The Tenderfoot Soaper

Formulating A Cold Process Soap Recipe

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When learning how to make soap, your base recipe will most likely be olive oil, coconut oil, and palm oil. Because of the controversy regarding palm oil, there are some soapmakers that will use shea butter instead of palm oil.   When formulating your soap recipe, you will use grams or ounces, but the total oils and fats will need to add up to 100%. You can play around with different … [Read more...]

Formulating With Emulsifiers

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I have learned that making lotions, shampoos, and creams, requires an emulsifier. That is because oil and water do not mix. If you pour oil into water, you will see that the oil floats on top. So, if you want the ingredients to blend or bind, we need an emulsifier to keep them from separating. Thus, creating an emulsion of oil and water.   It is important to know the usage amount of the … [Read more...]

Formulating A Mango Body Butter

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When I became interested in making my own natural skincare products I bought a few books that shared recipes with measurements of cups, teaspoons, and drops. But, this method did not teach me how to formulate my own skincare products. It just taught me how to follow a “recipe” to make a product. That began my journey in learning the art and science of skincare formulation. And beginning to … [Read more...]

Using A Preservative In Your Skincare Product

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If you are making a skincare product that contains water, it is important that you include a broad-spectrum preservative. This includes floral waters, hydrosols, and aloe vera juice When I first started making skincare products, I wanted to stick with making products that did not require a preservative. I read that some preservatives such as parabens, sodium lauryl sulfates (SLS), and … [Read more...]

Rose Body Butter

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Because I still have some rose infusion left, I decided to make a rose body butter. I have been wanting to make this Rose Body Butter for quite some time. It has really been a joy learning to make my own skincare products, and I love making body butters. Body butters are anhydrous so they don’t contain any water, unless you make an emulsified body butter. Because there is no water in this body … [Read more...]