In Part 1 of this series we learned hand sanitizer recipes and discussed everything you ever wanted to know about creating your own products, so now that you have gathered your contents, let's discuss bottles ....(AKA: the fun part!)

When I created my body care, fragrance and makeup lines I learned a LOT... I mean, I learned more than I would ever imagine learning while producing shampoos, conditioners, fragrance oils, waxes, makeup and more.  Here's a couple of the products I created:

So now that you know I actually *have* made some stuff (unlike 95% of the people writing articles online about the topic), here's some useful packaging information.

This specific post is about Sanitizers, but the information applies to any product you want to create.  

FACTORS TO CONSIDER

Very, very first you have to consider the consistency of your product. A true liquid needs a "fine mist" spray whereas a gel can be a thick mist spray, a flip top or a pump. Pump tops are the most expensive and are not realistic for travel size products.  Personally, I am not a fan of pump tops; I have tried them and they have never impressed me, but if you want to go the pump-top route, you can. 

Keep in mind, the sanitizers need to be small enough and light enough to be carried in a purse, yet big enough that they aren't worthless.  4 - 5oz oz bottles are way too large for a travel sanitizer:

and .05 oz is a sample-size vial (the type that those dinky perfumes on the thick cardboard paper come on):

are WAY too small! So we want to aim for a bottle size in between these two numbers.  

Next, let's keep in mind the WEIGHT of the ACTUAL PRODUCT PACKAGING.  (Bottle and spray pump).  For example, an 8.4oz body mist, like this:

weighs 10 - 11+oz inside of it's plastic container.... so the packaging alone adds 2+ ounces even though the usable product weight is "8.4 ounces"!  This means if you are making a 2oz product, with packaging it is going to weigh 3oz or more, depending on the packaging style. 

Glass is always going to be heavier than plastic.  That is why a candle, like this one, can be a "14oz candle" and actually weigh OVER 1.25 POUNDS inside of its glass container (with metal lid)!:

Glass is also breakable BUT glass adds value to the product because a glass bottle is always nicer than a plastic bottle.  You will NEVER see Victorias Secret, or any other brand for that matter, selling their $70 perfumes inside plastic bottles.  They even put their small perfumes inside glass and reserve plastic for body mists / less pricey items.  Let's just take a peek at the difference AN EMPTY BOTTLE can make...

Here's some upscale, empty glass bottles:

Here's some middle-upscale price glass bottles:

Here's cheaper middle-priced glass bottles:

and here are the lowest priced glass bottles (they do come in more colors than this):

The above bottles are 2oz each. If you want a small quantity of the tinted glass bottles, you can get them for under $1 per piece (with Free Shipping) on Amazon.  1oz Bottles are going to cost less than 2oz bottles; it just depends how large you want your sanitizer to be. 

Now let's compare these bottles to plastic:

These plastic bottles are also 2oz (60ml), just like the colored glass bottles above, but these plastic bottles are 20 pieces for under $11! (this would be one my personal picks for travel sanitizers if I was going to make a 2oz)

Remember that your label is going to cover the bottle, so you won't really be able to see through it.  

Alternatively, you can get 1oz (30ml) GLASS bottles for even less than the 2oz plastic.  On Amazon you can score 20 of them for under $15 when they are on sale:

Once you select your bottles, order a small quantity (20 pieces or less).  Add your product to your bottles and test them out.  Make sure you are truly happy with the quality.  You will likely decide to make some changes to the actual sanitizer or to the bottle or pump. 

ANOTHER IMPORTANT FACTOR: when choosing your bottles, keep in mind that a label will be covering them and the bigger the label = the more the label costs.

Once you have decided you are genuinely satisfied with the product and you love the packaging and you feel it is good for market it is time to make labels!

NEXT, READ PART 3: PACKAGE LABELS