Thin lotions

[GrosbeakGardens]

I am making lotion, and I have a problem I can’t figure out. I strive for a lotion that is not too thick because it is harder to apply. My first batch seemed great when I made it, but became very thin over time. The formula I tried in a second test is 80% water. The remaining 20% is a combination of sweet almond oil, grapeseed oil an emulsifying wax. By weight, the wax is about 20% of the combined weight of the oils. It was noticeably thicker than my earlier attempt. However, over time, it, too, has become thinner.
Do you have suggestions on what I can do to produce a lotion that is easy to apply and will not become thin over time?


Thanks!
Bill

 

[kchaystack]

Add some stearic acid or some cetyl alcohol to the oil phase of the lotion. Susan over at http://swiftcraftymonkey.blogspot.com/ has great info on lotions and other bath and body stuff.

 

[DeeAnna]

Yes, I'd add a thickener. And you might use your emulsifier at about 30% of oils. Once you get to 80% water phase, you're pushing the envelope for what the emulsifier can do all on its own, especially when you're on the lower edge of what my experience tells me will work okay.

It would be nice if you'd share the recipe and method -- Do you use heat and hold? Stick blender? Preservative? Other additives?

 

[cmzaha]

The emulsifier used can also make a huge difference. It took me over a year of testing to come up with a stable thin lotion, because I like very light lotions. I make some in the 87% range of water and it took a lot of testing to find the right emulsifier combination that would not separate. You also should let a thin lotion sit for at least 3 months to see if it will hold.

 

[GrosbeakGardens]

Thanks for all the info. I use a stuck blender to mix and generally make 2 gallons of lotion at a time. I will try to increase both the ewax and the total oils in the batch and see where that gets me. Also, I may consider adding some heavier oils, too.

 

[Savonette]

I just tried thinning out a lotion I've made at 70% h2o(with dissolved Epsom salt), 20% oil (10%shea, 45%avocado, 45%rbo), and 10% emulsifiers (60%ewax, 40%stearic). This lotion feels a bit heavy but is absorbed nicely. I increased my h2o to 72% and lowered my emul.s to 8% and it definitely has a different feel. It's possibly thicker and has a powdery finish on the fingers. I'm wondering if it's because I blended the heck out of it since it seemed too thin. Does blend time actually matter?

 

[dixiedragon]

You might want to start your own thread.

I used to make a recipe where you would blend, let the lotion rest for a while, and blend again. I think the resting allowed the lotion to cool enough that by blending you were whipping air into it. So that might make a difference.

 

[Savonette]

You might want to start your own thread.

I used to make a recipe where you would blend, let the lotion rest for a while, and blend again. I think the resting allowed the lotion to cool enough that by blending you were whipping air into it. So that might make a difference.

I'm not sure if I want more air or not - so I'll definitely try it!