Serums are undoubtedly the stars of the world of skincare. These are the high value, high-performance products with the hero ingredients that have the greatest impact on your skin. Some serums are designed to target specific areas of the body, like face, eyes, lips or neck. Others work to visibly reduce the signs of aging, or improve specific skin conditions.
But what most serums have in common is that they can be complex to formulate.
Serums can come in many forms, from gel-creams to emulsions. And their specialist and high value ingredients usually ask for careful handling for them to be effective.
If you want to find out more about six different types of serums you can read more here: https://www.schoolofnaturalskincare.com/beyond-oil-based-serums/
When we launched our Advanced Certificate in High-Performance Serum Formulation we wanted to give more experienced formulators the skills and specialist knowledge so they could create these more complex and highly effective products. And we also hoped the course would appeal to natural beauty entrepreneurs who wanted to offer their customers a premium product with higher profit margins.
One of our graduates from that course is Lida Farfan, who founded her own natural beauty brand in her home in Lima, the capital city of Peru.
Lida’s passion for non-toxic cosmetics started when she became pregnant. Concerned for the wellbeing of her unborn child, Lida started to think about the amount of chemicals that were coming into contact with her skin every day through cosmetics, and how safe those chemicals were.
Now, people who know Lida will know that when she gets interested in a topic, she will read and research everything she can about it.
In this case, her research led her to the conclusion that the constant use of personal care products and cleaning products can result in a build-up of harmful chemical compounds in the body.
Lida came to believe that long-term exposure to these chemicals, especially from a young age, could be the root of many of the health problems we experience today.
Straight away she stopped using any make-up through her pregnancy, and this was the start of a new venture in her life.
This commitment to living a life free from harmful chemicals led Lida to develop a natural alternative. She started Blossom – her own brand of natural skincare. Her business grew, creating small-batch, hand-crafted products, using a knowledge of the botanical properties of plants and natural oils to extract the greatest benefits from them.
When Lida wanted to build on her success and take her business to the next level, she focused on learning how to create much more advanced formulations, like serums.
Although she knew the basics, she wanted to go deeper and learn how to differentiate her products from other brands. But it was still most important that even complex, high-performance products should fit with her values, and be made with only natural, and sustainable, ingredients.
After doing her usual in-depth level of research, Lida decided to sign up to our Advanced Certificate in High-Performance Serum Formulation. This course gave her the knowledge and confidence she needed to create the advanced formulations she wanted, and to develop her brand.
We asked her a few questions about her experience of studying with us, and how it has helped her on her journey.
Q: What has been your best experience about formulating your own serums?
It has been incredible. The course opened my eyes about all kinds of serums you can formulate with the right ingredients for any skin concern. It also made me want to experiment with other different ingredients I hadn’t used before.
Q: Have you got any tips for aspiring natural cosmetic formulators about starting to formulate serums?
First, start with the basics.
Try to understand as much as you can about different ingredients and learn about the benefits of each ingredient for your skin. And my last tip is to experiment with textures. After that you will feel more confident about making more advanced formulations like serums.
Q: Why did you decide to study with us?
When I get interested in something, I like to research it carefully. I already had some knowledge about natural skincare products, so when I reviewed the information about the Advanced Certificate in Serum Formulation, I knew this was the next step for me.
Q: What’s important for you in terms of the products you make and use?
I’m trying to create always new formulas that have the benefits of botanical extracts that are natural and organic. For me it is important that my products are formulated with knowledge and science. I’m a believer of the benefits of natural ingredients on the skin, and I also believe in using ingredients from sustainable sources that don’t destroy the natural resources of the earth.
Q: What has studying with us helped you to do?
By doing this course, I lost the fear of experimenting with textures, and found out about new types of ingredients to include in formulas, and how to use them in safe and correct amounts. And it helped me learn the fundamentals to continue creating and developing formulas.
Q: What have you learned about that you never even thought about before?
I wanted to work several months ago with vitamins such as Vitamin C and Niacinamide, but these can be difficult to work with. Now I have learnt on the course how to formulate products that include them in the best conditions, for example the optimum pH, to make sure they are most effective.
Q: What is your favourite or best product that you’ve created from the course?
It’s difficult to pick just one, but my favourite one would be the Botanical C Glow. A serum made with Vitamin C and sources of beta carotene such as Annato and Carrot extracts.
Q: Where do you hope your skills and passions will take you? What does the future hold for you now?
Now I feel more confident to continue experimenting with and investigating more ingredients than before. I already have my own handmade natural cosmetic brand here in Peru, but now I hope we can start producing on a bigger scale.
You can find out more and see Lida’s new products on her website:
https://blossomperu.com/
And If you’d like to find out more about how you can make natural serums that really work, why not read our article on this exact topic here 🙂
Of course if you’re ready to take the fast track on your journey as a natural skincare formulator and learn how to create your high-performance serums, including anhydrous, pressed, emulsion-based, gel-based, gel-cream, and bi-phase serums for different skin types, covering the face, lips, eyes, neck and more, join our Advanced Certificate in High-Performance Serum Formulation here.
Quick guide to formulating with Vitamin C
Ready to start supercharging your skincare formulations with high-performance ingredients?
Sign up to our weekly newsletter and receive your free guide and Vitamin C antioxidant serum formula today. – an exclusive gift from us!
In our quick guide to formulating with Vitamin C you’ll learn:
- What is Vitamin C?
- What are the benefits of Vitamin C?
- What type of cosmetic is it suitable for
- Stable forms of Vitamin C and how to use them.
Plus we’ll share with you a Vitamin C antioxidant serum formula you can make yourself!
You’ll also discover the amazing benefits Vitamin C offers for the skin:
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