Dr. Kassy's face firming and eye cream
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free skin care · Sun Feb 20, 2011 12:49 am

Hi guys:)

The thread is pretty long and havent gone through it properly yet but i want to make a vitamin c serum. The recipe i want to make has viterol a in it. A quick google search turned up a cream. Is this available in a serum for making the vitamin c serum? And where are you guys getting yours from?

Thankyou

Caroline

Sun Feb 27, 2011 3:43 pm

carolb69 wrote:

Hi guys:)

The thread is pretty long and havent gone through it properly yet but i want to make a vitamin c serum. The recipe i want to make has viterol a in it. A quick google search turned up a cream. Is this available in a serum for making the vitamin c serum? And where are you guys getting yours from?

Thankyou

Caroline

Hi Caroline, If I am remembering it correctly, I think that recipe used the Viterol A Lotion: http://www.essentialdayspa.com/ds-laboratories-viterol-a-p_7304.htm

HTS. Smile

free skin care · Fri Mar 04, 2011 2:52 am

Thanks Havana for the info Very Happy

Thu Apr 07, 2011 6:22 am

I made my very first serum yesterday using what I had available.
I'm in uk and couldn't get SKB so used ultramarine. I also used anti oxidant booster instead of Vit E. I think I botched it as had to heat after final mixing to get everything to go together. I did just under 10 secs in microwave. Would that have ruined the serum nd should I start again.
It feels good on my skin but I am worried that I ruined the C content. Confused

Sat Jun 11, 2011 3:41 am

Hi everyone,

A friend introduced me to EDS a few weeks ago and I've been reading up on all of these wonderful DIY Vitamin C serums since then. It can sure be overwhelming at times! I decided to try out the ever popular: Kassy's 15% Vitamin C, E + FA Serum with Jojoba.

I have an issue though. It seems as if I've run into the flaky/non-dissolving problem with the Ferulic Acid. At least, I think it's the Ferulic Acid that's causing it. I purchased my FA from Bulk Actives. Upon inspection, the FA looks to be flaky but I didn't touch it with my fingers so I can't say for sure. I thought I mixed it fairly well with the vodka. It looked milky thin in texture. I didn't stir it with my plastic stirring rod for very long though (maybe 3 minutes..?).

Questions:
1. Where do you contributors buy your Ferulic Acid from and is it possible to see a picture/note the texture?
2. What does everyone use to stir? I was sitting there stirring with a plastic stirring rod as if I were a human Kitchen Aid stand mixer. That became tiring fairly quickly. I just can't imagine doing that for an hour as some of you apparently have! Is that what this takes?? Crying or Very sad

I hope not...!

Thanks everyone!!

P.S. I tried to include a bunch of pictures I took to reference for this post but apparently, EDS doesn't allow new members to post pics! Darn.

Mon Jul 18, 2011 8:48 pm

Anti-Oxidant Booster (3 squirts)
Every Lipid Serum (ELS) (5 squirts)

I'm new and extremely apologetic if this has been discussed somewhere else. What is meant by these two terms?

Thanks!

free skin care · Tue Jul 19, 2011 5:16 am

pinkpomplemousse wrote:

Anti-Oxidant Booster (3 squirts)
Every Lipid Serum (ELS) (5 squirts)

I'm new and extremely apologetic if this has been discussed somewhere else. What is meant by these two terms?

Thanks!

Hello and welcome pinkpomplemousse! wave

Those are Skinactives' products I believe.

http://www.skinactives.com/Antioxidant-Booster.html
http://www.skinactives.com/ELS-Serum-Every-Lipid-Serum-with-Ceramide.html

Hths! Smile

Wed Dec 07, 2011 9:29 am

Hi,

I'm new to EDS however I've been reading you guys for a while. Today I tried my first batch of c+e serum and used the following ingredients & measurements based on Kassy's c+e+jojoba and carekates original recipe. However the oils do not seem to blend with the water...I'm a bit bummed cause I don't know where it went wrong:

1/2 tsp L-AA
1 tsp Jojoba Oil
1 tsp Argan Oil
3 tsp H2O
1/4 tsp Vitamin E Oil
1/4 tsp Glycerin
1/4 tsp Witch Hazel

Unfortunately I don't have access to ferulic acid or the SKB and really want to keep the jojoba and argan oils in the concoction as they seem to work wonders for my acne prone, milia, black head dry/oily/sensitive skin. Also I know the oils are 100% pure as I bought them at a chemist and used a syringe to measure out all the liquids..

I'd really appreciate some help.¿maybe just shaking the bottle before applying?

Wed Dec 07, 2011 9:30 am

Hi,

I'm new to EDS however I've been reading you guys for a while. Today I tried my first batch of c+e serum and used the following ingredients & measurements based on Kassy's c+e+jojoba and carekates original recipe. However the oils do not seem to blend with the water...I'm a bit bummed cause I don't know where it went wrong:

1/2 tsp L-AA
1 tsp Jojoba Oil
1 tsp Argan Oil
3 tsp H2O
1/4 tsp Vitamin E Oil
1/4 tsp Glycerin
1/4 tsp Witch Hazel

Unfortunately I don't have access to ferulic acid or the SKB and really want to keep the jojoba and argan oils in the concoction as they seem to work wonders for my acne prone, milia, black head dry/oily/sensitive skin. Also I know the oils are 100% pure as I bought them at a chemist and used a syringe to measure out all the liquids..

I'd really appreciate some help.¿maybe just shaking the bottle before applying?

free skin care · Wed Dec 07, 2011 10:15 am

nani wrote:

Hi,

I'm new to EDS however I've been reading you guys for a while. Today I tried my first batch of c+e serum and used the following ingredients & measurements based on Kassy's c+e+jojoba and carekates original recipe. However the oils do not seem to blend with the water...I'm a bit bummed cause I don't know where it went wrong:

1/2 tsp L-AA
1 tsp Jojoba Oil
1 tsp Argan Oil
3 tsp H2O
1/4 tsp Vitamin E Oil
1/4 tsp Glycerin
1/4 tsp Witch Hazel

Unfortunately I don't have access to ferulic acid or the SKB and really want to keep the jojoba and argan oils in the concoction as they seem to work wonders for my acne prone, milia, black head dry/oily/sensitive skin. Also I know the oils are 100% pure as I bought them at a chemist and used a syringe to measure out all the liquids..

I'd really appreciate some help.¿maybe just shaking the bottle before applying?

Try this instead:

15% VITAMIN C SERUM WITH Jojoba & Argan Oil

- 15% LAA
- .5% Argan Oil
- 1% Jojoba Oil
- 1% Polysorbate 80
- .5% Preservative (Optiphen works nicely in acidic formulas!)
- 82% Distilled Water

*IF* you don't have Polysorbate 80, or another true emulsifier on hand, just use a 1/2 tsp of the most basic cream/lotion you have on hand...

ETA: Without an emulsifier, the oil & water will continue to separate.

Wed Dec 07, 2011 10:47 am

Kassy_A wrote:

Try this instead:

15% VITAMIN C SERUM WITH Jojoba & Argan Oil

- 15% LAA
- .5% Argan Oil
- 1% Jojoba Oil
- 1% Polysorbate 80
- .5% Preservative (Optiphen works nicely in acidic formulas!)
- 82% Distilled Water

*IF* you don't have Polysorbate 80, or another true emulsifier on hand, just use a 1/2 tsp of the most basic cream/lotion you have on hand...

ETA: Without an emulsifier, the oil & water will continue to separate.

Hi kass and THANK YOU!!! could I use aloe gel as an emulsifier, also is there any natural preservative I could use ie. Tea tree oil? I live in Spain and unfortunately the ferulic acid, SKB, and polysorbate 80 are not sold to the public..I was at the chemist this morning and asked for all those ingredients... They actually asked if I was using it for anything other than personal use and looked at me as if I were crazy or something...
Wink

free skin care · Wed Dec 07, 2011 12:20 pm

nani wrote:

Hi kass and THANK YOU!!! could I use aloe gel as an emulsifier, also is there any natural preservative I could use ie. Tea tree oil? I live in Spain and unfortunately the ferulic acid, SKB, and polysorbate 80 are not sold to the public..I was at the chemist this morning and asked for all those ingredients... They actually asked if I was using it for anything other than personal use and looked at me as if I were crazy or something...
Wink

If you are talking about a prepared aloe gel that you get from the store then yes, it will probably work.. Fresh aloe from a plant will NOT work, and just leave you with a sticky mess..(Forget the 'tea trea oil')

Grapefruit extract is considered a 'natural' preservative, if you can get a hold of it..

In general, if the necessary products for completely doing it yourself aren't available to you, there's nothing wrong with a 'Semi' DIY venture.. Get yourself a nice 12oz bottle of CeraVe Lotion, and use a bit of that for your preservative, emulsifier and thickener ingredients..

Play around with it.. You'll be surprised at the wonderful stuff you can come up with (that actually works!) Very Happy

Wed Dec 07, 2011 12:54 pm

Hi Kass I just made my second batch after a visit to the pharmacist, he told me that in school they used electric mixers to blend the water and oil base, I was in shock and asked if the heat would not affect the L'ascorbic acid from oxidizing and he actually said it didn't as long as you used an electric hand mixer and on the lowest speed...

So I came back home and have just whipped up my second bath using the aloe gel and the mixer and it has actually worked to my amazement!! oh and the ph level is still 2.8!!!

he recommended using lecithin as an emulsifier instead of the aloe gel and the tea tree oil as a preservative. I haven't added the tea tree oil or the lecithin as i don't have any.

My question now is why not the tea tree oil as a preservative??

Wed Dec 07, 2011 3:09 pm

Hi Kass,

Sorry to bother you again, I found a place near home where I can get stearic acid & grapefruit extract. My problem now is I don't know what measurements to use of these 2 new ingredients and how to mix the stearic acid.(should i do it with witch hazel or distilled water?) my last batch I used the following measurements:

• ¾ tsp Ascorbic Acid
• 3 tsp (15 ml) Distilled H2O
• ¼ tsp (1ml) Vit E Oil
• 1 tsp (5 ml) Jojoba Oil
• ¼ tsp (1 ml) Argan Oil
• 1 tsp (5 ml) Aloe gel

Also should I change the measurements of jojoba and argan oil??

Do i do first phase of AA +H20 a second with the stearic acid, and a third with the oils and the grapefruit extract?? Now that I will be using stearic acid as an emulsifier i assume I will drop the aloe gel?

Thanks to all.

Sun Dec 25, 2011 7:50 am

Can I subsitute aloe for jojoba

free skin care · Sun Dec 25, 2011 4:59 pm

@nani; I'm at a loss for what to tell you... The recipe I posted works, but if you make all those changes I'm not sure what the result will be... You can use grapefruit extract at about 1 or 2% (I believe.)

@lsilva7; that would probably work..

Sat Jan 21, 2012 5:51 pm

I'm new to this site...I've been here ALL DAY reading and researching and feeling very overwhelmed by all of this information. I want to make a VIT C cream but with all of the recipes I don't know where to start and where to buy these ingredients. THank you for your help! I wonder why they don't have propylene glycol which helps absorb?

Wed Feb 01, 2012 9:44 pm

Whipped up a batch of C+E+Ferulic today...thanks to all those who contributed to this thread...took awhile to read through...but am really enjoying the DIY! Very Happy

Sat Feb 04, 2012 9:23 am

Hi! I mixed up a batch of Kassy's serum last week. Checked and double checked my measurements as I went. I find the serum to be watery. So much so that it's practically absorbed by my fingers before I can even get it on my face! I had planned to use it on my neck and hands, but at this rate I'll be going through a bottle every couple of weeks. Has anyone else found it to be very watery? If so, are there any tweaks (ie: oils, etc) which might thicken it enough to be more spreadable on the face?
Thanks so much!

Sun Feb 26, 2012 7:29 am

Kassy - you had or have somewhere a formulation for a vitamin c serum that included msm but I cannot find it anywhere. Can you give that to us again? thanks

free skin care · Sun Feb 26, 2012 10:18 am

maryms wrote:

Kassy - you had or have somewhere a formulation for a vitamin c serum that included msm but I cannot find it anywhere. Can you give that to us again? thanks

LOL.. You couldn't find it because it was posted on a different forum.. Here ya go;

15% Vit C Serum With MSM 1oz.

1 tsp L-Ascorbic Acid
2 tsp Aloe Vera Gel (any cheap brand you like)
1/4 tsp virgin coconut oil (it's loaded with vit E and other goodies)
3 1/2 tsp distilled water
3000mg MSM (for me it’s 3 capsules of Opti-MSM powder)

Use 2 shot glasses..

In 1st glass; measure in the water and nuke in the microwave a few seconds (warm) put in the MSM and vit C stirring in each, go on to next glass.

In glass 2 measure in your coconut oil, add aloe and stir well.

To combine, slowly add and stir the contents of glass 1 into glass 2 a little at a time. It combines pretty well, but you can always add a bit of emulsifier if you want to.. (I didn’t, and it’s just fine.)

Put into your 1oz bottle and shake well...
You can tweak this easily to suit your needs with the addition of FA or whatever you like. For me it was just a simple way to have a great and easy serum, that includes MSM, quickly. The coconut oil is loaded with beneficial fatty acids and loads of vit E.

When you apply it, it feels a bit tacky for 3 or 4 minutes, and then absorbs right in. So far I really like it.

NOTE:

For a more opague and quickly penetrating serum, you can use 1 tsp of CeraVe Lotion and 1 tsp of Aloe Vera Gel instead of just Aloe.. (Gives a nicer feel and texture IMHO.)

Hope you like it Very Happy

Tue Feb 28, 2012 7:02 am

Thank you so much - it was driving me crazy. Still having a lot of trouble navigating around to find what I want.

Kassy_A wrote:

maryms wrote:

Kassy - you had or have somewhere a formulation for a vitamin c serum that included msm but I cannot find it anywhere. Can you give that to us again? thanks

LOL.. You couldn't find it because it was posted on a different forum.. Here ya go;

15% Vit C Serum With MSM 1oz.

1 tsp L-Ascorbic Acid
2 tsp Aloe Vera Gel (any cheap brand you like)
1/4 tsp virgin coconut oil (it's loaded with vit E and other goodies)
3 1/2 tsp distilled water
3000mg MSM (for me it’s 3 capsules of Opti-MSM powder)

Use 2 shot glasses..

In 1st glass; measure in the water and nuke in the microwave a few seconds (warm) put in the MSM and vit C stirring in each, go on to next glass.

In glass 2 measure in your coconut oil, add aloe and stir well.

To combine, slowly add and stir the contents of glass 1 into glass 2 a little at a time. It combines pretty well, but you can always add a bit of emulsifier if you want to.. (I didn’t, and it’s just fine.)

Put into your 1oz bottle and shake well...
You can tweak this easily to suit your needs with the addition of FA or whatever you like. For me it was just a simple way to have a great and easy serum, that includes MSM, quickly. The coconut oil is loaded with beneficial fatty acids and loads of vit E.

When you apply it, it feels a bit tacky for 3 or 4 minutes, and then absorbs right in. So far I really like it.

NOTE:

For a more opague and quickly penetrating serum, you can use 1 tsp of CeraVe Lotion and 1 tsp of Aloe Vera Gel instead of just Aloe.. (Gives a nicer feel and texture IMHO.)

Hope you like it Very Happy

Wed Feb 29, 2012 5:09 am

Hi all,

About to begin my diy adventure (2nd time) I've come up with a recipe, that I would like to share before actually trying it. I'm not sure if it makes sense at all, that's why.

I'd like to try an ACE without water,because that will cause the LAA to oxidise quickly. I'm not fond of the silicone base either.

This is what I want to try:

Oil/wax base: grapeseed oil, almond oil, avocado oil, stabilizer & emulsifier. (I'll try to make it a bit fluid) Total: 70% of the batch.

Adding:
LAA 10%, solved in alcohol
Retinol, 2%
D-tocopherol 2%
Lysolecithin 5%
ELS 6%
lactic acid 5%

I'd like your thoughts about this, since I've learned so much already from all of you, reading and gathering info.

I know the pH should be 3,5 in the end, but if its higher, how should I adjust it? Ive read baking soda, but some also advise against it, so I really don't know.

Thanks in advance! Oh, and I'm dutch, so please forgive any "strange" words or spelling...

Cecil

Wed Mar 07, 2012 7:23 am

I recently started using the C serum (Kassys recipe) but also a Hyalunic Acid serum with glycerin and vitamin e oil. Now my skin is breaking out and I have a lot of blackheads. Normally I have neither- I take excellent care of my skin. I read another person somewhere had made this comment but I can't find it and don't remember what the replies were. Can someone help me out with this please? All this work but now my skin looks awful. Thanks!!

free skin care · Wed Mar 07, 2012 7:49 am

maryms wrote:

I recently started using the C serum (Kassys recipe) but also a Hyalunic Acid serum with glycerin and vitamin e oil. Now my skin is breaking out and I have a lot of blackheads. Normally I have neither- I take excellent care of my skin. I read another person somewhere had made this comment but I can't find it and don't remember what the replies were. Can someone help me out with this please? All this work but now my skin looks awful. Thanks!!

Some people find glycerin breaks them out, not sure which recipe you are using Kassy has many posted here? Some have also reported blackheads with Vitamin C, usually it is caused by oxidation for many possible reasons. you might want to try proplyne glycol instead of glycerin

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