Making aloe oil

[Candybee]

I want to make my own aloe vera oil using a carrier oil and aloe gel. This will be for a bath oil I am working on. Will aloe gel mix okay with a carrier oil? I assume I need a preservative. Do I need an emulsifier or solubilizer too?

I have aloe powder too but am thinking the powder will leave sediment and I don't want that so thought a liquid type aloe like the aloe gel would be best. Please help! Thanks.

 

[DeeAnna]

Aloe is water based, so mixing aloe with oil directly is not going to make "aloe oil". The two ingredients will just separate out.

You could emulsify aloe gel with an oil -- in other words, make a lotion -- but you'd need an emulsifier and a preservative, as you are thinking.

The "aloe oil" I'm seeing on the market appears to be a different thing entirely from what I think you're proposing. One tute said to heat ground up aloe until all the water is driven off and the particles are browned. Other tutes show diced up aloe that's been cooked until the bits of aloe are dark, but not dry, which means some water is still present. I"m not sure I agree with these tutes entirely, because there's a real chance of microbial contamination when making an oil-based infusion with fresh vegetation.

Anyways, these tutes finish by instructing you to filter off all particles, leaving whatever remaining aloe chemicals that have become infused into the oil. At this point there should also be no water left either for safety's sake.

edit -- here's a more sensibile tute that follows the rules I've been taught for making safe infusions: Why and How to Make Aloe Oil I would think you could use aloe powder for an infusion, rather than dehydrated aloe leaves.

Why do you think aloe powder will leave any more sediment than the aloe gel? The powder is dried aloe gel, isn't it?

 

[Candybee]

I tried a test with a couple of ounces of the oil recipe I have. I added about 15% aloe gel to the oil mix in the bottle and shook it hard. So far after more that 24 hours it has not separated. So I am wondering if it isn't the oils I am using.

I have olive, anhydrous lanolin, and jojoba. I warmed the lanolin with the oils to mix them. I did this several days ago and yesterday added the aloe gel because I wanted to see if it would mix in.

I have been waiting for it to seperate, clump, or something and so far it hasn't.

Also, got some preservative info from WSP and even with the aloe gel in my formulation I don't need a preservative. But I do need some vitamin E but that is already in the recipe and in the test batch I made.

I had looked at aloe oils and determined what was available was not what I wanted in my recipe. Many are made with oils I don't want in my recipe plus I am thinking COG for the finished product. Not what I wanted so decided to try it on my own.

But not using real aloe leaves. I wanted to use aloe gel and a carrier oil.

Anyway, the test batch I have with the aloe gel, oils, and vitamin E, and essential oil blend is lovely and so far not separation.

I just ordered lanolin oil from Soaper's Choice which is an oil form of lanolin through an extraction or filtering process. So I will have to retest with the lanolin oil to see if the aloe gel stays blended. Next test I am using only 10% aloe gel instead.

Just wondering if the sticky anhydrous lanolin is why the recipe stayed emulsified without separation. So waiting to see how the lanolin oil will work out.

 

[Candybee]

Re the making of the aloe oil, I saw some of those tutes on the internet and that's not what I want to do. From what I saw you dehydrate the aloe leaves, then place the dried leaves in a jar with the carrier oil and leave them for a few weeks then strain out the leaves. You get aloe infused oil which is fine but not what I want to do or use.

Believe me I tried growing aloe and I don't have a green thumb. LOL

 

[DeeAnna]

Well people use beewax to make "lotions" too. The mixture will stay mixed for awhile, maybe even weeks, leading a person to think they've made a true emulsion, but the water phase will eventually will separate from the fat phase.

There is nothing in lanolin or beeswax to act as an emulsifier to create a stable emulsion. Lanolin does have the ability to hold some water in its structure, but that doesn't mean it's an emulsifier.

Whatever you choose to do, be sure to use a preservative. This is not going to be a self-preserving mixture on its own.

 

[Candybee]

Can you suggest an emulsifier that would work for a mostly oil formulation?

Re a preservative, it certainly would not hurt to put that in to be sure, especially since I intend to market my bath oil. I have Germall Plus from WSP that I use in my facial toner and men's aftershave. But its water soluble so I don't think it will work for a mostly oil recipe.

Can you also make a suggestion for a good preservative for an (mostly) oil based recipe? WSP has Germaben IIE for lotions containing 25% or more fixed oils in a formulation. Does that sound right? Is there another one I should try that you know of.

Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

 

[Candybee]

I have polysorbate 80. Would that work?

I've been looking at WSP's list of emulsifiers and thickeners and don't think wax, or emulsifying wax types are the answer. So wondering if the polysorbate 80 might do the trick?

 

[DeeAnna]

You're going outside my skill set at this point -- I'd have to spent a lot of time researching before I'd be comfortable giving advice.

Instead, I recommend you look into the info from Susan at Swift Crafty Monkey. She would probably know the answers to your questions off the top of her head.

 

[Candybee]

Thanks for you help. I already have started research on emulsifiers. I don't use Swift Craft Monkey because the site is no longer free and she also charges fees for recipes and articles. At this point I think I may have found what I am looking for or at least you helped me enough to get started. I have my base recipe and just need to tweak it by trying out various emulsifiers. Also, I am going to get the germaben for a preservative and test that out.

Thank you DeeAnna. Your help is much appreciated. I don't feel like I am flailing in the wind now. LOL

 

[Candybee]

Why do you think aloe powder will leave any more sediment than the aloe gel? The powder is dried aloe gel, isn't it?

Sorry I didn't see this question til just now. I did try some organic aloe powder and it did leave sediment and unclear oil. IDK, it had flakes or specks plus some sediment in the bottom. That was the organic stuff which is a tannish to brown color and it also colored my oil. So that is out.

I have not yet received my aloe 40x powder. Its white and maybe it would make a difference. Don't know.

I ended up ordering an emulsifier and some Optiphen Plus which is supposed to work with water/oil based formulations. They are from WSP so it will be about 3-4 weeks before stuff arrives. They are taking 10 days to process, plus the shipping. So by the time it gets to almost a month has gone by.

 

[Candybee]

My most recent research on lanolin I found that it can absorb twice its own weight in water and is self-emulsifying producing stable emulsions.

No wonder my formulation has not separated. Good to know.