Formulating and making Personal Care/Cosmetics is easier than you think. Although some knowledge of Chemistry is extremely helpful, a scientific mindset is more useful. Keep reading to find out how to make your own cosmetics.
How many times have you read the ingredients list on the back of a cream or shampoo, wondering how to pronounce the names of certain chemicals (stearamidopropyl dimethylamine for instance)? Probably more times than you can remember. Ever wonder how all these materials come together to give you your favorite shower gel, serum, lotion? There’s science to it for which, believe it or not, you don’t have to go to school (it does help though). Take this ingredients list for example:
Ingredients: Aqua/Water (1), Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate (3), Decyl Glucoside (3), Coco-Glucoside (3), Coco-Betaine (3), Glycerin (2), Caprylyl/Capryl Glucoside (3), Lavandula Angustifolia (Lavender) Oil (5), Rosmarinus Officinalis (Rosemary) Leaf Oil (5), Anthemis Nobilis (Roman Chamomile) Flower Oil (5), Citrus Limon (Lemon) Peel Oil (5), Citrus Aurantium Dulcis (Sweet Orange) Peel Oil (5), Alpha-Glucan Oligosaccharide (4), Panthenol (1), Sodium Chloride (6), Citric Acid (6), Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride (2), Polyquaternium-10 (5), Sodium Acetate (4), Isopropryl Alcohol (5), Sodium Benzoate (5), Parfum (5), Hexyl Cinnamal (5), Geraniol (5), Citronellol (5), Coumarin (5), Alpha-Isomethyl Ionone (5), Benzyl Salicylate (5)
There are all those names we dislike for being hard to pronounce. Don’t worry, I’ll show you how Formulators make sense of them. First, investigate their properties. Are they hydrophilic, lipophilic? Most shampoos are aqueous systems, meaning you’re dealing with water and ingredients that are water-soluble. This fact simplifies the formulation approach for many cleanser. Before we build the chassis (paper formula) for the IL above, we first must know what needs to be in a functional, unique formula for cleansers. A cleanser is comprised of 7 essential components. They are are follows:
- Water (Deionized)
- Surfactants: short for surface active agents. These are the materials responsible for the cleansing action of cleansers.
- Chelating agents: compounds that bind to metals, forming complexes with metals, preventing them from adhering to surfaces (i.e. scalp, hair, skin).
- Conditioning-agents: Responsible for the slippery, silky, soft feeling a cleanser imparts after being washed out.
- Preservatives: the molecules prevent the development of mold, yeast, and bacterial contamination. Choosing the right preservative system is pivotal to any quality product.
- Scent: a signature smell makes a product uniquely yours; you can go the natural route or have a fragrance house make a custom scent
- Adjusters: there are optimal ranges for pH and viscosity to which consumers gravitate. A pH of ~5.5 is best for the skin and scalp. A viscosity of 3000-7000cP seems to catch the eye of most consumers. For these reasons, formulas typically include adjusters even if pH adjusters don’t need to be included on the IL.
Quite a lot to digest, but once you get the hang of it, it’s like baking a cake. Now, having learned the alphabet, let’s craft some sentences using the aforementioned IL. I’ll present an order to the ingredients, in a way that could yield a similar product.
Refer to the numbers in parentheses next to the ingredients for their order in the formula :
- Phase 1
- Phase 2
- Phase 3
- Phase 4
- Phase 5
- Phase 6
Booyah! There you have it. This is the framework for how to read an IL, identify what’s what, and organizing it into a workable chassis. If you’ve made it this far, congrats! You made it through the first lesson. As this blog develops, I’ll share more tips and tricks from the industry on how formulate like a pro.
Stay tuned. Also here’s a link to the shampoo whose ingredients list was referenced. Happy 4th of July everyone. Stay safe and have fun.
Greengen Labs 