permanent hair color from eBay to go with it:

(https://www.ebay.co.uk/b/Pubic-Hair-Dye/31412/bn_7023551108)

????????

[abierose]

Greetings! 
Looks like SkinCeuticals has a very similar product, using the following ingredients from INCIdecoder:

Aqua/​Water/​Eau, Ethoxydiglycol, Ascorbic Acid, Glycerin, Propylene Glycol, Laureth-23, Phenoxyethanol, Tocopherol, Triethanolamine, Ferulic Acid, Panthenol, Sodium Hyaluronate

I believe I’ve used this product before and I do remember it being somewhat effective but it spoiled before I got to use it all, which was about 2 months. In fact, I’ve tried a few other vitamin C serums in the past that just spoiled very quickly it was not worth the money ????‍♀️

[abierose]

Sorry, I was speechless there for a minute…my jaw dropped after “…companion cream…” ????

[abierose]

MarkBroussard said:

My top 4:

(1)   A beauty product line targeted toward male genitals

(2)   An all-natural vaginal and anal bleach/whitening product.  And a companion cream that tightens the vagina

(3)   A cream or foam that would replace toilet paper

(4)   My all-time favorite:  A lip gloss that would contain a highly-addictive ingredient that would literally create an addiction in end-use consumers.  And, to top it off, a lawyer was one of the principals.

????????????????????????????????