Astringent Aftershave Starting Point

[BrewerGeorge]

I like astringent, alcoholic and cooling aftershaves. I used to love the Proraso original formula, but they've changed it and the price has more than doubled in the last year or two ($15 for 3 oz) when you can find it at all. I'm using original Aqua Velva now, but the smell is.. not ideal.

So why not try to make my own? I tried a few things last year before finding real resources like this place and they failed abysmally. I'm hoping my subsequent tries will be more successful, which leads to this question.

Where do I start? I'd like to use alcohol, witch hazel, allantoin, perhaps a bit of menthol (either crystals or peppermint EO) and an FO of my choice - maybe a bit of cucumber extract as well. Just this weekend I found swiftcraftymonkey (via here, of course) and have been reading furiously, but there is SO MUCH there and her focus seems to be away from alcohol which I very much want, that I thought I'd ask here as well.

I am certainly willing to experiment, but I feel like I need a starting point - both for research outside swiftcraftymonkey and just a basic recipe. Can anybody help with those things?

 

[shunt2011]

I can only speak for myself. I make some for my husband and brothers in law only. Don't sell it. I use Everclear/Vodka, aloe vera gel, witch hazel & EO or FO. They like it. I would love to add some menthol but will have to wait until all my shows are over for the year to play with it some more. I have some allantoin too might have to try a bit of that.

 

[BrewerGeorge]

I certainly won't be selling, either. Just for me.

Can anyone recommend a source to purchase smaller amounts of these cosmetic ingredients? I don't need a pound of allantoin or panthenol.

 

[lsg]

I use formulator's alcohol. This link may be of help

http://web.archive.org/web/20110811061238/http://www.snowdriftfarm.com/form_perfumes.html

 

[The Efficacious Gentleman]

I make a classic bay rum - Bay oil (not bay leaf, there is a difference) in vodka, rum and water, with some cinnamon and cloves seeped in it for a month or so before I strain them out. It's a gorgeous colour and smells great.

But man alive, don't you know it when you slap it on after a shave!

 

[traderbren]

Lotioncrafter has allantoin and panthenol in smaller amounts. I have purchased from them before, and shipping wasn't too painful. It was quick, too.

 

[IrishLass]

My hubby and son like a goodly dose of alcohol in their aftershaves, too. If it helps at all, this is the recipe that I make for them, which they ended up liking best out of all my tweaks. I came up with it by using my hubby's favorite Brut aftershave ingredients as a plumb line to work off of:

50% Everclear
20% aloe juice (I use George's brand from my health food store)
15% witch hazel
12% SD 70 alcohol
3% vegetable glycerin

Oh- and I use FO on top of that, usually at around .6% to 1% of the weight of my finished aftershave base, depending on the scent.

By the way- I would have used all Everclear as my main alcohol amount, but both hubby and son liked it better with that little bit of SD 70 alcohol in it. They said it made it feel and smell more like the commercial brands they were used to using. lol Basically, I just kept adding it in bit by bit until it became bracing enough for them, and 12% happened to be the sweet spot for them. It's so funny to me how much alike they are in their tastes/preferences. At least it makes it easy on me when I'm formulating soap and other B&B stuff for them. lol

I make a classic bay rum - Bay oil (not bay leaf, there is a difference) in vodka, rum and water, with some cinnamon and cloves seeped in it for a month or so before I strain them out.

I've been working on a classic bay rum of my own. My favorite version so far is my mix of bay racemosa EO and whole allspice berries that I crush beforehand in my mortar & pestle. I've been steeping this concoction in rum and Everclear for the past month. I haven't made aftershave with it yet, though. I've just been steeping it so far to get a sense of the aroma, which I've fallen totally in love with, btw.

Strangely enough, up until a month ago when I bought my bay racemosa EO and started blending, I actually had no idea what real bay rum was supposed to smell like. In my mind, I had envisioned something akin to the Classic Old Spice that has been a favorite of my family for generations, but it's not anything like that at all. You could've knocked me over with a feather when I discovered how much my brew smells like Christmas-time. lol

They'll both be getting Bay Rum aftershave for Christmas from me. I'm going to try and work it into my normal aftershave base ingredients first.

As an aside, I found the perfect bay rum FO....well, perfect to me anyway, because it smells just like my blend of bay racemosa and allspice berries: Montego Bay from Oregon Trails soap supplies.


IrishLass

 

[BrewerGeorge]

Lotioncrafter has allantoin and panthenol in smaller amounts. I have purchased from them before, and shipping wasn't too painful. It was quick, too.

I built a $28 cart from there and shipping was $13-something! For just about a pound of weight, too.

Anybody have any other suggestions?

 

[shunt2011]

I make one similar to IL. Only for family though.

 

[kchaystack]

I built a $28 cart from there and shipping was $13-something! For just about a pound of weight, too.

Anybody have any other suggestions?

they are coming from Washington state - so that is not bad, I do not know of anywhere near us mid-westerners that carry that stuff.

 

[IrishLass]

There's also these places that sell alantoin and lots of other cool B&B stuff:

The Herbarie out of S. Carolina: http://www.theherbarie.com/
The Personal Formulator in Wyoming: http://www.personalformulator.com/wvss/
SoapGoods out of Georgia: https://www.soapgoods.com/
Ingredients to Die For out of Texas: http://www.ingredientstodiefor.com/


IrishLass

 

[hmlove1218]

I built a $28 cart from there and shipping was $13-something! For just about a pound of weight, too.

Anybody have any other suggestions?

Also, they ship via USPS and she refunds any overages after she ships. last time I ordered, I was refunded $7

 

[BrewerGeorge]

Also, they ship via USPS and she refunds any overages after she ships. last time I ordered, I was refunded $7

Very good to know, thanks!