It is Good Manufacturing Practice to be as Germ-Free as Possible
Good Manufacturing Practice (with capitals) is a vast subject... this is a single web page... but an important one for your safety and that of the people you want to make products for. It is very important BEFORE you begin to make your products that you CLEAN UP. it is unrealistic to expect you to be as sterile as a laboratory. But there are a few simple things that you can do which will make a very big difference to the success of your products. If you are using your kitchen to make your own beauty products then you must make sure that there is no possibility of germs or bacteria from your food contaminating your lotions and potions. Toast crumbs do not belong in your organic face cream! Tidy away all your cooking paraphenalia and clear the worktops. Clean all work surfaces thoroughly with some kind of preparatory kitchen cleaner... actually washing up liquid is a very good cleaner and will suffice to clean pretty much everything so you don't need to spend any money on special products. It is a good idea once you have cleaned to wipe down with alcohol. You can buy special cleaning alcohol or get a cheap vodka... it works very well. Ensure that all the implements you are going to use - your double boiler and spatula for example - are sterilised. Either by immersing in boiling water and drying in the oven or using a baby sterilising tablet or fluid. Plastic items can be wiped with alcohol.
Cleanliness when making Water-Based Products
It is best to use distilled water in your products, however, distilled water is NOT STERILE, if you bring the water up to 70 degrees C and keep it there for at least 20 minutes you will have killed off any lurking bacteria. It is then safe to use in your formula.it is good manufacturing practice to keep long hair tied back or covered with a hat and wear a clean apron and sterile disposable gloves - the little latex throwaway kind from the chemist shop are fine. Use disposable syringes for measuring small quantities of liquids. Do not allow your family pets into the room while you are making your products. understand about the use of preservatives in your products and choose which system for preservation you are going to use with the end use of your product in mind. it is good manufacturing practice to put a label on your product with the date of manufacture and the suggested use by date... even if you are only making for your family or friends... especially if you are only making for your family and friends... you don't want to poison your granny! Cleanliness when making Soap or Oil-Based Products
The rules are not so much different from when making water based creams, except that with soap you do not have to worry so much about bacteria as you do about stray things falling into the soap mix. The kind of foreign object that will turn up in soap like human, cat or dog hairs, crumbs, flys (yes and wasps too!), you will be suprised how often that happens! Therefore a basic level of cleanliness is required and it does not hurt to get into the habit of 'clean up' prior to making soap as well as afterwards.Balms or Ointments - products that do not contain water are not subject to the same bacteria attack as lotions are. But once again it is prudent to take very special care over ensuring that no foreign objects find their way into the pots or containers that you are going to use. Essential oils or other small quantities are best measured into disposable syringes which require no cleaning. It is possible to buy pre-sterilised glass jars for your products. They usually arrive in trays with plastic film covering the top,the lids being separate. The best thing to do in this instance is to screw on the lids immediately that you open the plastic film and then use the jars individually in as small a quantity as you require. If you do have to sterilise the jars yourself, make sure that they are completely dry before filling with your balm mixture. After making your products, it is good manufacturing practice to keep them in a clean environment and not return them to areas where your raw ingredients might be stored. You should wash all containers and utensils in hot soapy water and then run them through a dishwasher to ensure that they are perfectly clean. If you have used bees wax in your formula you will need to wipe out the pot with paper or a disposable cloth before washing. Bees wax has a very high melting point and it can coat the inside of your waste pipes and stay there for a very long time. It is good manufacturing practice as well as good sense to have a separate set of bowls and pans for making toiletries but it is probably ok to use the same pots and pans that you cook with if you have to, but if you are not scrupulous about cleanliness you will find your dinner tainted by essential oils and eating perfume is not fun! Leave Good Manufacturing Practice and go to The Moisturising Page
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