[ngarayeva001]

If Sepinov turns into a liquid it means whatever ingredient you add (AHA in this case) contains electrolytes (salt, acid or base as per link provided by Doreen). Hyaluronic Acid is a great gelling agent for difficult to gel ingredients, although pricy. As per my experience with Sepinov, it usually tolerates acids (depends on what, how much), so the pH is either extremely low or there is something else in that blend.

[ngarayeva001]

I must admit that your persistence is absolutely remarkable

[ngarayeva001]

I know that information that phenoxy is deactivated by highly ethoxylated compounds comes from some crafter suppliers including lotoincrafter https://lotioncrafter.com/products/phenoxyethanol?_pos=1&_sid=6197b176d&_ss=r
Still don’t know whether it’s true or they just misunderstood something.

[ngarayeva001]

@Katrin2204 “Looks like I have months of attempts ahead until I make something stable lol” - unfortunately. I have one that hasn’t separated since mid-summer but it’s early to say it’s stable. If you are ordering from the US only, Cremmaker Silicone by makingcosmetics is your best bet: https://www.makingcosmetics.com/CreamMaker%C2%AE-Silicone_p_1246.html.
I really think you need to add it by drops and need to invest in the overhead stirrer. The good news, you can get one on eBay or Amazon for $70. Look for 100W and 3000 RPM Chinese stirrer. They do the job: https://www.amazon.com/CO-Z-Electric-Height-Adjustable-Mixer0-3000-Mechanical/dp/B07TX82NBL/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=overhead+stirrer&qid=1579002724&sr=8-3

Try to use creammaker silicone as your main emulsifier and add polygelyceryl oleate as co-emulsifier. I haven’t tried that myself, but if you don’t have access to many materials it’s better than nothing. 

[ngarayeva001]

Stearic acid in this particular case is being saponified into TEA-stearate and doesn’t feel like 4% of stearic acid used as a thickener.

[ngarayeva001]

Are you talking about making a foundation or adding a hint of colour to a moisturiser? In both cases, candle mica is a bad idea.

[ngarayeva001]

I am also fascinated by vintage products and have been working on my cold cream for a while (not there yet). Ideally, you need to calculate saponification value (which I have no idea how to do anyway) but if you don’ know how to do it, there is a rule of thumb of 1 part of TEA to 2 parts of Stearic Acid (chemists would though rotten eggs at me but it works).  I think the oil type and amount is a culprit here. Try to replace it with something with a lighter feel (almond oil?). I think even mineral oil would be less heavy than sesame. You can also reduce it to 6-7%. Unless you know exactly how to calculate the required amount of TEA to Stearic keep that emulsifying wax as an additional emulsifier. You can increase glycerin actually, 05% is rather low. Add 0.1% of tocopherol (or BHT) is you are going to use veg oil.

[ngarayeva001]

Retinol at 0.5-1%. In my opinion, it’s more effective than 2% Hydroquinone (I tried both). 
But it causes a lot of issues such as peeling, redness, irritation and many consumers wouldn’t like it. It is also very hard to stabilise and it’s very very prone to oxidation.
If you are looking for something that wouldn’t cause a lot of problems AHAs is your best bet.

[ngarayeva001]

Water in oil.. the pain of my life… W/O is a very special type of animal. I am not claiming to know much, because I have been fighting with them for over a year and they continue to separate but here is what I know:

1) Remove that xanthan, they work in a different way, you don’t need gelling your water (there are some exceptions like Seppic’s geltrap)
2) Polyglyceryl Oleate is not designed for silicones. You would be much better off with GelMaker Silicone aka DowSil ES 5600 (Cetyl diglyceryl tris(trimethylsiloxy)silylethyl dimethicone) if you want to add cyclomethicone.
3) Remove aloe at least for now (until you figure out how to stabilise it).
4) You need at least two emulsifiers (better different types). I know several combinations that work, but I got them from Australia and Italy. If you are willing to pay for shipping from I will give you the names (but it might be pricy). Try to combine Polyglyceryl Oleate with cetyl diglyceryl tris(trimethylsiloxy)silylethyl dimethicone.
5) You need some sort of stabiliser for the oil phase (instead of that xanthan). What can work: cera bellina, magnesium stearate, zinc stearate, plain beeswax (but the texture is meh), hydrogenated castor oil (aka castor wax) or if you don’t have anything else - stearic acid (1-1.5%).
6) The process is the key. Do you have an overhead stirrer? It’s pretty important. You need to heat both oil and water phases (and if you use magnesium stearate you need to melt it completely), put your oil phase under overhead stirrer (or anything that would create low shear, like 300-500 rpm) and start SLOWLY pipetting water by drops. It will take some time. Make sure that every single drop has emulsified and doesn’t sit on the surface. Then when the temperature drops (preferably to the room temp) take a stick blender and emulsify it. If you did everything right it will thicken.
7) Water phase % - there is no right answer, to be honest. Some emulsifiers are designed for high water phase and perform worse with lower water phase which is counterintuitive. I read on ulprospector that if water phase is below 23% it is impossible to create round droplets which I guess should mean emulsion is less stable, but I had 40% of oil phase that separated the next day and I have a water in silicone with just 15% of oil made with that cremmaker silicone which I made in early October and it hasn’t separated yet (and doesn’t look like it’s going any time soon). I guess, start from 25% of oil.

Summary: several emulsifiers, special emulsifiers if using silicones, salt 1-1.5%, stabiliser (magnesium stearate) 0.5-1%, special water in oil process.
W/O emulsions are nasty beasts! but I am absolutely in love with them. Good luck

[ngarayeva001]

AHAs need to be low pH to have any visible effect. But don’t be surprised if that fruit acid complex creates pH significantly lower than 3. Another possibility is that one of your extracts has salts. Try a knockout experiment  

[ngarayeva001]

Decyl glucoside is extremely draggy and tangly on hair and it’s not even mild. You need to replace it with another surf. I would suggest Sodium C14-16 olefin sulfonate, which is still sulfate free and lathers much better (and cheap). Another nice option is Sodium Lauroyl Sarcosinate. Also, swap Polyquat 7 to Polyquat 10 because gives more slip.  You can also add watersoluble amodimethicone to make the product more conditioning.

[ngarayeva001]

Be careful with Sodium Lactate and Sodium PCA . Great humectants overall, but if you have acrylic acid-based gellants (Sepinov EMT10, Aristoflex AVC, carbomers etc) these humectants would have a very negative impact on viscosity. Glycerin, Butylene Glycol, Propylene Glycol and 1,3 Propanediol, as well as Betaine don’t cause such issues. 

[ngarayeva001]

Gluconolacton could be an option: https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/Gluconolactone

[ngarayeva001]

According to FDA regulations, personal lubricants are classified as medical devices and require agency approval before going on the market. Similar in the EU I believe, so I would think twice before getting into it.

Speaking of how to make it, you should do some research on what ingredients are included in the most popular products that are on the market, which you can do by going to a nearby drugstore and reading LOIs of several products in that range. You will notice that most of them consist of a rather high amount of propylene glycol and glycerin, xanthan gum (transparent grade I suppose), carbomer and I saw HEC  in some. Bottom line it’s a carbomer gel with a lot of humectants.

[ngarayeva001]

What is the pH? I suspect that it’s lower than Sepinov can tolerate, as I don’t see pH adjusters in your formula. Make sure your pH is above 3 because lower can cause a lot of irritation for people with sensitive skin, and probably replace Sepinov EMT 10 to Sepimax Zen. It’s better with acids. Also made by Seppic and sold by lotioncrafter. You can also find it under name GelMaker PH from makingcosmetics.

[ngarayeva001]

Glycolysis are less tacky so I would rather do 2% of butylene to 1% of glycerin. I usually do 3% of butylene glycol, 2% of betaine, 1% of glycerin, but I am not fussy about tackiness 

[ngarayeva001]

@Perry I can provide a good example for you to have an idea what kind of publisher it is:
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/jan/08/carcinogens-cosmetics-brexit-britain-eu-makeup

It was posted on chemistcorner before and this is the guardian in a nutshell: “The EU bans 1,328 chemicals from use in cosmetics – including formaldehyde, asbestos and coal tar – that are known or suspected to cause cancer, genetic mutation, reproductive harm or birth defects. The US Food & Drugs Administration (FDA), by comparison, has only banned or restricted 11.”

You raised that point in one of the episodes of the beauty braines. FDA doesn’t ban plutonium, because no one puts plutonium in a lipstick anyway.
The author is neither an expert in regulations, nor a chemist, nor even a hobbyist formulator. She is “is a freelance journalist and feminist campaigner” 

[ngarayeva001]

I think @Gunter was misunderstood. The Guardian is very biased and indeed an SJW den. There is a huge difference between equity and equality. They are fighting for the first one. Although an element of luck is important. 

[ngarayeva001]

Some cosmetics might not need a preservative, to begin with. I know that many would disagree on anhydrous products, but for example, you can make a cuticle remover that is “preservative-free” because the pH is too high and it doesn’t need a preservative. 

[ngarayeva001]

@PeiHoong hi there. One of the suppliers from which I buy ingredients has just brought in coated iron oxides. I don’t know if it’s helpful but since you are making colour cosmetics that might be handy:

https://www.glamourcosmetics.it/it/pigmento-asl-red-2
I have not seen coated iron oxides before. Coated TiO2 is sold by tkbtrading.
https://tkbtrading.com/products/dimethicone-treated-titanium-dioxide-dt2o

[ngarayeva001]

I think the best option is to combine them. PG might be an irritant for some users because it’s also a penetration enhancer and disrupt skin barrier slightly. Great quality for products with active ingredients (I am not suggesting to make any drug claims, just saying it’s used to improve penetration along with such ingredients as IPM, DMI and alcohol). Glycerin is probably one of the most effective but quite tacky. I haven’t noticed a lot of difference with trimethylglycine although I continue using it. Have you tried mixing butylene glycol and glycerin?  Depending on the formula you can also add sodium lactate (not if you are using any acrylic acid based rheology modifiers)

[ngarayeva001]

I read MI is responsible for the increased number of cases of allergic contact dermatitis

http://www.occderm.asn.au/health-professionals/epidemic-of-allergy-to-preservative-methylisothiazolinone-mi/

[ngarayeva001]

A couple of things here. Some of your oils are prone to rancidity and I see you used tocopherol, however, 2% might act as pro-oxidant. It’s too high, I advise to reduce it to 0.1%
Another possibility is that your kaolin wasn’t dry enough.

[ngarayeva001]

To make damaged hair look shiny you need three things:

1) Silicones
2) Silicones
3) Silicones

Jokes asides: and cationics.

[ngarayeva001]

I might be biased but I trust “synthetics” more than pseudo-natural ingredients.