TLC Soaps & Sundries.com : Formulas : Cream and Lotion Formulation

TLC Soaps and Sundries
Cream and Lotion Formulation

If you would like to learn about making soaps as well, please take time to read (Soapmaking Equipment and Instructions) Click to go to instructions. This will help you know the equipment needed to make your soap and how you can make this wonderful healthful soap for your family and friends. If you are in need of oils to make your first soap or would like to order our Soapmaking Kit, you can find them and many other supplies listed here on our site. (TLC's Soap and Sundries Making Supplies.)

If you are in need of containers for your Lotions, Creams, etc. I have some listed here
(Bottles, Jars, etc.)

If you are in need of Oil, Butters, Emulsifying Wax, Stearic Acid, etc. I have them listed here
(Oil, Butters, Waxes, etc. )

Here are my formulation helpers for making creams and lotions. I hope that this information helps you make your own lotions and creams and gives you the satisfaction in knowing that you made this with your own loving hands. You will find that this is much easier than you ever thought possible.

-Rita Scheu

I have been asked what is the difference in Palm Stearic Acid and Stearic Acid and if either can be used in making lotions and creams. Palm Stearic Acid comes from the Palm Tree and is a vegetable based emulsifying fatty acid. Stearic Acid is mostly derived from Tallow and is animal based emulsifying fatty acid. But, in the end whether it is plant or animal based, it is all the same exact chemical components and so Stearic Acid is just that, Stearic Acid. Either of these can also be used in small amounts to make a hard bar of soap or as a thickener for lotions and creams.

When I first started making Lotions and Creams I was using some of the old formulas on the net. I got tired of the film that e-wax would leave on the skin when I used it as the percentage ranges that were first posted on the net and in some books that I had read. I have a friend that is an X-Ray Tech. that let me know of the problem she was having with it leaving a film on the the x-rays when she would handle them. So I came up with a range that my family, friends, customers and myself feel comfortable with and searched for an Emulsifying Wax that would do the job with just the use of Stearic Acid and finally found one.

Please remember that all E-Wax is not the same. There are many E-Waxes and not all will be an complete emulsifier. The formulas on my site are ones that use the E-Wax that I use and have on hand to sell. The E-Wax, Stearic and Oils and Butters that I have on hand are listed here on the site Oils, Butters, Emulsifiers, etc.

Now, on with the info to help you make your own.

When using the percentages you are figuring the percentages on an amount, say around 16 oz. This is where you start to find your percentages of liquid, oil, wax, stearic and glycerin. You take the 16 oz. and multiply it by the percentage number that you choose for your liquid, oil, etc. This will give you the amount of ounces you will need to make your cream or lotion. Now it will not add up to be 16 oz. and that is when I take it a step further and round off the numbers to make it easier to weight out. Still will not get to the 16 oz. but will most of the time be over that and will make a wonderful cream or lotion. Will this really work, you bet ya, I round my numbers all the time and it has always worked whether it is Soaps, Lotions, Creams, Ointments, etc.

The purpose of these formula suggestions are to help you get one that you like. It has taken me many tries and many failures before I came to the formulas that I like best and this will help you learn how to balance yours out easier than I had it. The percentages in the formula are ones that I have used along the way and found to work best for me. So again you can tweak the percentages if you like to fit what you like. Give it a try and I know you will enjoy it. Ü

Some have asked what are the liquids that can be used. Here is a small list of items that can be used for the liquid in making your Lotions and Creams. Distilled Water, Aloe Vera Juice or Gel, Goats Milk, Herbal Teas, Hydrosols (these are fragrant waters made when plants like Lavender, Rose, etc. are steam distilled). So water alone is not all that can be used. You can mix water with one of the other liquids or use one of the other liquids for the total liquid. Also remember that the use of a broad spectrum preservative is best to make your Lotions and Creams safer for use for more than a few weeks.

CREAMS

Liquid 60% to 70%
Oil 12% to 25%
Emulsifying Wax 2% to 4%
Stearic Acid 7% to 10%
Glycerin 1/2 % to 1%

LOTION

Liquid 75% to 85%
Oil 12% to 20%
Emulsifying Wax 1% to 3%
Stearic Acid 2% to 6%
Glycerin 1/2 % to 1%

NOTE:
Just remember to use 100% as your point of reference when using percentages. If you find that the lotion or cream is to oily, decrease the percentage of oil and increase the percentage of water. Or use penetrating oils like Fractionated Coconut Oil, Apricot Kernel, Meadowfoam, Avocado, etc. as the total of the oils and that will help make it more penetrating for the skin. Also the addition of something like Aloe Juice, Herbal Teas that you make will help not only with the penetration of the ingredients, but will also add to the healthfulness they can give to the skin. Remember that a little of these whole oils will go a long way. These are not like the mass marketed products that are filled with synthetic chemicals and oily matters that are formulated to disappear but give no benefit of any nutrients to the skin. So if making a lotion or cream for the face, I use just a tiny amount and it does really well and I prefer to use a very small amount of Shea Butter or Cocoa Butter in all of my lotions and creams as it is wonderful for the skin. :-)

NOTE:
Beeswax and Emulsifying Wax are NOT interchangeable in a formula. Beeswax does not have the binding ability to hold water and oil together without some helpers. And the process for using Beeswax and the other binders can be very temperature sensitive which can cause major separations in formulating with them.

Tips for processing your formula

1. Heat the oil phase and liquid phase in separate sterile pots. Remember to put the Ewax and Stearic Acid in the pot with the oils. And remember that everything must be melted completely for it to incorporate properly. I find that around 120° to 140°, taking it on and off the heat and stirring so as not to over heat, works best. Overheating can cause separation problems, it can destroy the skin properties in the whole oils that you want to keep and it can also break the oils down so they will go bad faster.

2. When using Emulsifying Wax and Stearic Acid, remember if you use the high percentage of Emulsifying Wax, use the lower percentages of Stearic Acid and vice versa. But I find it best to use less Emulsifying Wax and more Stearic Acid this way there is no waxy feeling left on the skin.

3. Do not use a lot of Glycerin. Not only can it draw moisture to the skin, which is what you want, but if to much is used, it can actually make the skin feel very wet, because it is just pulling in to much moisture to the skin because there is to much Glycerin. The reason that I say that is that even on very dry days when there is very little moisture in the air, when I used to much my skin would be very wet and stay that way till I washed the lotion off and it never dried my skin out. That is why my percentages are so low on the Glycerin.

4. When using a solid oil with you liquid oils, remember you will not need as much Stearic Acid since the solid oil will work to stiffen the cream or lotion also. And the more of the solids like Cocoa Butter, Shea Butter, Mango Butter, etc. you use, there will be more moisture in the cream. So don't use much unless you need a lot because of very dry skin.

5. And if you want to add more healing to the cream or lotion, use Vitamin E, A and D. You can get these in the store in gel capsule forms and just clip the capsule and add to the cream or lotion and throw away the capsule. I use the 1000 I.U. of Vitamin E capsules and add whatever I think that is needed for the formula size by snipping them and squeezing the oil into the bowl or pot. If you use the Liquid Tocopherols (Vitamin E) then approx 1 tsp equals from 5000 I.U.s to 6000 I.U.s and you can use 1/2 tsp. to 1 tsp. in a 16 oz. to 20 oz. batch.

6. Here is a small list of items that can be used for the liquid in making your Lotions and Creams. Distilled Water, Aloe Vera Juice or Gel, Goats Milk, Almond Milk, Herbal Teas, Hydrosols (these are fragrant waters made when plants like Lavender, Rose, etc. are steam distilled). So water alone is not all that can be used. You can mix water with one of the other liquids or use one of the other liquids for the total liquid. Also remember that the use of a broad spectrum preservative is best to make your Lotions and Creams safer for use for more than a few weeks. You will need a little more of the preservative in a formula that has milk items or proteins added. That you will have to figure for the preservative you are using.

As you can see there are some ranges to work with there. Tried and true formulas are good, but we learn more by doing them ourselves and get more from the experience. Like pleasure in knowing we did it for ourselves and the satisfaction knowing when someone tells us that they love our lotion or cream, that we did it ourselves by just using guidelines and not someone elses formula. Ok ....... so that is the homeschooler in me talking. Enjoy and please let me know if you need any help and how the formula works for you.

If you wish to use a general formula, some are listed here on the (Cream and Lotion page). These do not give listings for oils used, but let you choose what oils you would like to use. I have added a few lotion and cream formulas that do have oil, butter suggestions in them if you wish to use them.
If you wish to know more about some of the most popular oils, take a look here (Oils Used in Soapmaking) and this will help you with the oils you might want to use when making your own Lotions and Creams.

You may go here to order Oils and the E-Wax and Palm Stearic Acid for making your creams and lotions. Oils, (Butters and Emulsifyers). And we have containers for them on this page (Containers and Bottles) We are limited on items of Oils, Butter, etc and containers and will not have them listed on the site.

Created By Rita Scheu
TLC Soaps & Sundries
http://www.tlcsoaps.com