How to Add a Serum Booster

How to Add a Serum Booster to a Base or an Existing Product

To add a serum booster, measure the booster for the concentration you want (at the Skin Perfection house rate, 9 drops = 1% per fluid ounce), stir it into a sanitized base or a product you already own, add a preservative to cover the extra water, and blend until even. A booster is a concentrated active, such as an amino acid sequence, plant stem cell extract, or antioxidant, that you mix into a serum, cream, or lotion so you know exactly how much is in it. The whole process takes about five minutes.

Below is the drop chart, a step-by-step method, two worked recipes, the preservative and compatibility rules, and answers to the questions customers ask us most. For setting up a clean workspace, see Beauty Blending 101.

The Serum Booster Drop Chart

All Skin Perfection boosters use the same house rate: 9 drops = 1% in 1 fluid ounce (about 30 g), so 1% is about 0.3 g per ounce.

For batches over 1 oz, weighing on a scale that reads to 0.01 g is more accurate than counting drops. Powders such as GHK-Cu are always weighed.

How Much Booster to Add

Each booster's product page lists the manufacturer's recommended range, and our recipes use the top of that range. Some examples:

Why the top of the range? Manufacturers test their actives at specific levels. In Sederma's clinical testing of Matrixyl 3000 (supplier data), 23 women applied a 3% cream to one half of the face and a placebo to the other, twice a day for two months, and the surface occupied by deep wrinkles measured 39.4% lower on the Matrixyl side versus a +4.3% change with placebo. Using a booster below its tested range gives you less to work with.

Step by Step: Adding a Booster

1. Sanitize. Wash a glass beaker, a mini whisk or spatula, and your container in hot soapy water, rinse, spray with 70% isopropyl alcohol, and let them air dry. Wear gloves.
2. Choose your base. For a serum, use Ultra Hyaluronic Plumping Gel or Aloe Vera Gel Serum Base. For a moisturizer, use the Regenerating Facial Cream base. You can also boost a product you already own.
3. Weigh the base into the beaker and subtract the weight of the boosters and preservative from the total so the percentages stay correct.
4. Add the preservative (see below) and stir until dissolved.
5. Add each booster by drop count or weight, stirring after each one.
6. Blend for 1 to 2 minutes with a mini whisk or a hand blender on low. Shake serums; stir creams with a sanitized spatula.
7. Check the pH with a strip. Most amino acid boosters are happy at pH 4.5 to 5.5.
8. Fill an airless bottle, label it with the date and ingredients, and refrigerate.

Recipe 1: Boost Your Favorite Moisturizer (1 oz, 30 g)

Scoop the moisturizer into a sanitized beaker (do not mix in the original jar), stir in the Matrixyl 3000 and Leucidal SF Complete, then spoon it into a clean airless jar. Leucidal SF Complete is a liquid, so it blends into a finished cream more easily than a powder, and 4% is the top of its 2 to 4% range.

Recipe 2: Jawline and Neck Firming Serum (1 oz, 30 g)

Apply 3 to 4 pumps to the jawline, neck, and under the chin morning and night, with upward strokes.

Preservative Rules for Boosted Products

• Any formula that contains water needs a broad-spectrum preservative. Adding boosters dilutes the preservative already in a base, and many boosters (for example Syn-Ake, EyeSeryl, and Dermafill) contain none of their own.
• GSB (gluconolactone and sodium benzoate): 1% when combined with a preserved base, 2% when it is the only preservative. It works between pH 3 and 6.
• Leucidal SF Complete or Leucidal Liquid: 2 to 4%; we use 4%.
• Oil-only blends contain no water and need no preservative, but keep water out of them.

Compatibility Notes

• Water versus oil: amino acid boosters are water soluble. They will not dissolve in a pure facial oil; add them to a water-based serum or an emulsion (cream or lotion) instead.
• Copper peptide (GHK-Cu): its supplier technical data sheet (SpecPed) says to keep the finished pH at 5.0 to 7.0 and to avoid vitamin C, niacinamide, carbomer, chelating agents such as EDTA, fruit acids, and aloe extract in the same formula. See our GHK-Cu serum recipe for a compatible base.
• Retinol and strong acids: use these in a separate step or at a different time of day from your peptide serum.
• Similar boosters: Argireline and Snap-8 are often paired for the look of crow's feet, and Syn-Ake for vertical lines between the brows. You can combine several boosters, as long as the total stays balanced with the base and the preservative.

Shelf Life and Storage

Refrigerate boosted products and use them within 3 months. A homemade formula has not been challenge tested, so use that as a cautious guideline, and discard anything that changes color, smell, or texture. Store opened booster bottles in the refrigerator as their product pages direct.

Patch Test and Sensitive Skin

Patch test any new booster on your inner arm for 24 hours. If your skin is sensitive, start at the lowest rate of the range (for example Matrixyl 3000 at 3%, 27 drops per ounce, or Pepha Tight at 1%) and work up over several weeks. Many people with sensitive skin find a fragrance-free base easier to tolerate.

Troubleshooting

• Cream turned runny: liquid boosters thin a cream. Keep total boosters under about 20% in a cream, or add more base.
• Serum is sticky: Pepha Tight is a thick gel. Use 2 to 3% if you dislike the tack.
• Booster beaded up on top: you added a water-based booster to an oil. Remake it in a water-based serum.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I use a serum booster?

Mix it into a serum, cream, or lotion at its recommended concentration, using the drop chart. Then add a preservative, blend, and store the product in an airless bottle in the refrigerator.

How many drops of booster should I add?

At the house rate, 9 drops equals 1% in 1 fluid ounce. So a booster used at 5% needs 45 drops per ounce, and one used at 10% needs 90 drops per ounce.

Can I just add a few drops to my moisturizer each time?

We do not recommend it. Mixing a few drops in your palm gives an unknown concentration each time, wastes product, and can put too much of a strong ingredient on one spot. Mixing a measured batch gives you the same percentage every day.

Can I add peptides to a facial oil?

No. Peptides are water soluble and will not dissolve in oil. Add them to a water-based serum or a cream instead.

Can I combine several serum boosters in one product?

Yes. Many of our recipes combine three to six boosters. Add a preservative to cover the extra water, keep the pH in range, and check compatibility notes such as the copper peptide rules.

Can I use serum boosters on my body?

Yes. The same firming and antioxidant boosters can go into a body lotion for the chest, arms, and hands. Use the same rates and preservative rules as for face products.

Where can I find safety data sheets?

Each ingredient page links to its safety data sheet. You can also find them all in one place on our MSDS page.

Shop and Learn More

Browse all serum boosters and anti-aging peptides, our preservatives, and recipe guides such as how to dupe your favorite anti-aging products and the DIY anti-aging eye cream.

Sources

• Sederma, Matrixyl 3000 technical document (supplier data: 23 women, 3% cream, 2 months, half-face versus placebo).
• SpecPed, GHK-Cu (1.0%) technical data sheet, 2024 (supplier data: pH 5.0 to 7.0 and incompatible ingredients).
• Skin Perfection product pages for usage rates: Matrixyl 3000, Progeline 0.5 to 2%, Pepha Tight 1 to 5%, Relistase 4%, Leucidal SF Complete 2 to 4%, GSB Natural Preservative Powder.

These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

About the Author
Written by Kari Thomas, cosmetic formulator and founder of Skin Perfection.