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’ve been thinking a lot about lotions lately – which is probably a good thing, considering the posts I’ve been writing! – and I realized I should go back to the beginning, to a basic lotion recipe which I can then tweak. I have my basic conditioner template, as it were, so let’s take a...
What exactly is the difference between a cream, lotion, butter, milk, or moisturizer? They’re all oil-in-water emulsifications, meaning there’s more water than oil in the product, but the key difference is the ratio of the water phase to the oil phase. In a body milk or facial moisturizer, you’re looking at about 90% water...
Wasn’t the point of all the oil research supposed to be making lotions? I mean, I’ve been going on since October 10th about oils and butters and exotic oils, when am I going to get to the lotion making? Well, here’s a start! I’ve been trying different things to help my wonderful husband’s itchy legs...
Okay, so you’re going skiing (or you’re running for the bus in Calgary!) You want something heavy duty to protect your skin from the elements. What might you choose for a heavy duty winter facial lotion bar?A basic lotion bar has the following formula33% beeswax33% butter33% oil1% fragrance or essential oilIf you are new to...
I really do love body wash – they smell nice, they get me clean, they are all foamy and lathery – and I’m always trying to find ways to incorporate moisturizing ingredients into them. So why don’t I use oils more often? I’m always seeing ads for body washes with moisturizers or ribbons of moisture...