DIY Skincare: How I Put Together My Formulations

I write so you share. Thank you.

This  entry will explore what I do to put together my formulations when it comes to DIY skincare.

I’m fairly new to this world but learning really quickly. I’m also devoted to making really good skincare that my whole family (and friends) can use, so I give my best when formulating, even though I’m not always 100% sure of what I’m doing!

It’s about improving over time and that’s something that happens naturally.

There’s also a little ‘secret’ to my formulations: spirituality and an Awakened Mind. When I formulate there’s ‘divinity’ coming through and setting within the final product. As an Awakened Mind this is a very natural process and, in fact, it is really what makes my DIY formulas work beautifully because they heal beyond the surface.

I might write a post about this some other time. For now, I’ll list the things I do here before I get started with a product. This will also serve me as a reminder, so let’s get started.

Foundation

Foundation will be around 50 to 80% of the total formula.

Here’s what goes into products:

  • Water – Distilled water, floral water (hydrosols), aloe vera leaf gel, etc
  • Oil – Rosehip oil, Sweet Almond oil, Avocado oil, etc
  • Butter/Fat – Shea butter (love it!), Cocoa butter, Coconut oil, etc
  • Wax – Beeswax, Candelilla Wax

Layers

  • Foundation ingredients – between 50% and 80% of the total product (water, oil, butter/fat, wax)
  • Active botanicals – up to 10% of the product (medicinal and therapeutic plants [powdered herbs, tinctures, macerations, glycerites])
  • Functional ingredients (sunflower lecithin, pumice, glycerin)
  • Additives – 10% of less of the total product (citric acid, vitamin E, PH modifier, etc). Preservatives are usually used at around 1% of the total.
  • Aromaceuticals and aromas (essential oils at 0.1 to 3% of the total product, vanilla extract, etc)
  • Aesthetics (flowers, dried fruit, petals, etc)

Working backwards (adding what I know needs adding at the percentages I know need adding) helps me balance the rest of the ingredients (so, I would write down first the preservative at the right percentage, the Vitamine E [tocopherol] at the right percentage if the product has oils, any aromaceuticals at the right percentage, etc which makes then easier for me to ‘fill in’ the rest of the ingredients if that makes sense). Then, depending on the thickness of the product I’m making I know that I have a certain percentage of water and oil which makes it easier for me to calculate the ingredients. For example, a lotion texture would have 23% oils (oil phase) and around 74% water/hydrosols (water phase). The rest has to be added within the cool down phase. All these things make it easier to ‘build’ my formulation calculations.

Calculations

I prepare my formulations in %. Percentage has to add up to 100% always. I have a fantastic .xls file that makes all the calculations for me. All I have to do is tell ‘it’ how many grams/oz of the product I want to end up with as well as the percentage of each particular ingredient. The file then calculates for me how many gr/oz of each ingredient I have to add in order to end up with the exact amount (gr/oz) I inserted at the very beginning (it is really cool).

If I already have a formula in gr/oz instead of percentages but I want to make a different amount of product the best thing then would be to turn the weight into percentages: number of grams (per ingredient) x 100 divided by total grams. Now I can make an exact replica of the formula in any amount I like.

Formulating

  1. What type of product am I making? (moisturiser cream, facial toner, body butter, lip balm, etc)
  2. What’s the purpose? Properties (soothing, moisturising, anti-ageing, refreshing, cleanser, super-food, makeup remover etc)**
  3. What is the base formula? (decide skinfeel function of the product> oil-based, water-based, emulsion)
  4.  Choose the active botanicals (which herbs and ‘form’ of herbs [macerations, infusions, tinctures, etc]
  5. Additives I want (antioxidant, preservative, etc)
  6. Aromaceuticals/aromas I want to add (essential oils or fragrances)
  7. Finishing the look of the product

**To take into consideration gender, age, purpose of the product, mood of the product (uplifting, sensual, soothing, etc), therapeutic value (anti-acne, for dry skin, etc), specificity (allergies, sports, etc)

That’s it more or less.

I learn as I go along – I’m quite new to DIY formulating but I know I’ll get better and better over time.

Let me know if you have any tips, questions or simply would like to say hello!

Resources from Oh Mighty Health:

Courses I Recommend from Personal Experience:

Patri Hernandez, CHC, Certified Health Coach & Certified Organic Skincare Alchemist
One day, during my menopausal rollercoaster, I had a spiritual awakening that connected me so deeply with nature, I thought I might sprout leaves. Suddenly, natural ingredients became my obsession—like an addiction, really. My body was magnetically drawn to them, and it wasn’t long before I found myself knee-deep in essential oils, herbs, and all things organic.

From there, it was a slippery slope (a delightfully scented one) into organic skincare formulation. The intoxicating aroma of essential oils, the thrill of crafting something pure with my own hands—I was hooked. It wasn’t enough to just use these natural wonders; I had to create them, surround myself with them. Now, I live on a piece of land where I grow my own organic fruits and vegetables (when the weather isn’t playing tricks on me), and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

When people ask what I do, I like to think about the view from my window—the endless sea—and say, “I live the life dreamers dream of.” It's All about the richness of living in harmony with nature. Watching others turn to natural ingredients because of something I shared with them—that’s my proudest achievement.

Oh, and just to keep things interesting, I’m also a bit of a nerd. I love computers, software, and all the techy stuff that seems like it wouldn’t fit with my earth-loving, oil-sniffing lifestyle. But hey, who says you can’t have the best of both worlds?

My ultimate goal? To help people kick the commercial product habit and embrace the natural, the organic, the truly nourishing. Life’s too short to settle for anything less.

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