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Free · 12 video lessons

Turn the sugar scrub you already make into a formula that foams and rinses clean

Most homemade scrubs are oil and sugar. They exfoliate, then leave a greasy film and a slippery shower floor. This course teaches the third kind — the one premium brands sell and almost nobody makes well at home.

14 lessons
6 products
Online, at your own pace
Certificate
Coming soonView the programme

Master formula included · No chemistry degree required

Golden Honey

Golden Honey

Foaming sugar scrub — the formula you will make

For you if you have made a sugar scrub before — and want to make it properly

New to cosmetic formulation

You've heard about natural cosmetics and want to give it a try, but don't know where to start. This course gives you the foundations — from the terminology to your first cream.

Keen hobbyist

You've already tried making soap or simple products, but want to understand the basics properly — what INCI is and how emulsifiers work.

Future entrepreneur

You see cosmetic formulation as a future business. The course gives you the core knowledge, and a certificate from an accredited school adds credibility to your brand.

Caring parent

You want to make safe, natural cosmetics for yourself and your family, knowing exactly what goes into every product.

What you will make

One complete product — and every decision behind it

💄Lesson 5

Balm (anhydrous)

A waterless balm on waxes and butters — no preservative needed

💧Lesson 6

Toner

A water-based toner with solubilised essential oils and actives

🧴Lesson 7

Gel

A clear, stable gel — gelling agents and the hydration process

🥛Lesson 8

Cream-gel

A light, quickly absorbing texture based on a polymeric emulsifier

🧈Lesson 9

O/W emulsion

The classic oil-in-water cream, made with a lab homogeniser

✨Lesson 10

W/O emulsion

A rich water-in-oil cream made with a special technique — the final project

Why most homemade scrubs never feel like a shop product

A foaming scrub has to exfoliate, cleanse and rinse clean all at once. Sugar, oil, surfactants, water, emulsifier, preservative and pH all have to hold together. That is what makes it the hardest of the three scrub families — and what makes it worth learning.

What you will be able to do

Understand

  • Read and understand the INCI list of cosmetics
  • Understand the classes of cosmetic ingredients
  • Understand how surfactants and emulsifiers work
  • Know the principles of HLB (hydrophilic-lipophilic balance)
  • Choose the right preservatives
  • Build basic cosmetic formulations

Do

  • Work with lab equipment and heating devices
  • Follow safety procedures and production hygiene
  • Make oil-in-water and water-in-oil emulsions
  • Work with gelling agents and the hydration process
  • Solubilise essential oils
  • Create 6 types of cosmetic products

Course programme

12 lessons • Theory + practice • Self-paced study with instructor support

Your instructor

Oksana Walker

Oksana Walker

Course author, lead expert at the Walker Formulation Academy

🏅Certified cosmetic chemist🌍IFSCC — International Federation of Societies of Cosmetic Chemists🇬🇧SCS — Society of Cosmetic Scientists🌿IAA — International Aromatherapy Association
“A foaming scrub is the hardest of the three scrub families to formulate — and that is exactly why I chose it for a first course. Get this one right and you will understand water, surfactants, pH and preservation together, not as four separate subjects.”

Over 500 formulators trained

International certifications

Author of every course at the Academy

Why students choose our course

Learn at your own pace

All lessons are pre-recorded. Study whenever it suits you — in the evening, at the weekend or on your lunch break

Official certificate

On completion you receive an electronic certificate from an accredited school

Expert support

Throughout the course you get help from a qualified cosmetic chemist and access to a private chat

Your price is locked

Pre-registration fixes your price and costs nothing today: you pay once the group is formed and the start date is known

A school you can trust

Taught by a certified cosmetic chemist with international IFSCC and SCS UK memberships

fellow formulators community

Access to a private chat to share experience, recipes and inspiration with fellow students

The course is free

All twelve lessons and the master formula. Registration opens shortly.

Free course

Coming soon

Pricing will be announced shortly.

  • 12 video lessons
  • The Golden Honey master formula
  • Method, pH, preservation and stability
  • Troubleshooting: grainy, separated, weak foam, syruping
  • Three ready-made variations
  • Packaging and labelling orientation

Secure payment

What our students say

A

"A wonderful course! I learned to make creams from scratch and now it is my favourite hobby. The instructor explains everything very clearly."

Anna

Formulation Foundation course

1 / 5

Frequently asked questions

Yes. All twelve lessons and the Golden Honey master formula are included. It is a complete course, not a preview with the method held back.
Because it is the honest way to show how we teach. You make a real product, judge the result, and decide for yourself whether to study further with us. Our longer programmes are separate and paid.
One year from the moment you join, and access can be extended. That is enough to work through the lessons at your own pace and come back to the troubleshooting ones when you need them.
No qualification is required. Percentages, surfactants, pH and preservation are explained step by step. What you do need is to weigh accurately rather than measure by spoonfuls, and to be willing to understand why each step matters.
For this formula, yes. Golden Honey contains water, and water lets bacteria, yeast and mould grow long before the product looks or smells wrong. That is a safety requirement, not a matter of preference. The course also shows why the correct pH is what makes the preservative work at all — the two cannot be separated.
Two sets of digital scales (a 0.01 g one for the preservative and vitamin E, and an ordinary one for sugar), a heat-safe beaker, a thermometer, pH strips or a meter, and 70% isopropyl alcohol for sanitising. Lesson 3 goes through the list and explains which items decide whether the product works and which are merely convenient.
Lesson 10 teaches how to substitute safely and includes three ready-made variations. Not every ingredient can be swapped directly, so make the master formula once before adapting it.
Lesson 11 covers packaging, labelling and where cosmetic regulation begins. It is an orientation, not legal advice: selling cosmetics usually requires a safety assessment, documentation and a qualified assessor in your own country.
No. Most people take it to make a better product for themselves or as gifts. Packaging and selling are covered for those who later want to go further.

Your journey into cosmetic formulation

1

Your First Cream

✅ Pre-registration open

2

Formulation Foundation

🔥 You are here

3

Cosmetic chemistry

Next level

4

Specialisations

Professional

Each subsequent course deepens your knowledge and opens new opportunities. Start with the basics — and progress towards professional mastery.

Make the scrub most recipes cannot give you

Start with a product you already know. Finish with a foaming, rinse-clean formula you understand well enough to repeat, adjust and troubleshoot.

Coming soonSee Your First Cream

Registration opens shortly — the course is free in full

Enrol on the course