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How to Make a Simple Vitamin C + Hyaluronic Acid Serum, using a Kitchen Scale and Measuring Spoons

Best Natural Skin Solutions6 Comments

One of the requests I've received from my readers is how they may make a vitamin C serum, using simple, commonly available kitchen equipment. They don't want to use the gram and milligram units that I use. I understand the reason. I have 2 "normal" kitchen scales, and neither measure less than 1 gram. This is why I recommend use of a different scale, that measures less than 1 gram.

When I realized that neither of my kitchen scales was going to measure the low amounts I needed, I started looking for scales that would. I use scales to measure out chemicals in my job, and they do the same thing, but cost thousands of dollars. I wasn't sure what kinds of prices I was going to find, but was pleasantly surprised to find some that would measure down to 0.01 of a gram were available from Lotioncrafter.com for less than $25.00 (the model JSR-50).

The kitchen scales do, however, measure in grams, and I decided to try to see if I could design a simple recipe that would fill my readers' needs.

The only way to give you a recipe not using grams or mg is by using tsp and the smallest amount would need to be 1/8th of a tsp, because that is the smallest kitchen tsp made (normally available anyway). That would require the HLA (Hyaluronic acid) to be that smallest amount, and I haven't yet figured out what the equivalent is, so using 1/8 teaspoon would result in so much serum being made, that most could go bad far sooner than it takes to use it, or be too thick to use properly.

This recipe will make enough for about 1 month of treatments, ~ 1-2 applications per day, preferably after you shower or wash your face.

 

Vitamin C (16%) + Hyaluronic Acid (HLA) (1.5%) serum

Distilled Water                                                   3 and 3/4 tsp
L-Ascorbic Acid (Vitamin C)  powder                3 grams
HLA (LMW; 800,000 - 1,000,000 Daltons)        0.3 grams   (or, 1 gram split into 3 piles)         

    

1- Find 2 small glass jars (baby food, previous used face cream, 4 oz jelly jar).

2- ** Prepare Vitamin C powder by taking more than what you need (e.g. 5 grams) and pulverize it in a blender. This will allow it to dissolve more readily. Add all the pulverized Vitamin C powder to one jar.

3- Add distilled water to the other.

4- ** Measure Vitamin C and add to the water. Stir to dissolve slightly.

5- Measure HLA. To get 0.3 grams with a kitchen scale that only measures 1 gram, take 1 gram and split into 3  piles...save other 2 piles for 2 other preparations.  

6. ** Add HLA to preparation by sprinkling the powder on top. Don't stir or swirl. Just let it sit in a dark, cool place for a      few hours. When you see no more dry , white HLA powder, then you may swirl and stir to mix in any gel clumps that may still exist. Load ~ 1/3 to 1/2 into an eyedropper bottle. Cover  remaining serum that is in the jar, with foil and store in the fridge. Use at least after every shower, followed by a moisturizer.

You will find on your initial applications, that you will have little balls of dead skin collect as you apply it on your face. As soon as you notice it turning amber or yellow, discard, wash out the eyedropper bottle and glass jar before using it again.

** Update July 2022: I found that there is NO need to pulverize the Vitamin C powder beforehand! Just add the vitamin C and HLA into the container you are using (it doesn’t matter in what order they are added), followed by the distilled water. Close the container and shake well (~30 to 45 seconds). Place at room temperature to continue dissolving, and 24 hours later, you will have serum!

Some questions for YOU......What information would you like me to provide?

diy skin careBest Natural Skin Solutions1 Comment

I have published a few recipes now, for skincare products such as a simple skin cream, multiple ways to make Vitamin C serums, and included information about some of the components that are needed to help rejuvenate skin and improve its appearance as well as information regarding ingredients to be avoided and why.

I would now like to kindly ask you:

- Is the information valuable to you?

- If not, what information do you need, or want to see? What type of information would be more valuable to you?

- What have been your favorite blog posts and why?

- What other recipes would you like to see?

- Would you prefer to buy these products In Kit form so that all (or most) of the measuring is done for you? What products would you like to see, available as a kit?

If you take the time out of your busy day to respond, I will send you a 1 month sample of my current version of a wrinkle cream recipe I have been working on for the last 3 years.

Please do not put your address here, but email it to me at plmwellness@gmail.com

Share this post with your friends!

Hope to hear from you soon!

Initial RESULTS of Vitamin C, B3, DMAE and HLA Serum Stability Study

Best Natural Skin Solutions7 Comments
 
 

One of the reasons for making Vitamin C serum at home is to save tons of money, and to KNOW what it is you are putting on your face. Using Vitamin C in the form of ascorbic acid is best form to use (if pure, it is also edible), but, as I've described in a previous post, this form is also unstable in the presence of air, heat and water. I noticed that each time I made an individual batch, it lasted 2-3 weeks before I would start seeing the faintest sign that my preparation was oxidizing. At that point, I stopped using it and would make another batch using the same materials, and it would again take 2-3 weeks before it would start turning color.

So I asked myself, if the powdered ascorbic acid was being protected from oxidation by being stored closed, in the dark and in a refrigerator:

       1) Would the newly prepared Vitamin C serum, also be protected?
       2) How long would this protection last, and could I therefore make a larger batch at one time and just use it
           throughout that time, instead of making individual batches every 2 weeks?

SO, this was my plan...I made several months worth of the serum, then loaded multiple small eyedropper bottles with the serum. I pulled out a new bottle every 2 weeks until the bottle I used started turning color. 

I made this bulk batch on Sept 12, 2015, and the serum I removed from the refrigerator on December 12, lasted about 4 days before I sensed the color change. So, yes, it appears that the temperature of the refrigerator slowed down the oxidation process to allow a batch of the serum to be used for 3 months instead of 3 weeks. For this reason, I give this serum an expiration date of 3 months. So glad I found this out...this will save anyone who tries this, a great deal of time and effort!

You can either do what I did and buy several eyedropper bottles, or buy 1-2 and clean them out between uses.

The recipe I used is listed below:

            Vitamin C, HLA, DMAE, Niacinamide Serum - by BNSS

                Distilled water                       15 tsp
             ** LAA (L-Ascorbic Acid)         19.2 grams(= final concentration of ~ 19.5 %)
                Hyaluronic Acid (***LMW)      1.92 grams(= final concentration of 1.0 %)
              * DMAE (bitartrate)                     1.6 grams   (= final concentration of 1.7 %) 
              * Vitamin B3 (Niacinamide)        0.96 grams   (= final concentration of 1.0 %)
 
* also added to boost the anti-wrinkle effects of the serum
** To help the Vitamin C dissolve, take 20 grams and grind it to a fine powder
*** LMW = Low Molecular Weight of 800,000 to 1,000,000 Daltons


1) Place room temperature distilled water into a glass container which holds ~100ml, and can be tightly closed (suggestion: use an jelly jar. It should be glass) . Stir every hour or so. It might take several days to dissolve completely, depending on how fine your vitamin C is.

2) Add DMAE and Niacinamide and stir every hour or so until dissolved.

3) Add Hyaluronic Acid (HLA) by sprinkling on top and allow to sit on the top of the solution until most has sunk in or appears to be a gelatinous mass in the center serum. Do not swirl when still in powder form as it will stick to the glass and may not reach the liquid in order to get dissolved. Once it is all "wet" it can be stirred.

On the label, write on the label, the name of the product, the date the serum was completed, and add the expiration date, which is 3 months after production.

4) Mix well then add ~2 tsp,  or whatever will last 2 weeks, to your eyedropper bottle. Tightly close the remainder of your batch and place in the refrigerator. Use in the morning and evening. I had extra, so I gave some away, but make sure whoever receives this gift from you, understand that at room temperature, it is good for only 2-3 weeks.

 

This page will be updated as additional data is discovered.

DIY Hyaluronic Acid and Vitamin C Serum...and what to use! (#2 of 2)

diy skin care, anti-agingBest Natural Skin Solutions10 Comments

(Update of 26 December 2016)

I have been experimenting with different ingredients I was adding 'cause more is better, right? Well, no...I found that at least one of the ingredients was reacting with the vitamin C and causing what appeared to be accelerated oxidation. Here is what is what appears to work well, and what I currently use myself.


20% Vit C, 8% DMAE, 2% Hyaluronic Acid (800-1000K Daltons)

9.4 tsp of distilled water

3.75 grams DMAE (8%)

9.5 grams L-Ascorbic Acid Powder (Vitamin C) (20%)

0.93 grams Hyaluronic Acid (800,000 - 1,000,000 Daltons Molecular Weight) (2%)
 

- Take the Vitamin C powder and whirl it in a blender or smoothie blender to make it a fine powder (this will cause it to dissolve more quickly)
- Add water to a 4 oz container with a lid.
- Add the DMAE and swirl to dissolve
- Add the Vitamin C and mix by swirling. Allow to sit for an hour or so, swirling every 15 minutes or so, until dissolved.

- Sprinkle HLA around the top of the water...do NOT swirl as the powder will stick to the sides and not dissolve. Let it sit at room temp in the dark for an hour or 2 until the water has absorbed into the powder and you see no more white powder. It wont be dissolved evenly, but at least there will not be any dry powder remaining. Once that is the case, stir and break up any thick gel, every hour or so until the serum's gel is evenly distributed (e.g. there isn't a chunk of gel on one end of the container). When not stirring, always keep this in the dark.

Once the gel is evenly distributed, transfer 4 -5 eyedroppers full into a non-clear (blue or amber) eyedropper bottle, and store remainder in the dark and in the fridge. What you add to the eyedropper should last no longer than 2 weeks. When you run out of what you added in the eyedropper bottle, rinse out residual serum and refill. Keep doing so until you run out OR the serum starts turning an amber color. This means that the oxidation has proceeded enough to be visible, and should be discarded. Oxidation is accelerated with exposure to oxygen in the air and to water, so it will start oxidizing as soon as you prepare it.

 

(also see Post #1 of 2))

 

Hyaluronic Acid

Hyaluronic Acid (HA), which is also known as Sodium Hyaluronate, is one of the most popular ingredients sought for use as an anti-aging treatment. It exists in chains of polymers from 3,000 (or 3K) Daltons to as many as 20,000,000 (20,000K) Daltons in size. it is a substance already found in your joints, eyes and skin. In your skin, HA is found between the skin cells and acts as a water reservoir for them, able to absorb nearly 1000x its weight in water. It also contributes to the suppleness of the skin, and to the reduction of fluid loss. We lose HA as we age, causing loss of suppleness and increased thinning of the skin, effects which many try to fight off by attempting to treat their skin with topical HA.

In my research however, I found that there are some things to consider about HAs, that are not advertised. There are different kinds of powdered HA available for purchase, and that some may not be as appropriate for skin care applications as others. For example, lotioncrafter.com sells different powdered HAs which range from the largest molecular weight of 1000K-1500K daltons to the ULMW (ultra low molecular weight) of 3K-5K. Although all forms of HA provide moisturizing effects, there are differences between the low and high MW products. For example, beside providing hydration, the higher molecular weight products appear to also have anti-inflammatory effects, but, due to their large size, they might have some difficulty penetrating the skin. The very low molecular weight products on the other hand, are able to penetrate the skin far more easily, but may cause inflammation once they do.

None of the ready-to-use HA products let you know in the ingredients, what molecular weight HA was used, so how do you know if your purchased HA serum is in a MW range that will even penetrate the skin, and is not just moisturizing the outer skin surface?

This is a reason to make your own!

From my readings, it appears that a product that is approximately 50-100K Daltons is a good target range for a DIY HA serum.. Based on that, I chose the Hyaluronic Acid LMW (Low Molecular Weight), by lotioncrafter.com which ranges from 800K-1000K Daltons. Another pleasing property of HA of this range is that serums result in a gel while the lower MW formulas do not.  The Hyaluronic Acid LMW does result in a very nice gel, while the next size down, the Hyaluronic Acid SLMW (Super Low MW), does not gel at all. 

Here are 2 formulas I've made:

—————————————————-

1% Hyaluronic Acid (800-1000K Daltons)

 - Add 2 tsp of distilled waterto a shot glass

 - Sprinkle 0.1 g (100 milligrams) Hyaluronic Acid LMW to the water surface.

- Do not stir or swirl, just cover with plastic wrap or Press n Seal and allow to sit at room temp.

- Wait 1-3 hours; HA serum will dissolve on its own. Swirl to mix, and transfer to eyedropper bottle. 

- Use 1-2 times a day. Best used after a shower or washing your face so as to induce the moisture to move into your skin along with the HA.

—————————————————-

19% Vit C, 2% Hyaluronic Acid (800-1000K Daltons)
 

- Add 2 tsp and 1/4 tsp of distilled water to a shot glass

- Add 2.7 g L-Ascorbic Acid (Vitamin C)

- Stir to dissolve. (** See changes below in July 2022 update!)

- When dissolved, sprinkle 0.3125 g (312.5 milligrams) Hyaluronic Acid LMW to the water surface.

- Do not stir, just cover with plastic wrap or Press n Seal and allow to sit at room temp.

- Wait 1-3 hours; HA serum will dissolve on its own. Swirl to mix, and transfer to eyedropper bottle. 

- Use 1-2 times a day. 

 

 

 

Note 1: There are no preservatives which is why making smaller volumes is best.

Note 2: Small amounts less than 1 gram are best measured using a scale meant for smaller measurements. A kitchen or postal scale (at least not the ones I have) will work unless they measure less than one gram. I purchased the model JSR-200. The scale costs about $28 and works very nicely. This model measures down to 0.01 grams (10 milligrams). You will benefit from small weight boats and spatulas, which I also found and purchased (see below).

Note 3: I am not an affiliate of lotioncrafter.com, just a satisfied customer, but I have tried to find some products below, with similar specifications from Amazon.


** Update July 2022: I found that there is NO need to try to dissolve the Vitamin C powder beforehand! Just add the vitamin C and HLA into the container you are using (it doesn’t matter in what order they are added), followed by the distilled water. Close the container and shake well (~30 to 45 seconds). Place at room temperature (in the dark or completely covered to block light) to continue dissolving, and 24 hours later, you will have serum!