[Sarah]

Check out AliExpress - they do small volumes

[Sarah]

Hi Everyone - thanks for your input. 

I should rephrase what I meant by “natural” - my customer is a big fan of the ewg website and other scaremongering sites - so the RMs need to fit this criteria as well as all of the standard “natural” / greenwash criteria - paraben free, artificial colour free etc….. as you can imagine this has really limited my options.

I managed to convince her to use the BTMS since it has a low hazard rating on the ewg - (main roadblock being the word sulfate). Centrimonium chloride (which is what I usually would use) did not pass the ewg test.

I will propose the use of silicones but I suspect that it will be a no go - I have made up samples with Isoamyl Laurate to see if it has any detangling properties.

Thanks for the tips re the proteins - I will put the silk and wheat back onto the shelf.

Cheers

Sarah

[Sarah]

Hi David,

This has been an incredibly painful project - it has been ongoing for more than three and a half years! Communication is not the customer’s strong point.

I have decided to completely reformulate (again) - luckily I managed to stop the artwork from going to print in time.

Garrrgh

[Sarah]

Our marketing department did a google search to find the top ten baddies and based the ‘free from’ claims based on this list. I now have to formulate around these claims.  

[Sarah]

Hi David,

We use a product called Myoxinol LS 9736 from Cognis for tightening in our eye serums - it is a bit pricey though.

[Sarah]

Hi Everyone - I have run a series of trials and it appears (so far) that the winner in this case is dropping the pH to about 5.8. It has decreased the viscosity slightly but this is minor and I am sure I can tweak the formulation to counteract this.

Bob - I will look into the Agilex product - it sounds promising.

Thanks everyone for your contributions.

Sarah

[Sarah]

Thanks guys - I will chase up my supplier again as well as trial your suggestions in the lab. 

I will update you in a few days wrt the results.

[Sarah]

Thanks guys  

[Sarah]

Does anyone have any suggestions for a suitable alternative? i.e. cheap? 

[Sarah]

I inherited this formulation - it is very basic/cheap:

Water 31%

SLS  46%

CAB 2.5%

Glycerin 1%

Fragrance 0.8%

Sodium Choloride 4%

Hydroxypropyl methylcellulose 0.4%

Tetrasodium EDTA  0.2%

Citric Acid 0.2%

Potassium Sorbate 0.3%

Sodium Benzoate 0.3%

Benzophenone-4 0.15%

CI colours 0.002%

The pH range is 5.35-5.55 on the spec and retention sample records.

I have not had the wash micro tested - I will send a sample off today - it had never occurred to me that micro could be an issue in this circumstance. 

Ditto with the oxidation - I will make up a batch with Vit E acetate - the BHT is a no go as this is a “natural” product. What rate of addition would you recommend Duncan? 0.1%?  

[Sarah]

Thanks Ayla - I have contacted my supplier for a sample however the samples I make in the lab without fragrance still fade. 

Duncan - the light accelerates the process but the colours still fade when stored in a carton.