Does anyone know of aSerum recipe that uses Propylene Glycol
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Wed Feb 01, 2012 11:28 pm

I want to use Propylene Glycol as my main active ingredient for an anti-aging serum, however, I don't know what other ingredients I would need to use. Does anyone have any suggestions? And if so, could you also provide the amounts to use of each product used?

I am very new to this and all the help you can provide will be greatly appreciated.

Thank you,

Joy

free skin care · Thu Feb 02, 2012 7:00 am

I just bought a bottle of propylene glycol, to see if it's any use as an alternative for alcohol as a solvent for herb material. So I've looked it up, understand that apart from its properties as a solvent it is also a product penetration enhancer and has its use as a preservative. But I didn't know it has anti aging properties as such.
From what I understand, it's used in very small amounts as a functional agent to dissolve, enhance and liquify other ingredients, and it has humectant properties a bit similar to glycerin. I would not, though, simply interchange it with glycerin in any recipe since it can be irritating on skin so you'd better not use large amounts of it in any recipe.

I intend to use it, in small amounts, in a serum with vitamin A to see if it enhances the effects because it should make the stuff penetrate into the skin more easily. But I will try that out on a small patch first, because it can be an irritant, especially on eczema prone skin.

Thu Feb 02, 2012 10:10 am

Lotusesther wrote:

I just bought a bottle of propylene glycol, to see if it's any use as an alternative for alcohol as a solvent for herb material. So I've looked it up, understand that apart from its properties as a solvent it is also a product penetration enhancer and has its use as a preservative. But I didn't know it has anti aging properties as such.
From what I understand, it's used in very small amounts as a functional agent to dissolve, enhance and liquify other ingredients, and it has humectant properties a bit similar to glycerin. I would not, though, simply interchange it with glycerin in any recipe since it can be irritating on skin so you'd better not use large amounts of it in any recipe.

I intend to use it, in small amounts, in a serum with vitamin A to see if it enhances the effects because it should make the stuff penetrate into the skin more easily. But I will try that out on a small patch first, because it can be an irritant, especially on eczema prone skin.

Thank you for the information, I will definitely take it into consideration.

Wed Feb 08, 2012 5:04 pm

Hi Joy-
I use Propylene Glycol in my DIY Vitamin C serum and it works great for me. I make a small batch every week (mostly to ensure the potency of the vitamin C) using 1/4 tsp L-Ascorbic Acid (Vitamin C crystals- The brand I use is "Solgar" and I purchase it from Whole Foods), 5ml Distilled water, and 5ml Propylene Glycol

xoxo!
Kitten

Wed Feb 08, 2012 6:30 pm

KittenInTheMitten wrote:

Hi Joy-
I use Propylene Glycol in my DIY Vitamin C serum and it works great for me. I make a small batch every week (mostly to ensure the potency of the vitamin C) using 1/4 tsp L-Ascorbic Acid (Vitamin C crystals- The brand I use is "Solgar" and I purchase it from Whole Foods), 5ml Distilled water, and 5ml Propylene Glycol

xoxo!
Kitten

Thank you Kitten, I will give that a try! I'm just getting started in DIY so that will be my first "experiment". Very Happy

Joy

Thu Feb 09, 2012 12:04 am

That's great! I'm pretty new to the DIY thing too, but I love the feeling I get when mixing up all those things.. I feel like a mad scientist. My sister even gave me her leftover beakers and test tubes from her chemistry lab (I don't really use them, but surround myself with them when I'm making my face stuff so I "look the part", heh. It's all props really).

If you do end up doing the Vitamin C Serum, one thing I learned to do was heat up the distilled water before adding it to the mixture. The vitamin C crystals will mix better. I use a dark blue bottle (or you can use amber as well, just as long as it offers some protection from the light. From my understanding, light is not good for the serum), and once I add all my ingredients, including the heated up distilled water, I gently shake the mixture and swirl it around. I find I have to do that several times over the course of 24 hours to get everything to dissolve properly.

Have fun with it... and welcome into the secret society of mad scientists Bad Grin

xoxo!
Kitten

free skin care · Tue Feb 14, 2012 1:08 pm

My first post here!

I am curious as to why anyone would want to use propylene glycol in a DIY serum. Isn't that basically antifreeze and toxic?

I understand that it is widely used in medications and cosmetics, but I always understood the whole DIY choice to be out of concern for using natural alternatives that aren't toxic.

My question is: Does propylene glycol function in such a way that no natural product will fulfill that function?

free skin care · Tue Feb 14, 2012 2:36 pm

Propylene glycol is also used in foodstuffs, so it's very well tested and considered safe.

It can function as an alternative for glycerine as a humectant, but it also works as a penetration enhancer so probably the other actives in whatever you use it in will be more effective. Also, interesting to me, as a solvent/extractor it could be an alternative to alcohol, which I find drying. And last, it has a mild preservative function. So far I have not found another substance that combines these functions so I am just giving it a try.

free skin care · Tue Feb 14, 2012 2:49 pm

Lotusesther wrote:

Propylene glycol is also used in foodstuffs, so it's very well tested and considered safe.

It can function as an alternative for glycerine as a humectant, but it also works as a penetration enhancer so probably the other actives in whatever you use it in will be more effective. Also, interesting to me, as a solvent/extractor it could be an alternative to alcohol, which I find drying. And last, it has a mild preservative function. So far I have not found another substance that combines these functions so I am just giving it a try.

Thank you for your response! I have been reading up on this topic this afternoon, and have learned the purpose and effectiveness of PG. I haven't found one natural ingredient that would do all that PG does, so I can see its usefulness.

free skin care · Mon Feb 20, 2012 12:35 pm

KittenInTheMitten wrote:

Hi Joy-
I use Propylene Glycol in my DIY Vitamin C serum and it works great for me. I make a small batch every week (mostly to ensure the potency of the vitamin C) using 1/4 tsp L-Ascorbic Acid (Vitamin C crystals- The brand I use is "Solgar" and I purchase it from Whole Foods), 5ml Distilled water, and 5ml Propylene Glycol

xoxo!
Kitten

I've never heard of using Vit C from the grocery store, in cosmetic formulations. Is that cool? I have always ordered cosmetic grade Vit C. Sure would be easier to get it at Whole Foods! Could some of the more seasoned DIY folks speak to this?

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