Next up in our series of evaluating ingredient lists is Pixi’s Glycolic Body Wash. As we have written about before, when you analyze a cosmetic ingredient list, there are basically three ingredient categories including: Functional – ingredients that deliver the claimed product benefits Aesthetic modifiers – ingredients that improve the usability of the formula Claims (or hero ingredients) - ingredients that support the marketing or brand story but often don’t provide any measurable benefit Primary purpose and claims: Body wash that claims to cleanse and improve the texture of the skin. Produ ..read more

Understanding how to decipher cosmetic ingredient lists is an essential skill in developing your formulating skills while also making you a more informed consumer. By honing this skill it will help you understand the purpose of an ingredient, what ingredients work well together (and what don’t) and help you make informed purchasing decisions. As we have written about before when you analyze a cosmetic ingredient list, there are basically three categories of ingredients including: Functional – ingredients that deliver the claimed product benefits Aesthetic modifiers – ingredients that improve ..read more

One the cosmetic science formulation forum we often get people looking for advice on how to improve their formulas. While each question and formulation is a little different, there is one thing nearly all of the formulas have in common. They are using too many ingredients! Formula Minimalism I have long embraced the philosophy of formulation minimalism and there are a number of reasons why. If you are having trouble with your cosmetic formulas in terms of stability or performance, the most simple, effective solution you can try is: use FEWER ingredients.  Here is why. Problems with using ..read more

Whenever we do a webinar, we find that about 30 - 40% of people interested in formulating cosmetics don’t have a background in science.  In fact, most home formulators have very little chemistry training. While having a degree in chemistry is not required to be an excellent formulator, there are some chemistry concepts that can make your formulating efforts much easier. In this post, we’ll remind you of some basic concepts in chemistry that will make formulating easier for you even if you don’t have a chemistry degree. Now much of this information you probably learned in grade school or h ..read more

When I started formulating cosmetics back in the late 1990’s, one regulatory movement was to reduce the VOC (volatile organic compounds) of cosmetics. What this primarily meant was that all the hairsprays we sold would have to be reduced to 55% VOC. Since these formulas could be composed of up to 90% VOC, that made it a big challenge. I always thought it was a ridiculous thing to regulate. It seemed to me the amount of VOC produced by personal care products was minuscule compared to that of automobiles and airplanes. And if you look at the numbers, this is true.  Less than 4% of VOC emiss ..read more

As a new cosmetic formulator you might be surprised to learn that you won’t get many opportunities to create completely new formulas. It is rare that you would start a project without a starting formula. Often what happens when a company hires a formulator is you get handed a list of in-house formulas and your job will be to make small changes to those. In reality, companies don’t really want new formulas. They usually don’t want to change formulas at all. Here’s why. Modifying cosmetic formulas As I said, brands do not want to change formulas. This is especially true for products that are sel ..read more

Thickeners are considered an aesthetic modifier (as discussed more in this post about types of cosmetic ingredients). In a formula they are essential for creating a product that is appealing to your consumer. While function (ie moisturizing, cleansing) is paramount, how a product feels can be almost as important to the end user and set your product apart from the competition. Reasons for using thickeners: As the name suggests, thickeners (sometimes referred to as rheological additives) are used to build viscosity and deliver optimal product consistency to your consumer. They are also used to ..read more

In my recent post about cosmetic chemists and marketing I made some assertive claims about the effectiveness of Green Tea extract. Basically, I said it doesn’t do much in a formula and is added just for the marketing story. And I went on to complain about scientific organizations propagating what qualify in my view as marketing stories. The science strikes back So, I tweeted my opinion and I received a response from one of my fellow beauty science communicators (Lab Muffin beauty science) directed my attention to some research published in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology. It ..read more

We just recently started posting things on Instagram. (Be sure to follow us there if you like). And in going through Instagram seeing the sheer amount of BS out there is troubling. In the old days you could expect beauty brands to be peddling an exaggerate marketing story. You also expected it from raw material suppliers. We all knew to take what they said with a grain of salt. But it seems like something has changed. Now, social media is flooded with dubious information about the “science” of ingredients and beauty products. No longer is it just brands or people with a financial stake in gett ..read more

At Chemists Corner, one of the most frequent questions we get is from people looking for the best cosmetic preservative to use for their formula. This is a complicated question and really depends on many factors. But, before we dive into what preservatives you should consider, let’s step back and review why you need preservatives in the first place. There are two primary reasons you need preservatives: To stop microbes from spoiling your products. To stop microbes from causing disease. The microbes that can infect your formulas primarily include bacteria, mold, and yeast. In small quantitie ..read more