Teach Soap

Hi everyone! I'm new to making lotions and creams, so still learning about what needs added preservatives and what doesn't. If I purchase a pre-made lotion base does it already have preservatives or do I need to add more? I plan to mix it with things like shea butter, aloe, and/or vitamin e.

Where ever you buy the base from should list the ingredients or be able to tell you if you email them. That will tell you if it has preservative in it already.

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The Soapinatrix! *whip-crack*
- Posting the trials and tribulations of my Soaping Journey!

Normally, a pre-made base should already have a preservative. It is best to use it as is. Just add fragrance. If you heat up the base to add any extras you could negate the preservative completely. I would not add any aloe or shea to a premade base. It could break the emulsion or make the preservative fail. I would not add Vit E either. You could be introducing something into the base by using kitchen utensils and mixing.

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Irena
Closed minds are like faulty parachutes; they refuse to open.

Oh, thank you for that info! I guess I was thinking that a lotion base would work much like a melt and pour soap base.

I did try a recipe that I found online to make a lotion bar that had beeswax, shea, and sweet almond oil. I made it before I read about preservatives, but I only made a little and used it pretty quickly.

Has anyone used a lotion base vs making lotion from scratch? Good, bad? I have a preservative called phenonip that I plan to use when I make another batch of home made bars.

A lotion bar with oil/butter/beeswax does not need a preservative. It's pretty easy to make, but you should still follow sanitizing procedures for all utensils and work surfaces. Lotionmaking is and should be more stringent on all safety and sanitizing procedures. For selling, your handmade lotion should be tested.

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Irena
Closed minds are like faulty parachutes; they refuse to open.

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Irena
Closed minds are like faulty parachutes; they refuse to open.

I was referring to using the phenonip in the lotion bars. There are some lotion recipes I also want to try, and after reading the blog on BB about what can happen with molds and bacteria and other nasty stuff, I didn't want to take any chances! I did buy separate utensils for soaping, I don't mix them with the things we use on food. I usually just wash utensils in hot soapy water and let air dry, and I use clorox wipes for countertops. Are there other sanitizing procedures I should follow? Also, what type of place can you take a home made lotion for testing? Like Lab Corp or something? That is an excellent idea! (Hope it isn't too costly)

Thanks for being so patient with my endless questions!

There is only a very slim chance that lotion bars will get introduced to water or get wet. I don't use preservatives in lotion bars. Any other product that has water like a lotion or a creme I do. Sage Script Institute does basic testing for APC, fungal and yeast. It's not a challenge test though. Those cost thousands of dollars. Here is the link for Sage Script. http://www.sagescript.com/microbiology

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Irena
Closed minds are like faulty parachutes; they refuse to open.

I would rinse off any containers or utensils with 1 TBS of bleach per gallon of water. Then let air dry. Never mix chlorine bleach with any other household or cleaning products. Doing so can result in different types of harmful acids and gases. Clean and spray down counter tops or work area with 70% alcohol. Use 70% alcohol instead of 99% as the 99% alcohol will evaporate too quick to do it's job. The 70% takes longer to evaporate and ends up killing a lot more bacteria. Check out StarSan no-rinse sanitizer. It's used in restaurants to sanitize.

Do NOT sanitize the bottles or jars you will be using to put the product in. You don't want to introduce any germs, mold or bacteria in them before you put the product in it.

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Irena
Closed minds are like faulty parachutes; they refuse to open.

Thanks for the tips! And for the link, I'll look into maybe doing an initial test and then an after use test if I decide to sell lotions.