There was a thread about ten days ago talking about a home recipe for Trumper's skin food. I was intrigued, and decided to try it out. I very much liked the samples from Trumper, but balked at the price. Here was the recipe given:
I tried it, but it was pretty thin, and when I used it on my face it seemed to be VERY tacky. I think it was because too much product had to be dispensed to cover my whole face- it was too runny. Taking a cue from Corn Husker's, I waddled on down to the local organic store and picked up some guar gum for around $4.50 or so. Based on how little it took to thicken my experiment, I probably now own enough guar gum to thicken Lake Erie into a thin gel. If the music thing doesn't work out, I am set up for my first evil plot as a supervillain. Need a costume though...
I started with 1/8 cup rosewater and about 1/16 cup glycerin, or about a 2-1 ratio. Thanks to the Oxo mini measuring cup! I may have gone down to half the glycerine for the second batch, but I forget. Adding a small pinch or two of the guar gum worked very well, thickening it just enough to barely hold it together on my finger, as opposed to running everywhere. This seemed to be enough to allow a small drop to be dispersed across my face in a very thin layer. YMMV. The incorporation is no problem at all- you can just add it and shake it up. Be warned- it seems to thicken up more overnight- perhaps a small blender would be better than hand shaking it. My first experiment was perfect- until the next day, when it was almost the consistancy of old oatmeal... gross... The second batch was better- the next day it was almost runny, but not quite. Just what I wanted. Better to add too little and adjust it the next day than ruin a batch. If you still find this tacky, cut the glycerine maybe in half. As when I make my own aftershave splashes, too much glycerine=sticky face. Again, YMMV.
Results? Seems to work pretty well. Very similar to Corn Huskers, but I seem to have less redness and irritation. Maybe it was just a good shave, or maybe even my imagination! The rosewater didn't really scent it well enough for me, so perhaps some sort of rose oil is in its future. No color either, just looks like corn huskers. I could get pink rosewater, but it was more expensive, and the labelling set off my BS detector ('magnetized water'- please...). My rosewater is clearly cheapo stuff too, I would love to try this recipe with QED's. I remember the Trumpers being cooler on my skin than this, I will chalk that up to the menthol crystals on the label I didn't add. They can be had online for around $2.50/ oz if you so desire, and that was just a quick google search. I added a dab of aloe gel on impulse- takes away some of the 'glow' on the skin, but it felt great. Maybe some witch hazel next...
Overall, an interesting experiment. Reinforces in my mind that Trumper's skin food is quite similar to corn huskers in composition as well as effect. They add better scent and some color, and some menthol for slight cooling which I missed in my concoction, and I'll bet good money the ingredients are overall better quality. Maybe next time.
Still, the cost? Rosewater, $6.50 for 4oz (used 1/2 on 2.5 batches that were about 1.5 oz each), glycerine (already had, but about $8 for 8 oz), of which I used very little, and guar gum $4.50, or which I may have used about gram or two at most. If I used all the rosewater, I would probably have had about 4.5-5oz of the stuff for around $20, and after that the rosewater would be the major expense as the gum and the glycerine would last for many batches. Without adding preservatives, I'll keep my batches small thank you. Even the small amount I made as an experiment should last quite a while, and I have no idea how long it will last without preservatives.
Is it worth it? It's hard to say- my samples from Trumper have long since run out and I have only memory to guide me. I think my experiment falls somewhere between the real thing and corn huskers, but bear in mind I didn't add all of Trumper's bells and whistles. If you value the scent and color above all else, than no, unless you add both. If you like the cooling, also no, unless you take the next step and add the menthol crystals. Suffice it to say, I don't think I could ever bring myself to buy the Trumpers unless my income changes at least one decimal place, but that's just my opinion and my priorities. It would be interesting to try it with the menthol, as I miss the slight cooling effect from the real deal, as well as the scent. The color I could care less about. I'm willing to bet rosewater can be found less expensively- the organic stores usually have inflated prices in my opinion. Frankly, replace the rosewater with tapwater, and you probably have ersatz corn husker's lotion! I think that would be far less cost effective than just going to Waltonia though.
I tried it, but it was pretty thin, and when I used it on my face it seemed to be VERY tacky. I think it was because too much product had to be dispensed to cover my whole face- it was too runny. Taking a cue from Corn Husker's, I waddled on down to the local organic store and picked up some guar gum for around $4.50 or so. Based on how little it took to thicken my experiment, I probably now own enough guar gum to thicken Lake Erie into a thin gel. If the music thing doesn't work out, I am set up for my first evil plot as a supervillain. Need a costume though...
I started with 1/8 cup rosewater and about 1/16 cup glycerin, or about a 2-1 ratio. Thanks to the Oxo mini measuring cup! I may have gone down to half the glycerine for the second batch, but I forget. Adding a small pinch or two of the guar gum worked very well, thickening it just enough to barely hold it together on my finger, as opposed to running everywhere. This seemed to be enough to allow a small drop to be dispersed across my face in a very thin layer. YMMV. The incorporation is no problem at all- you can just add it and shake it up. Be warned- it seems to thicken up more overnight- perhaps a small blender would be better than hand shaking it. My first experiment was perfect- until the next day, when it was almost the consistancy of old oatmeal... gross... The second batch was better- the next day it was almost runny, but not quite. Just what I wanted. Better to add too little and adjust it the next day than ruin a batch. If you still find this tacky, cut the glycerine maybe in half. As when I make my own aftershave splashes, too much glycerine=sticky face. Again, YMMV.
Results? Seems to work pretty well. Very similar to Corn Huskers, but I seem to have less redness and irritation. Maybe it was just a good shave, or maybe even my imagination! The rosewater didn't really scent it well enough for me, so perhaps some sort of rose oil is in its future. No color either, just looks like corn huskers. I could get pink rosewater, but it was more expensive, and the labelling set off my BS detector ('magnetized water'- please...). My rosewater is clearly cheapo stuff too, I would love to try this recipe with QED's. I remember the Trumpers being cooler on my skin than this, I will chalk that up to the menthol crystals on the label I didn't add. They can be had online for around $2.50/ oz if you so desire, and that was just a quick google search. I added a dab of aloe gel on impulse- takes away some of the 'glow' on the skin, but it felt great. Maybe some witch hazel next...
Overall, an interesting experiment. Reinforces in my mind that Trumper's skin food is quite similar to corn huskers in composition as well as effect. They add better scent and some color, and some menthol for slight cooling which I missed in my concoction, and I'll bet good money the ingredients are overall better quality. Maybe next time.
Still, the cost? Rosewater, $6.50 for 4oz (used 1/2 on 2.5 batches that were about 1.5 oz each), glycerine (already had, but about $8 for 8 oz), of which I used very little, and guar gum $4.50, or which I may have used about gram or two at most. If I used all the rosewater, I would probably have had about 4.5-5oz of the stuff for around $20, and after that the rosewater would be the major expense as the gum and the glycerine would last for many batches. Without adding preservatives, I'll keep my batches small thank you. Even the small amount I made as an experiment should last quite a while, and I have no idea how long it will last without preservatives.
Is it worth it? It's hard to say- my samples from Trumper have long since run out and I have only memory to guide me. I think my experiment falls somewhere between the real thing and corn huskers, but bear in mind I didn't add all of Trumper's bells and whistles. If you value the scent and color above all else, than no, unless you add both. If you like the cooling, also no, unless you take the next step and add the menthol crystals. Suffice it to say, I don't think I could ever bring myself to buy the Trumpers unless my income changes at least one decimal place, but that's just my opinion and my priorities. It would be interesting to try it with the menthol, as I miss the slight cooling effect from the real deal, as well as the scent. The color I could care less about. I'm willing to bet rosewater can be found less expensively- the organic stores usually have inflated prices in my opinion. Frankly, replace the rosewater with tapwater, and you probably have ersatz corn husker's lotion! I think that would be far less cost effective than just going to Waltonia though.
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Seriously, thanks for the recipe- it was a good starting point, and this has been a lot of fun for me. I'm a tinkerer at heart, and the process is where all the fun is for me. Someone needs to stop me... please... I can't help myself...
