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.
I hope you had fun last night, despite the melting mess ups with the microwave! But there are no such things as mistakes, just things we know don’t work! Remember the techniques we learned last night can be applied to dark and milk chocolate – we used white so we could have fun with colours...
Apparently the exciting sinus infection from which I’ve been suffering since mid-August has set me into migraine mode, which is making me feel horrible and grumpy. (My last migraine was 1996 and before then I’d only had maybe 4 or 5, so it’s a whole new fun experience remembering why they were so awful!) So...
Is there a difference between a lotion and a cream? Yes.A cream is defined as an emulsion in a semi solid form that doesn’t flow well. It has a heavier consistency than lotion, so the key differences are viscosity and flow. A cream is generally found in a jar because it’s not easy to pump...
I figured now that you’ve seen the HLB system in action, it’s time for a summary. The HLB system is designed to make it easier to figure out what emulsifier goes with what lotion. Your oil phase will have a required HLB value, meaning this is the number you need to match with an emulsification...
I am asked frequently where I get my supplies for mineral make-up, so here’s a short list of my favourite suppliers. If you have your own favourite suppliers, feel free to link them in the comments section, but please give us a little information about what you like so much (I’m not a fan of...