Geek me on Solid/Liquid Lotions

[AngelMomma]

I have dry skin and so do some friends and family members. I sometimes use a commercial lotion. But lately I have been using a lip balm I made (Its got great things in it!) or I will just use a dab of plain Shea Butter.

I do TONS of Gardening which abuses my skin PROFUSELY!!! Hands, fingers, knees and toes. I have been know to kick my shoes of while working in the garden. I am determined at the beginning of the main part of the season to NOT do this, but....... I am going to try to find some gardening shoes this year, hope that helps. So after scrubbing the dirt off of myself my skin needs serious pampering. I don't want to handle the beautiful produce and do canning with tender, cracked or peeling fingers.

Last fall I saw a small molded lotion bar at the local fair. They were selling it in a tiny tin for a big price. And they had a million varieties. Way too 'Fru-Fru' for me. I like great function and great value combined.

I recently read a thread here that detailed how to make a solid lotion bar. I'm going to make some of those for myself, my Husband(he is in the military and he always has some construction type project going with our rental houses or around here) and for Nana too.

BUT I keep seeing here and there that a LIQUID lotion MUST have a preservative. I am looking for all the details of why we would use a preservative in the liquid but not in the solid bars. I am sure there is a simple explaination. I love all the geeky(my JR high students word) details about this subject. Since the commercial stuff really doesn't do my skin justice I am sure I can get better results with the recipes I see around here.

Lastly......since I do work out in the soil alot. I am going to add maybe some Tea Tree oil for antiseptic properties. Any others you would recommend? And maybe use some Calendula Infused oil for part of the oils, for healing properties. Also what size works best and what do you store/package them in? I probably would send one to my sister, she lives 1000 miles away from me.

Opinions, recommendations?

 

[AngelMomma]

Sorry if this has been discussed and Thank you for sharing your knowledge

 

[judymoody]

This is probably the only source you'll ever need: swiftcraftymonkey.blogspot.com She explains everything on her blog and if you want the info in an organized narrative form, she sells ebooks - profits support youth groups in Canada.

Oil-based products tend not to support bacterial and fungal growth. Water-based are a perfect medium for nasties to grow. Add botanical ingredients like honey, aloe, goat's milk, etc. and watch out. Hence the need for a preservative with a proven track record. Try lotioncrafter.com for more info on preservatives available to the homecrafter.

 

[AngelMomma]

That makes sense. I'm pretty 'bug' .......how would you say? Aware. I don't even like to eat much left over food, use a family members lip balm, etc. So I am not anti-preservative when its necessary. Thanks for the sources.

 

[hoegarden]

I made my own lotion and I do not put preservatives as these are not allowed to be bought in my country. So my lotion will have a shelf life for 3 months and go longer if kept in fridge. But still i will suggest to discard after 3 months if you are not keen to use preservatives for the time being.

 

[judymoody]

Respectfully, I would not recommend making preservative-free lotion regardless of how it's stored or whether it's exclusively for home use. MAYBE if you kept it in the refrigerator and used it up within a day or two, it MIGHT be OK. Just because it doesn't look or smell bad, doesn't mean it's not teeming with microbes. This advice is not for Angelmomma, who has indicated that she recognizes the importance of preservatives but more for anybody else who might think otherwise upon reading this thread.

A better alternative for those who don't have access to preservatives or are not willing to use them would be solid lotion bars or whipped butters which don't include water among their ingredients.

 

[AngelMomma]

Mostly I am just thinking of making solid lotion bars. But I am not sure what containers I will put them in. I also am trying to decide which oils to use so that the oils soak into my skin readily. I do wash often so it really is imperative that it absorbs fast.

I don't think I would make a liquid lotion without a preservative.

 

[judymoody]

A good option for solid lotion is roll up deodorant tubes. You can get them from WSP or Elements B&B in various sizes. You pour your melted lotion into the tubes (not too hot!) and let cool, much like lip balm. I use these for my bug repellent lotion bars and they work really well.

As for oils, you want something with a good shelf life as well as stuff that your skin will like. Rice bran, olive oil, shea, and cocoa butter are some of the ones I've used. Depends on the level of glide you want/need and the season. So, for example, if I used shea instead of cocoa butter, I'd use relatively more beeswax because shea has a lower melting point than cocoa butter and is not as firm. Make sense?

I had to tweak and experiment quite a bit before I got the consistency where I wanted. The standard of 1/3 wax, 1/3 butter and 1/3 oil was too stiff for my taste.

I find them very useful, especially for travel.

 

[Tulip2]

I am an herbal enthusiast and am at the relative beginning of crafting bath and body products. I have made several lotions for personal use. These were made with out a formal preservative and are kept in the fridge. I did add herbal ingredients that are antimicrobial. The lotions I made were part oil, part herbal infusion and part bees wax.
I did find a recipe for body butter that has no water added. Hoping to try that out soon.

 

[AngelMomma]

I had to tweak and experiment quite a bit before I got the consistency where I wanted. The standard of 1/3 wax, 1/3 butter and 1/3 oil was too stiff for my taste.

I find them very useful, especially for travel.

Since I am always freezing this might apply to me as well. I am thinking about making an order for some cocoa butter to put in it along with the containers.

 

[hoegarden]

thanks judy. but in a hot and humid country, lotion stick and butter prove to be too heavy for skin. it do more bad than good. i won't want to put them on and feel geasy the whole day through especially when going out for lunch under the hot sun.

i did add rosemary extract to the lotion. But i do not know how much it deter microbial growth in water based lotion too.

Sometimes having too protective laws is not really good too. =(

 

[AngelMomma]

I put in an order a few days ago for the containers and cocoa butter(among other things ). Glad I am busy, because I am not a naturally patient girl.

 

[itunu]

Hoegarden\Tulip2 - I second Judymoody's advice - It’s a common myth that anti-oxidants like vitamin E, Grapefruit Seed Extract and rosemary extract are preservatives but they are not. Oxidation of oils and butters leads to rancidity and anti-oxidants slow down this process. These anti-oxidants do not prevent bacteria, yeast, or mold from entering your product. If your product contains water or will come into contact with water (eg a scrub used with wet fingers) a preservative is essential to help prevent microbes (bacteria, mold, and yeast) growing. Preservatives stop growth by killing cells and spores (usually by disrupting cell membranes) or by making the product hostile to growth. Liquid Germall Plus is a good choice or if you prefer a preservative which has Ecocert, Mikrokill ECT also known as Geogard ECT is popular.

Angelmomma - in case you haven't yet formulated your recipe here's a recipe for a lotion bar which doubles up as a lip balm - http://diybathandbody.wordpress.com/how-to-make-a-lip-balm-and-lotion-bar/

 

[AngelMomma]

Thank you for the link. I like to try things many different ways.

I did get a chance to make a couple of kinds of lotion sticks. One was a Sunflower, shea, coconut, beeswax and lavender EO blend. Very nice. I like it. And the Second was a Calendula infused olive oil, coconut, cocoa butter, beeswax and tea tree EO blend. Very nice as well. The second was intended for the hubby, who took one with him to work to keep in his desk. His fingers get bad cracks in them if he doesn't keep up with them. This morning he told me that so and so, and so and so, and so and so likes it. Sounds more like he was doing a 'show and tell' at work. Its nice to have his support and not someone who thinks all this fun stuff is just weird like some people think. I LOVE doing these homemade personal care products!

 

[Shannon_m]

Angel you might be interested in this:

http://www.soapqueen.com/bath-and-body-tutorials/lotion/tutorial-for-everything-balm/

 

[AngelMomma]

Angel you might be interested in this:

http://www.soapqueen.com/bath-and-body-tutorials/lotion/tutorial-for-everything-balm/

Always interested, thank you. I love to read and experiment.

 

[DeeAnna]

BUT I keep seeing here and there that a LIQUID lotion MUST have a preservative. I am looking for all the details of why we would use a preservative in the liquid but not in the solid bars.

It's not a question of liquid vs. solid ... it's a question of whether the ingredients in a product are likely to support microbial growth.

A water-and-oil lotion needs a preservative because bacteria and fungi can easily grow in it -- the cosmetic equivalent of homemade mayo.

A solid lotion bar, oil-based salve, or oil-based "serum" is anhydrous, meaning there is no water in the product. Microbes are not likely to grow in these products, as long as they stay relatively clean and water-free. I say "usually" because there are exceptions to the rule. If a user is likely to contaminate an anhydrous product with water -- for example if you dip your oil-based scrub out of its jar with wet fingers -- then it should have a preservative.

Like another poster said, an ANTIOXIDANT is not the same as a PRESERVATIVE. Antioxidants, such as tocopherols (vitamin E), slow the oxidation of oils, so they don't go rancid as fast. Preservatives, such as Germall Plus, protect against fungal and bacterial growth. Two different animals!

Think about the cooking oil in your cupboard -- does it get moldy or stinky? Nope. Does it get rancid? Yes! Two different things needing different solutions.

--DeeAnna