Welcome to the home of SwiftCraftyMonkey Formulating Inc.! Join Susan as she obsesses about cosmetic chemistry and other things (some possibly related to monkeys)! Here you’ll find over 5,000 posts and formulas written over the past 16 years for everything from lotions, creams, and body butters to hair care products to fancy facial products filled with actives and cosmeceuticals! Enjoy the site without distractions – no ads, pop ups, sponsored posts, affiliate links, “one weird tricks” – all supported by readers like you.
Susan Barclay-Nichols I’m having one of those mornings where everything that can go wrong will go wrong, so instead of the post I intended for this morning – which was NOT saved after a ton of work (and yes, I did hit “save now” quite a few times) – I bring you this tutorial on making an...
I’ve written an updated and longer post on this topic, which you can find here – What’s the deal with the “soaping effect” or those white streaks from emulsions? I encourage you to read this post as it goes into much more detail. Consider the post you’re on now a summary. The soaping effect is...
I thought I’d take a look at the chemistry of the pigments we use in mineral make-up with more detail on how to use the various pigments tomorrow.Inorganic pigments are formed from compounds of transition elements like iron, chromium, and so on. The colour is produced “as a result of the ease with which the...
As my back is giving me serious trouble today, the post “Creating a blush base with boron nitride and bismuth oxychloride” will not be seen today. Instead I bring you fun with colours!I always think of mineral make-up as the melding of science and art in a beautiful product you can wear on your face....
Boron nitride is a hexagonal mineral polymer with excellent chemical and thermal stability. It’s used in mineral make-up as a texturizing agent to offer slip, glide, and sheen. It is an excellent alternative to bismuth oxychloride as it offers many of the same qualities. Boron nitride is a talc substitute with a smooth, silky feel...