The Formulation Studio

Goodbye SCS Formulate 2021 see you next year!

We were so happy to have had the opportunity to be at SCS Formulate 2021 this year!

It was lovely seeing everyone again face to face and hearing the interesting talks.

Looking forward to next year’s one and I hope to see everyone there!

- The Formulation Studio

Ingredient of the month – Fermented Rice Water

The process of fermentation has been practiced for thousands of years by a multitude of cultures, ranging from Ancient Egypt to the Ancient Romans. The process helped them, not only preserve their food but its increase its nutritional value. So much so, that we have continued this fermentation legacy to this day with products such a kombucha and sourkraut, to name a few.

However, fermentation is not limited solely to consumable products. Its nutritional properties are equally beneficial for our skin and hair. A great example of this is, are the women of the Huangluo village situated in the remote southern province of China, Guangxi. The women of the village are renowned for their luscious long black hair. Their secret to keeping their hair this long (often more than 2 metres) whilst also maintaining its healthy and shiny dark colour, is rinsing it in fermented rice water.

The people at Phenbiox (distributed by Gemro in the UK), wanted to investigate the properties of fermentation on rice water and explore its benefits. Their extensive research shows how the use of fermented rice water leads to a substantial increase in moisture retention for hair when compared to a basic washing formulation. Furthermore, Phenbiox didn’t limit themselves to only rice water. They have a platitude of fermented ingredients such as Fermented Aloe Verra, Fermented Rose Petals, Fermented Sage, etc…

The Formulation Studio is incredibly excited to use these ingredients in future formulations and we will definitely keep you posted when we do!

- The Formulation Studio

TFS favourite’s science paper this month!



Dr. Roger L McMullen and his team at Ashland explored how different types of cationic guar interacts with hair. Several cationic guar variants with different Molecular Weights (MW) and Charge Densities (CD) were studied.

Dr. McMullen collected enterokinetic permeability data using streaming potential and studied conditioning on hair by combing analysis. The results indicate that MW influences the thickness of the deposited guar layer while higher CD determines conditioning by reducing the combing force. The study additionally took on another layer and investigated cationic guar behaviour on different types of hair.

Congrats Roger and the team for such educational and insightful study! We enjoy working with Ashland’s cationic guars at TFS.

(Source Investigation of the interactions of cationic guar with human hair by electrokinetic analysis, Roger L. Mcmullen 2021)

- The Formulation Studio

Link:

(https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/ics.12704)

onlinelibrary.wiley.com

Product of The Month - SUPER 16 by OSKIA

OSKIA is a brand we have admired for some time and one of our favourite products is their SUPER 16 facial serum. This serum boasts a mixture of 16 super nutrients and bio-actives that have been carefully formulated and blended. The main ingredients include the ground-breaking Retinol, and a special ingredient derived from Indian Babchi Seeds, Bakuchiol. This ingredient is truly amazing and is said to reverse already present signs of aging!

It is just a beautifully thought-out product, and it is among one of our favourites at the studio 😊

- The Formulation Studio

Ingredient of The Month - Micromulse® LB

Our friends at Alchemy Ingredients (alchemy-ingredients.com) have created a stunning and ground-breaking ingredient, Micromulse® LB.

Micromulse® LB helps in the formulation of Micellar Oils, however, what makes it truly special is its ability to keep the formulations transparent. Micromulse® LB is also made from 100% natural ingredients and has been used in Bath Oils, Hair Oils, Massage Masks, and many more products! At the Formulation Studio, we've worked with it and love the textures we’ve created.
We can’t wait to see what other products will feature Micromulse LB!

- The Formulation Studio