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Wed Nov 05, 2014 11:28 am  |
i am getting ready to make my first sunscreen and am tweaking the formula now.
i like Pratima sunscreens and have noticed that she doesn't use any oils, just lecithin in her formulas and that gave me the idea to use lecithin hoping to recreate the same non-greasy feel her sunscreens have.
But everybody else's DIY recipes i've seen online contain no more than just 9% lecithin and a lot of oil... i am wondering why that is? Why isn't anybody using more lecithin in their sunscreen formulations?
i've never made anything with lecithin and so i don't know how it feels on the skin and how it changes the formula (adds greasiness or stickiness or mattness...?)
How does this recipe look to you?
Oils 25%
Lecithin 25%
Water + sea emollient 20%
Zinc 25%
Extracts 5%
Will it be oily/dry/etc based on these ratios? |
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Wed Nov 05, 2014 3:06 pm |
If you like Pratima sunscreen; why would you not continue to use it?
I understand if your skin does not do well with this sunscreen.
Sunscreen is one of those products that is worth buying to ensure the sun protection is there. |
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Canadian with fair skin. 50+ years old sensitive and reactive. |
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Wed Nov 05, 2014 5:30 pm |
I'm going to mention the obligatory "Don't make your own sunscreen!" thing. But I made my own for years and never burned, so do whatever you want.
Firstly:
That. Is. WAY. Too. Much. Lecithin.
Tone it WAY down. Like maybe 10% at MOST. (I think 25% would make even the driest skin break out into a week long acne marathon. Lol.)
As far as the lecithin actually keeping that many oils emulsified....you'll just have to experiment. I have no idea.
If you don't mind unnatural products I always suggest using BTMS for sunscreens. I experimented with tons of emulsifiers when I was crafting sunscreens and I liked it the best by a wide margin.
Don't be afraid to use more than 25% zinc oxide, too! I used 31% for the longest time. 25 is just the maximum for commercially available products. When you're making it only for yourself the sky is the limit.
Btw, where's the preservative? :P Anyway, hth! |
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Wed Nov 05, 2014 7:00 pm |
| Thanks, Chlorophyll - so lecithin is greasy at such % and adds oiliness to the formula? i just can't imagine what it does/feels like on skin (i'm still waiting for my bottle to arrive). Are you saying it's more oily/greasy than oils? |
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Thu Nov 06, 2014 1:30 pm |
Yes. The liquid is very thick and grabby, like honey. But it also feels greasy when it settles on your face if that makes any sense, lol. You'll see when you start playing with it.  But definitely don't leave it out because it's great for your skin and gives the formula staying power.
Btw, it really is better to use an appropriately tested spf that you purchase. That way you know exactly what you're getting, especially if it has uva protection along with the uvb protection. But I went through a do-it-myself sunscreen phase too and I already know from experience that you just need to ride it out. Have fun! |
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Thu Nov 06, 2014 3:25 pm |
Thanks again! And re: buying sunscreens, i just don't see how i can go wrong with a DIY version if the zinc content is going to be 25% (so much higher than most anything commercially available out there that is still cosmetically elegant enough to actually be used daily).
And besides, i am going to use Red Raspberry seed oil (which is described as great for both UVB and UVA protection) and Lecithin (which i hear has some of the same properties as well), and Meadowfoam oil (super anti-oxidant) as my second oil, red and brown algae, Co Q10, Vit E and a few other goodies - so the ingredients seem even more potent and stable than most commercial physical sunscreens.
i just got my Lecithin and spread it on my hands to get a feel for the texture.. sitting with it now.. yes, it's sticky/tacky and i now see what you mean, so will only use 10% of it this time and tweak from there. |
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Thu Nov 06, 2014 3:27 pm |
| But i also wonder how Pratima sunscreens are actually made - the ingredients show only extracts and lecithin... maybe the list is incomplete? |
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Sun Jul 26, 2015 1:08 pm |
A blog on why she does not make her own sunscreen.
She makes a statement that is hard to blend zinc and titanium in a base.
No my blog but I thought I would post it here. The author is a cosmetic chemist.
Quote from http://theskiny.com/why-homemade-sunscreen-is-a-dumb-idea/
By Louise Hidinger, Ph.D.
Summer is now in full swing and with people shedding layers and flocking to the outdoors, sun protection is an absolute must. When it comes to topically applied sun protection products, there are two types of active ingredients, synthetic sunscreen chemicals, and physical blockers. Synthetic sunscreens are man-made chemicals that have the ability to absorb and disperse the energy of UV radiation, whereas physical blockers are minerals that block UV radiation from reaching the skin. Despite overwhelming evidence that synthetic sunscreens provide safe, effective protection against sun damage, many people remain wary of them and turn towards ‘natural’ sunblocks, which contain only minerals, namely, zinc oxide and/or titanium dioxide.
Zinc oxide and titanium dioxide are readily available from soap-making and craft suppliers, and recipes for making sunblock creams and lotions abound on the internet. With the popular notion that “natural is better”, people may be tempted to make their own sunblock lotion, or else purchase handmade sunblock creams and lotions, sold by independent crafters at farmers’ markets and craft fairs. The problem with these handmade sunblock products is that zinc oxide and titanium dioxide are actually very difficult to blend into a cream/lotion base, and once blended in, it is even more difficult to keep them evenly dispersed in the final product. The particles of zinc oxide and titanium dioxide have a strong tendency to clump together, and form aggregates. When applied to the skin, the resultant cream provides patchy coverage, covering only some areas of the skin while exposing other areas. This patchiness is not going to be visible to the naked eye, but it would be evident if the cream was tested in a laboratory for its SPF rating. Unfortunately, many of those who are whipping up sunblock creams at home are not going to go the trouble and expense of getting their products tested by a lab. Getting those tests done is extremely expensive and not within the budget of many independent crafters.
In order to adequately protect skin, a sunblock cream that contains only mineral oxides must provide even and thorough coverage. If you are thinking of purchasing a handmade sunblock cream, be sure to ask the maker if it has been tested to certify the SPF rating. And if you’re dead set on making your own sunblock, don’t rely on the supposed ratings given with recipes found on the internet. The only way to find out is to get the sunblock cream tested by a certifying laboratory to find out the SPF rating. (Chances are, the SPF rating will be a fraction of what it was expected to be.) Without laboratory testing, the only way to be sure it is providing adequate protection is if you can see a solid white coating on your skin!
Along with handmade sunblock creams containing mineral oxides, another natural-based trend is the use of coconut oil as a sunscreen lotion. Numerous “green living” websites and health bloggers tout coconut oil’s many benefits, including an average SPF of 10. Coconut oil provides only minimal sun protection, blocking about 20% of incoming UV radiation, and it does not provide broad spectrum protection against both UVA and UVB radiation. In comparison, both the Canadian Dermatology Association and the American Academy of Dermatology recommend use of a broad spectrum sunscreen with minimum SPF 30, which blocks 97% of incoming UV radiation. Coconut oil, and any other vegetable oil, does not contain chemicals that have the ability to absorb and disperse the energy of UV radiation. As a result, coconut oil cannot offer adequate sun protection.
When it comes to topical sun protection products, it really is worth it to buy a sunscreen from an established manufacturer that has been adequately tested, especially if it is for use on children, the elderly, or those with chronic skin conditions that require adequate sun protection. In any event, sunscreen products should always be combined with safe sun practices, including wearing a broad-brimmed hat, sunglasses, long-sleeved top and pants, staying in the shade, and limiting or avoiding activities during peak hours of daylight between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. |
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Canadian with fair skin. 50+ years old sensitive and reactive. |
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Sun Jul 26, 2015 2:19 pm |
| As far as I know, only uncoated zinc clumps together; coated one doesn't and is easier to work with. |
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Mon Jul 27, 2015 3:59 am |
It is easy for us to make home-made sunscreen; however, I have read that we need a homogenizer to ensure that zinc oxide to be evenly distributed in the final product; a high speed blender or mixer cannot do the job.
I have made serum and cream by myself; for sunscreen, I would rather buy one from well established companies instead of hand-made ones. |
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Fri Jul 31, 2015 2:22 pm |
Unless you have access to a homogenizer and are able to have your product tested for spf, you're being pennywise and poundfoolish to trust your skin to home made sunscreen.
Zinc "holes" allow UV rays to pass right on thru in poorly formulated sun protection products. You may think you're protected and stay out way longer than you should.
This article is interesting:
Written by Professional Cosmetic Chemist Amanda Foxon-Hill
The Trouble With Making Your Own Sunscreen
December 30, 2012
tags: beauty, chemicals, home made, skin cancer, SPF, sun, sunscreen, zinc oxide
by RealizeBeautyEd
Yes I have gone sunscreen crazy a little over the last week or so but it is for a good reason. It’s hot here in Australialand right now, hot, UV rich and waaaay too long between pay checks to go buy a $20 bottle of SPF 30 something for some people. That and the fact that there are a growing number of people for whom consumer SPF 30 plus sunscreen no longer cuts the mustard – too many chemicals, what about nanoparticles, too much synthetic perfume, allergic to the preservatives and so on.
So is home-made sunscreen possible?
I would strongly advise against trying and that’s not because I have shares in a sunscreen company because I don’t. It’s hard. Very hard. It’s expensive and hard and more importantly sunscreens are not just any old cosmetic, they might just save your skin.
The googlesphere is jam-packed full with recipes teaching you how to make your own homemade sunscreen. A typical recipe looks something like this:
To make 100g
25g of Zinc Oxide powder
50g Shea Butter
10g Jojoba Oil
2g beeswax
3g Cocoa Butter
10g Olive Butter.
Mix it all up and voila, your own sunscreen and as Zinc Oxide gives somewhere between 1-1.5 SPF unit per % added you have a product with an SPF of between 25-35. Amazeballs.
Only you probably don’t.
Having worked with zinc oxide sunscreens for the last three years with varying success (and lots of failures) I can assure you that it is a pig of an ingredient being both difficult to blend into a base and keep dispersed in said base. Being a strongly charged particle it tends to migrate towards its self and form big clumps at every available opportunity (think of it like a super charged magnet that it sitting just shy of the pulling ground of a complimentary magnetic item). It doesn’t take much before whoooooosh, it’s moved and attached its self to its neighbour to form a duo that is TWICE AS STRONG AS IT WAS WHEN ALOOOOOOONE. You can easily see what will happen next. It’s chemical carnage.
But you can’t necessarily see that and as I found to my detriment a couple of years ago, ignorance is bliss. Knowledge is pain.
I started off in 2009 by merrily mixing my zinc oxide into a base, not really aware of how bad it could get and enjoying each little win like I was some genius in a world filled with losers who just didn’t see what I saw. I wondered why everyone from within the industry shied away from this type of formula, why they refused to take on this work and why they looked at me with that “oh no you haven’t” look when I told them about my happy successes. I was happy because my creations had not yet been tested.
But then came the day of reckoning. I took them to the sunscreen testing lab and they failed.
I had various goes at testing my ‘babies’ SPF’s. Those that I expected would give me an easy 30 came in at a dismal 12, those that were a sure 15 were only a 7 and one that looked amazing and a sure-fire 35 ish read only 8 on the SPF scale. Epic failures all and what was worse was that this was all my own work. In the early days I wasn’t really doing this for customers, I was just teaching myself some bits and pieces. Trying it on for size and investing in my future. Well, at $700 ish a pop for the basic stuff sunscreen testing is NOT something that you want to keep getting wrong and each failure hit me like a brick. And keep in mind that by this stage I thought I was onto a good thing and knew what I was doing – I won’t even go there with the tens of formulation tweaks that I tried and subsequently failed at.
One thing that I realised early on was that just because you put zinc in, it doesn’t mean that it stays sitting in the formula in a useful place. A good sunscreen has to cover the skin evenly like a good coat of paint and unfortunately for zinc users, that chemical prefers to clump together giving you dense lumpy areas that you may or may not be able to see with the naked eye and then empty wasteland craters all of which can act as lenses for sunlight and actually magnify the rays as they come through.
badly clumped zinc sunscreen
Yes it is true, adding lots of zinc to your product COULD leave you with a hole infested sun magnifying glass rather than a nice, uniform sunscreen. Ouch!
Then came some progress. I read a bit more, observed a little closer and tweaked a few techniques until something started to stick. My reported SPF’s were still a bit lower than I wanted but we were on the right track, no zinc was cottage cheesing and the product was feeling good on the skin. But that was over one year and several thousands of dollars worth of investment in time, materials and testing later and that was BEFORE we started trying to change preservative systems, add different actives, change emulsifiers and add perfumes. Another thing I’ve learned with zinc only sunscreens is that every little change is a big deal and can make a big difference. And that’s where I’m up to today with a few ideas that work and a few that didn’t.
I’m not saying that I’m a genius and if I can’t do it you must be made to think that you can, honestly I’m not. What I am saying that even with all of my friends in the right places, chemical resources, laboratory equipment and analytical testing experience I still stuffed up a lot before I started to make progress and surely that has to count for something. I was lucky in as much as nobody was risking their lives with these failed formulations, the only thing being risked was my money at that stage and thankfully that is replaceable. Our health isn’t always so easy to claw back.
The trouble with making your own sunscreen is that while it looks ever-so-easy from the ingredients list in reality there is a whole chemical dance that has to go on to get these things singing. Now you may just hit the jackpot and come up with a beauty but it is more likely that you won’t so please, please, please be careful and if this is something that you are likely to dish out to babies, your children or your elderly relatives do consider investing in at least one proper SPF test, just to be on the safe side.
Home made sunscreen? In my eyes it is just not worth it unless your home made sunscreen is a nice big hat or burquini "
https://realizebeauty.wordpress.com/2012/12/30/the-trouble-with-making-your-own-sunscreen/ |
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✪ My go-to products: MyFawnie.BigCartel.com ✪ |
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