Cleansing Balms
Do you have any surplus emulsifiers that you really need to get rid of or any emulsifiers that you really don't like too much. I have a few of both kinds. One nice project to make out of said emulsifiers is a cleansing balm. I particularly like wash off balms so this is where emulsifiers come in handy. I made two types of balms here - they have different emulsifiers. The first one uses a combination of glyceryl stearate ( a natural emulsifier) and ceteareth-20 - a not so natural one. The other one has has Xyliance in it - a natural emulsifier.
Tumeric, Guggul and Shea
Tumeric, Shea and Guggul
This formulation has Tumeric in it, in powdered form - I got it from the supermarket and is used in lots of Indian cuisine. I have also used Tumeric co2 extract to add a lovely warm scent which seems to blend really nicely with ylang ylang. Tumeric is purported to be great for hyperpigmentation as it helps even out uneven skin tone. I have also used Guggul. Guggul has anti-inflammatory, rejuvenating and energising properties - apparently. It is of the same family as Myrrh so you could use that instead or any other essential oil or extract you have laying around. As long as you follow the manufacturers advice you should be fine.
I have used rice bran oil, again, you could play around with other oils - I am thinking a really slippy oil like almond oil might be a nice alternative. Good old Shea butter is in there and of course you could try another butter but depending on the melting point you may have to play around with the other ingredients to get the desired consistency.
The Formula
% Ingredient INCI 19.00 xyliance Cetearyl Wheat Straw Glycosides (and) Cetearyl Alcohol 15.00 Shea butter Butyrospermum parkii 65.00 Rice Bran Oil Oryza Sativa (Rice) Bran Oil 00.10 Ylang Essential oil Canaga odorata (ylang) essential oil 00.20 Tumeric CO2 extract Curcuma Longa (Turmeric) Root Extract 00.20 GlucodOX™ Liquid Commiphora Mukul (Guggul) Resin Extract, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride 00.50 Tumeric powder extract Curcuma Longa (Turmeric) Root Extract
Next up is the Fruity one....
Very Berry Fruity Cleanser
Fruity cleansing balm
I used cranberry microzest from Lessonia to colour this balm, it has a lovely understated pink type colour. Although there is cetereth-20 in it, there are lots of different fruit based oils and butters in here to hide the fact.
I also used gracefruits Gracenotes Strawberry extract which has a very pungent strawberry scent. You could use Lotioncrafters Goji berry fragrance which is wholly natural and has a very long inci. So here it is:
The Formula
% Common name INCI 09.00 Ceteareth-20 Ceteareth-20 09.00 Glyceryl stearate Glyceryl stearate 03:00 Lanette O Cetearyl alcohol 11.00 Capuacu butter Theobroma grandiflorum (Cupuacu) Butter 37.00 Olive fruit oil Olea europaea (Olive) Fruit Oil 10.00 Lemon seed oil Citrus limon (Lemon) Seed Oil 10.00 Papaya seed oil Carica papaya (Papaya) Seed Oil 10.00 Blackcurrant seed oil Ribes nigrum (Blackcurrant) Seed Oil 00.50 Cranberry microzest Vaccinium macrocarponse seed powder 00.50 Strawberry Extract Fragaria vesca Extract
Don’t worry if it doesn't appear to thicken straight away. Give it 24 hours and it will be a nice firm but pliable balm that melts well on warm skin. If you find that these are not to your liking in terms of viscosity then by all means adjust some of the ingredients. You will find that it starts to gel around 30c so you have some time to give it a good stir.
Method and equipment needed for both balms
Equipment you will need A few heat proof bowls, thermometer, something to stir (though I use my themometer), 100g glass or plastic jar, hot plate or hob. A double boiler (this will allow you to have better control of the temperature). Method:
Weight ingredients except essential oils in a heat proof bowl.
Heat until all ingredients have melted and stir
Allow to cool to 45c and add the essential oils/co2 extracts
Decant in a wide mouthed container
Important info
I have not done stability tests on them so can not attest to them separating but they seemed fine for the few days that I had them sitting around at room temperature. If you find there is any separation then you can increase the viscosity by replacing some of the liquid oils with more butters or even using cetearyl alcohol instead. A nice sub for cetearyl is Kokum butter as it has a very high melting point. You could also try using waxes like carnauba wax or beeswax.