Episode 302 - Can you dilute your products to make them last longer?

Perry Romanowski (0:01)

Hi, I'm Perry, and you're listening to The Beauty Brains.

Hello, and welcome to The Beauty Brains, a show where real cosmetic chemists answer your beauty product questions and give you an insider's look at the cosmetic industry. This is episode 302 I'm your host, Perry Romanowski, and with me today is the world's most traveling cosmetic chemist, at least in the car, Valerie George. Hello, Valerie.

Valerie George (0:36)

Hi, Perry.

Perry Romanowski (0:38)

Valerie, how many miles do you think you put on your car this year? It's gotta be 20,000.

Valerie George (0:44)

A lot, a lot. Well, now that I'm working for myself, and I took some time off due to all the stuff that I had going on medically earlier this year, we've just been on the go, and we've put a lot of miles on the thing, but I'm getting to see the United States, so that's pretty exciting.

Perry Romanowski (1:01)

Very cool, and you know what else is cool? The questions we're covering on today's show. Because on today's show, we're gonna give you our take on the environmental working group, and we're gonna talk about the one skin moisturizing products, too.

Also, we're gonna answer whether you can find less expensive versions of expensive shampoos and conditioners. We are gonna talk about whether you can dilute a conditioner with water to make it thinner, what in a Levon conditioner makes hair crunchy, and whether skin moisturizers or cosmetics in general have to be sterile. But first, some chitchat. So you're hitting the road tomorrow. Nice long road trip for you.

You're heading out to some show?

Valerie George (1:48)

I am. So I am exhibiting at the Handcrafted Soap and Cosmetics Guild, which is an organization dedicated to educating people about the art and science of making soap and other products. So my company, Simply Ingredients, is going to be there telling people about my ingredients and why I think they're so special and why they should shop from me.

Perry Romanowski (2:12)

Well, that sounds like fun. Now, what I always loved about trade shows is the giveaways, especially when they had little candy bars.

So do you got a little giveaway you're giving?

Valerie George (2:21)

You know, I will, now that you mention it, I actually am giving away some strawberry tea diffusers. They look like little strawberries, but you put your tea in them. Inside a cup and diffuse your tea. They have my company logo on them.

Or you can make your own glycerides with them if you want to make your own botanical extracts or whatever. So that's kind of my giveaway.

Perry Romanowski (2:46)

So the botanical extract, you just make that by going in your garden, cutting up some plants and putting it in this tea steamer?

Valerie George (2:53)

And steeping it in glycerin or propane vial. That's how they make extracts. Some companies make extracts for other brands, including gemstone extracts.

Perry Romanowski (3:05)

Gem, what?

So let me get this. So you take a ruby or a diamond and you put it in water, boil it up and take the extract? Is that what they're?

Valerie George (3:13)

Exactly, yeah. So we've seen at least in this part of the world, we see a lot of ingredient trends and stuff like that popping up. And one thing that I'm seeing popping up over and over again is gemstone cosmetics. And this is basically where these companies are selling extracts from rubies, from opals, from pearls. And you're thinking, gosh, how could you make an extract from gemstones? And literally, they just take whatever you're looking to extract and soak it in something.

And the thing that they soaked it in the liquid is what is sold to you as the extract.

Perry Romanowski (3:59)

And so you just get, what, an essence of ruby?

Valerie George (4:02)

Yeah, you know, it's very interesting, and our minds were blown a little bit when we were learning more about it, but it's a thing.

Perry Romanowski (4:13)

Well, my mind is blown. I'm not sure if you're getting much benefit from that, but hey, you know, it's an interesting sounding ingredient.

Valerie George (4:22)

Yeah, that's for sure.

Perry Romanowski (4:24)

All right, are we ready to head in for some beauty science news?

Valerie George (4:28)

Yeah, let's head over to Beauty Science News.

Perry Romanowski (4:36)

There is something that happens every year, and it just happened this year, sadly. The Environmental Working Group has released its 2022 Guide to Sunscreens, and I say sadly, because if you go to Google and you type sunscreen, the Environmental Working Group is the first thing that comes up. They have good search engine optimization, clearly.