CandleLytes Posted February 3, 2009 Share Posted February 3, 2009 I have been doing candles for about a 1 & 1/2 years. Love doing it. But I would like to expand into body lotions and butters and maybe more down the road. So I had to pick one to start with. I picked lotion. Seems simple enough but I have well learned in this craft business nothing is "simple".Where do I start? I am assuming I buy some lotion base and add skin safe scent and/or color? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leisa2003 Posted February 3, 2009 Share Posted February 3, 2009 Well, I first started off reading here about instructions on how to make the things I wanted to make, for hours, then I got several recipes for making lotion from this board, then I just started making, creating and testing my own lotions, etc...The tutorials and classes on this board has some great pictures and instructions on making bath & body, as well as youtube.com. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeana Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 If you want to make recipes from scratch, I think butters (no water) are the easiest to start with because you don't have to worry about using preservatives. Lip balms are fun and easy too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elitenaildesign Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 Personally I think making a body butter or lotion from scratch is pretty easy. So a base really isnt my thing. What I did in the beginning, was read, read and read some more. Looked through a ton of suppliers that have recipes and found a couple that interested me and built off of that. Before you know it, you'll have your own recipe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheQueen Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 My biggest caution about making lotion is that you MUST be sure your work area and all vessels, utensils and containers are as clean as possible. Rinse everything with bleach including your work station. This is an absolute MUST. I even wear rubber gloves to avoid contaminating already-cleansed areas and utensils. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maggie Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 Something else to consider when making bath and body products is hair.I have long hair and I always put it up on top of my head and then cover it when I make soap, lip balms etc. If you have pets...you don't want them in your work area.I don't make lotion from scratch...I use a base from The Candlemaker's Store. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meridith Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 Besides all the sterilization you must do, you must also remember insurance. Since you make and sell candles, I am assuming you have insurance in place for that. Hopefully, you can just add to that policy to include B&B without any problems. That's what I was able to do when I ventured into the B&B world. Have fun and enjoy this new addiction. I think this addiction is worse than the addiction with candles. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheQueen Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 And then there is the preservative that must be in the lotion. Do some research on what is the appropriate preservative and the appropriate percentage for your ingredient ratios. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CandleLytes Posted February 5, 2009 Author Share Posted February 5, 2009 I am reading a lot on here and still have a lot more experimenting to go. Yes I have insurance. Now I just need to find some good bath and body suppliers. Anyone have some good ones to recommend? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheQueen Posted February 5, 2009 Share Posted February 5, 2009 I am reading a lot on here and still have a lot more experimenting to go. Yes I have insurance. Now I just need to find some good bath and body suppliers. Anyone have some good ones to recommend?So start researching what you want to make on here and you will find recommendations all over the place. Isn't there a place or thread or something somewhere on CT that lists suppliers, etc? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meridith Posted February 5, 2009 Share Posted February 5, 2009 Look at some of your current suppliers as they might also carry B&B stuff. Some of the FOs you currently use in your candles might be soap and lotion safe so you could use those. There's a thread in the soap section for newbie soapers that might provide some useful information and just reading through old threads will also help you. Also, make sure that your insurance covers B&B too. Not all will cover it and some insurances are very reluctant to insure a person for this business. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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