The creation of natural cosmetic products is truly within everyone's reach... from the budding formulator and chemist, to the most creative among us, including the simple neophyte in the field, eager for new discoveries! It is still necessary to respect some good manufacturing practices. Who says non-sterile environment, says hygiene measures to be respected to the letter. This is one of the first important points to consider. The question of the equipment and ingredients to use is also essential. Without forgetting the famous conservation issues, which it is essential to be aware of when making your own homemade cosmetics! Making your own cosmetics means above all mastering the choice of effective ingredients, adapted to your needs but also, and this is not insignificant, saving money.
This article was updated on 04/08/2023Hygiene rules to respect
Making your own cosmetic products is certainly fun, easy, interesting... but above all, it requires hygiene and certain rules of use. Among the ingredients used, those based on water, hydrosols in particular have an increased sensitivity to microbiological contaminants for example. Thus, certain steps appear to be essential:
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Disinfect utensils and containers before each use. The best is to first wash in hot soapy water, rinse then disinfect with alcohol (70%) before leaving to dry in the open air. For optimal washing, sterilization is a good way to eliminate all microorganisms.
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Have a work plan own, waterproof and also easily washable, all this will facilitate your preparation.
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Obviously, it is essential to wash one's hands, avoid contact of the hands with the ingredients as much as possible or even use gloves.
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Depending on the ingredients used, and if specified, it is preferable to wear a gown, glasses or even a mask in certain cases.
Homemade cosmetics: how to store them properly?
Homemade cosmetics are generally made with natural ingredients, and nature means sensitive and evolving products over time, without added chemical preservatives. Special measures must then be taken into account to best preserve your expensive products.
For all of your preparations, a general rule applies: keep them away from light, particularly if they are composed of fragile, easily oxidizable ingredients such as vegetable oils made up of fatty acids. For more sensitive preparations based on water or hydrosol, be sure to store them in the refrigerator. They can only be kept for a few days without preservatives, while creams, balms and butters, rich in oils and low in water, can be kept longer, for weeks or even a few months at room temperature.
You can also decide to use natural preservatives such as grapefruit seed extract, vitamin E or even cosgard, a synthetic preservative approved by Ecocert for cosmetics. Essential oils also have effective anti-oxidant properties. Recommended concentrations are specified depending on the preservative and the final product.
In any case, do not hesitate to throw away your product if you notice a suspicious appearance, mold, an odor or a particular coloring.
Little tips…
- label your product, date it and keep it out of the reach of children. You can even keep it, with all your range of ingredients and equipment, in a dedicated place to avoid any risk.
- it is obvious to respect the recommended dosages and you can even keep a traceability notebook including the ingredients used with their batch number, their shelf life, etc.
Perform a skin tolerance test
By making our own products, we also seek to avoid allergic risks by choosing the ingredients adapted to your own skin, your own scalp, or many other things…
However, some natural ingredients used naturally contain allergenic substances. It is therefore advisable to carry out a allergic test on the crook of the elbow before using your product. Pour 2 drops, or apply a small dab of product to the crook of the elbow then observe for 48 hours. If no reaction takes place, everything is fine. Otherwise, if you notice irritation or anything else, you probably have an allergy to at least one of the ingredients in your mixture. Ingredient used in too large a quantity or simply an allergy to a particular ingredient? It will then be essential to identify the culprit...
With homemade cosmetics the risk of allergy is not really reduced, however, they have the advantage of being able to identify the ingredient in question and thus leave it aside for future preparations.
What equipment and ingredients should you have?
I assure you, you will not have to sell your kidney to buy the necessary equipment for your little paw. Making your own cosmetics is a bit like cooking... You will easily find the necessary equipment in your kitchen, however it is possible and preferable that they become sacrificed utensils dedicated to your paws! The main utensils to have, at least to start, are empty bottles and jars, of different volumes depending on the product you want to make. It is also essential to have measuring equipment such as a balance, a graduated cylinder or even pipettes. In containers, a simple bowl accompanied by spoons, whisks or spatulas will be welcome. Without forgetting labels!
Be careful, however, to use equipment dedicated to your ingredients. For example, clays cannot be handled with metal utensils!
Concerning ingredients, some are quite basic and present in many homemade cosmetics. Vegetable oils, essential oils, hydrosols, clays, emulsifying waxes, cosmetic active ingredients and even preservatives, each of them requires adapted use and recommendations to follow depending on the end use but also the user. Be sure to consult the technical data sheets for each ingredient before using it.
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