Subject: Anti-aging toner for oily, acne-prone skin

Thank you for sharing your proposed toner formula and detailing your skin concerns and goals. You have oily, acne-prone skin, use AHA/BHA exfoliants, moisturizer, and sunscreen daily. You are looking for a lightweight anti-aging, anti-pollution, and soothing toner, specifically concerned about stickiness and avoiding silicones.

Your proposed formula includes:

• Copper Peptide (GHK-Cu) 3%
• beta glucan 5%
• Glycosaminoglycans Complex 3%
• Ectoin 1%
• Cell-Energy™ Liquid (Adenosine) 2%
• 1,2-Hexanediol 2%
• Laurocapram (Water Soluble penetration enhancer) 2%
• chlorphenesin / Phenoxyethanol (Microcare PHC eq.) 1%
• Distilled Water 81%

Based on your goals and the staff's feedback, here's an assessment and suggested adjustments:

Suitability and Potential Issues:

• Anti-aging, Anti-pollution, Soothing: The formula includes excellent ingredients for these purposes (Copper Peptide, Glycosaminoglycans Complex, Ectoin, Cell-Energy™ Liquid, beta glucan).
• Lightweight Feel: This is a key concern.
  • Beta glucan at 5% can contribute to a thicker, potentially sticky texture, especially in a watery formula, and may settle as noted by the staff. Reducing the percentage or removing it might help with the texture and settling issue.
  • Glycosaminoglycans Complex can also add some viscosity.
  • Laurocapram is a penetration enhancer and might have a specific feel, but its primary role is delivery.
• Oily Skin: As the staff mentioned, the current formula doesn't specifically address oil control, which is important for oily, acne-prone skin.
• Preservative: The staff suggested Mild Preserved Eco as a milder alternative to Microcare PHC.
• Cloudiness: Cell-Energy™ Liquid may cause cloudiness, which is a cosmetic issue but doesn't affect efficacy.

Suggested Adjustments:
To address your concerns about stickiness and oily skin, and incorporate the staff's recommendations:

1. Beta Glucan: Consider removing beta glucan (ID 221) or significantly reducing its concentration (e.g., to 0.1-0.5%) to improve the lightweight feel and prevent settling. You already have other soothing ingredients like Ectoin and Glycosaminoglycans.
2. Oil Control: Add an ingredient to help manage oiliness. Good options for a toner include:
   • Safe-B3 (Niacinamide) (ID 74): Effective for oil control, pores, and barrier support. Can be used at 2-5%.
   • Zinc PCA (ID 252): Known for oil control and anti-acne properties. Can be used at 0.1-0.5%.
3. Preservative: Replace Microcare PHC (ID 1438) with Mild Preserved Eco (ID 1001) at 1% as suggested by the staff for a milder option.
4. Lightweight Feel (Optional): If the texture is still not light enough after other adjustments, you could consider adding Ethyl Alcohol (ID 706) at 5-10% as suggested by the staff, but be mindful that alcohol can be drying for some skin types, even oily ones, especially when using exfoliants. Test a small area first.
5. Cell-Energy™ Liquid: Keep Cell-Energy™ Liquid (ID 1164) if you are okay with potential cloudiness, as it provides anti-aging benefits.

Revised Formula Consideration (Example):
This is just an example based on the suggestions. You can adjust percentages based on desired feel and efficacy.

• Copper Peptide (GHK-Cu) (ID 272): 3%
• Glycosaminoglycans Complex (ID 1286): 3%
• Ectoin (ID 1299): 1%
• Cell-Energy™ Liquid (Adenosine) (ID 1164): 2% (Optional, depending on tolerance for cloudiness)
• Safe-B3 (Niacinamide) (ID 74): 3-5% (For oil control)
• 1,2-Hexanediol (ID 886): 2%
• Laurocapram (Water Soluble penetration enhancer) (ID 1585): 2%
• Mild Preserved Eco (ID 1001): 1%
• Distilled Water (ID 838): Adjust percentage to reach 100% total.
• (Optional) Ethyl Alcohol (ID 706): 5-10% (Reduce water accordingly)

This revised approach removes the potentially texturizing beta glucan, adds an oil control ingredient (Niacinamide), uses the suggested milder preservative, and keeps the core anti-aging/anti-pollution/soothing ingredients. The inclusion of alcohol is optional depending on your preference for skin feel and tolerance.

Remember to always patch test new formulations.