Dec 2014 – There are a few important ratios I’ve come to rely on particularly in the past few months or so when creating my most recent batches of DIY mixes. As smart as you guys are, I’m sure you’ve already noticed these before though. 😀
The one you should be most familiar with is the ratio of emulsifier to thickener. I’ve experimented with all kinds of percentages and ratios, as you can tell from the recipes posted here.
However, the one which seems to be the most consistent is one dealing with using an emulsifier at 6% or less.
#1: If you use 6% BTMS or less, use half that percentage for your thickener to make a thicker cream
For example, for a nice stable cream:
EMULSIFIER THICKENER
6% BTMS-50/BTMS-25 to 3% Cetyl / Behenyl Alcohol
5% BTMS-50/BTMS-25 to 2.5% Cetyl / Behenyl Alcohol
4% BTMS-50/BTMS-25 to 2% Cetyl / Behenyl Alcohol
UPDATE: I don’t use traditional waxy thickeners that much at all anymore. If you want your mix to be thicker, a combination of butters, emulsifiers and/or polymers work well. The method prevents the ‘soaping effect’ from happening where tons of white cream stays atop the hair for an extended amount of time until it absorbs. The thickness and stability of your DIY product will increase if you also use butters and waxes in those recipes. However, be wary of a possible “draggy” feeling if you use too much wax (beeswax, candelilla wax, sunflower wax, etc)
Once you use a different emulsifier, like Olivem1000, these values may or may not work. Olivem1000 is exceedingly good at making gorgeous creams. It creates them all by itself. So, while you can experiment with Olivem1000, just know that the tip above may cause your DIY mix to be too thick or too heavy.
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#2: Use an emulsifier at 25% of your oil phase
Update: This tip may be useful for more traditional, regular emulsifiers. New and improved emulsifiers don’t necessarily need this tip in order to work well. This is a tip I thought only worked well when using Polawax as the emulsifier. However, it works pretty well for BTMS too. For example, for a nice stable cream your oil phase may look like this:
OIL PHASE
10% Sweet Almond oil
5% Shea Butter
3% Macadamia nut oil
2% Alkyl Esters
===============
20% TOTAL
The mix is made up of 20% oil-soluble ingredients.
Now, apply tip #2 where you use 25% of the oil phase:
20% x 25% = _________
0.20 x 0.25 = 0.05
0.05 x 100 = 5% (multiplying by 100 tells you the final percent number)
(ie 25% of 20% is 5%)
SO,
If your oil phase is 20%, your emulsifier amount should be at least 5% to make a nice stable cream.
Let’s try it again with different amounts. For example:
OIL PHASE
4% Avocado oil
3% Olive oil
3% Cera Bellina
2% Cocoa butter
2% Caprylic Capric Triglycerides
================
14% TOTAL
The mix is made up for 14% oil-soluble ingredients.
Now, apply tip #2 where you use 25% of the oil phase:
14% x 25% = ___________
0.14 x 0.25 = 0.035
0.035 x 100 = 3.5% of BTMS
(ie 25% of 14% is 3.5%)
But wait! 3.5%? Isn’t that too low?? Here’s where it gets tricky. 3.5% is not too low when you’re using BTMS-50, although your mix may be more liquidy. But certainly, I’d never use 3.5% of Polawax or Olivem1000, or regular e-wax unless I was also going to be using a thickener (like cetyl alcohol) with it.
HOWEVER, look at the recipe again. You see where it’s using “Cera Bellina” and “Cocoa butter”? Cera bellina is a modified version of Beeswax. So it will help (even a little bit) with keeping the mix together. Cocoa butter as well helps to thicken and stabilize your DIY mix.
Thus, you can end up with a very good cream even with using 3.5% BTMS.
#3: If your entire OIL PHASE will equal less than 15%, using butters and other thickening ingredients helps give it a nice, thick, substantial feel
For example, if you want a nice cream without using a high percentage of oils, using butters and heavier liquids can give it to you:
OILS PHASE
3% Castor Oil
4% Cocoa Butter
3% Kokum Butter
2% Shea oil (or butter)
==================
12% TOTAL
This recipe above is only made up of 12% oils/butters. But you will get a thicker cream because you used harder butters like Cocoa and Kokum.
Of course you already know how great Cocoa butter is! Kokum butter is naturally hard and brittle. Although it remains hard at room temperature, it melts slightly upon contact with the skin. It adds stability to mixes and whipped butters and is often used as a slight harder substitute for the aromatic Cocoa butter.
A recipe using both Kokum and Cocoa butters will certainly be thicker than if you made the same recipe using light oils like Hazelnut oil, Macadamia nut oil, Kukui Nut oil and Sunflower oil.
And what about that 12% oil phase? If you’re looking for a starting place for how much emulsifier to use, try the 25% rule mentioned earlier:
12% x 25% = _________
0.12 x 0.25 = 0.03
0.03 x 100 = 3%
So you’ll need at least 3% BTMS. Remember what I wrote earlier about BTMS and creams in the 1st TIP above? If you want a nice cream and your BTMS amount is less than 6%, add a thickener (cetyl alchol, stearyl alcohol, behenyl alcohol). The thickener should be AT LEAST half the percentage of your BTMS amount.
Thus:
3% BTMS to 1.5% Cetyl / Behenyl alcohol
So now let’s plug that into the recipe:
OILS PHASE
3% Castor Oil
4% Cocoa Butter
3% Kokum Butter
2% Shea oil (or butter)
3% BTMS
1.5% Cetyl alcohol
If you’ve seen arcamp83’s famous detangling leave-in she made with BTMS, she used the exact same percentage of BTMS and Cetyl alcohol. That’s certainly fine too if you want to make sure the mix remains stable.
#4: Good lotions and lotion-type hair milks contain AT LEAST 70% water, aloe vera juice or tea
You should already be familiar with this information. To make a lotion, make sure your DIY mix contains at least 70% water, aloe vera juice, or tea. So you can literally start here:
70% water(s) to 29% other stuff to 1% preservative
However you put the recipe together, it’s a good idea to have at least 70% water/aloe/tea. In addition, if you want it to be a true lotiony product, try to skip thicker butters OR use very small percentages of them.
#5: Your amount of oils CAN be too high for the amount of emulsifier you’ve chosen to use
It’s true the oil phase can be too high for the percentage of emulsifier you’ve chosen to use. Some emulsifiers are meant for oil-in-water emulsifiers (more water than oil), or water-in-oil emulsifiers (more oil than water). However, if you simply haven’t used enough of the emulsifier you’ve chosen, the mix is going to separate even if you used the right emulsifier.
For example, check out this recipe:
WATERS
—————–
72% water
OILS
—————–
10% shea butter
15% olive oil
2% BTMS
COOL DOWN
—————–
1% preservative
The emulsifier, BTMS, is only used at 2% in a recipe made up of 25% oils. Notice that we’re using BTMS by itself with no additional thickener.
This emulsion may not form at all, or it may separate within a few days because 2% may be too low for the oil amount. There is no thickener or gum (guar gum, xanthan gum) to help stabilize the mix either.
Remember TIP #2 about using your emulsifier at 25% of your oil phase? Let’s find out how much emulsifier is a good amount for this recipe.
OILS
15% shea butter
10% olive oil
==============
25% TOTAL
25% x 25% = ________
0.25 x 0.25 = 0.0625
6.25% BTMS
6.25% is nice if you’ve using BTMS as the only emulsifier. In addition, you’ve reached the magic BTMS threshold of 6%. For me, this usually means I can just use 6% and come out with a nice emulsion. Depending on the oils/butters I’ve chosen to use, it’ll either be thick or lotion-like.
These are just a few of the ratios I’ve noticed, especially in the past few months. Don’t be alarmed, however, if you see a recipe posted at curlytea.com which doesn’t quite fit these “rules”. Chances are there is some additional ingredient (guar gum, xanthan gum, cera bellina, etc) or some process which made it a successful mix.
What about you? Have you experimented with the ratios of your mixes? What have you found to be the best ratio of oils to liquids? Have you also found that using butters help to stabilize your DIY mixes?
Keep experimenting to find out your perfect go-to ratios to make the best DIY recipes you can make!
@curlyteaconsult