Purodem is, at heart, a school of formulation. We teach the craft of taking plant-based ingredients and bringing them together into something safe, stable, and genuinely useful — for skincare, for therapeutic practice, and for the formulators and practitioners who do both.
Formulation is the discipline at the centre of everything Purodem teaches. Whether the end product is a face cream, a bespoke therapeutic blend, or a balm for a specific concern, the underlying craft is the same: understanding what each ingredient does, how they work together, and how to design a finished formulation that performs the way it should.
That single craft leads in two directions. Some students are here for cosmetic formulation — learning to create skincare for themselves, for clients, or for a brand they’re building. Others are here for therapeutic work — using essential oils, carrier oils, hydrolats, and plant materials to support a practice in aromatherapy or complementary health. Both sit comfortably under the same roof because the underlying reasoning is the same.
We teach from the ground up. Ingredient by ingredient, principle by principle, the why always comes alongside the how — so students leave understanding not just what to make, but the choices behind every formulation they make.
Every Purodem programme is built around the same idea: that formulation is best learned when the teaching is structured, when there’s someone to ask, and when what you make actually has to work.
In practice, that means our courses are sequenced to build understanding progressively. Students start with the foundations — ingredient function, formulation structure, safety thinking — and move from there into applied technique and independent reasoning. The aim is genuine competence, not familiarity. Students leave able to adapt their understanding to new situations, not reliant on memorised recipes.
Across every programme:
For a fuller account of how we design, assess, and deliver our courses — including curriculum principles, assessment approach, and our developing standards framework — see Our Standards.
Purodem currently offers two diploma programmes, with a third qualification launching in September 2026.
The NSF Diploma is our primary route into cosmetic formulation. It’s genuinely beginner-friendly, taking students from first principles through to confident, independent formulation across the core cosmetic systems — emulsions, anhydrous formulations, gels, and surfactant-based products.
It suits anyone formulating for themselves, developing a product range, or building a skincare brand on solid ground. View the NSF Diploma.
PEOT is an advanced diploma for practitioners who want to take their work with essential oils deeper — into case-based, application-led practice with real therapeutic intent. It develops a working knowledge of essential oils, carrier oils, formulation principles, and therapeutic reasoning, all grounded in professional practice. View the PEOT Diploma.
A new qualification launching in September 2026, bringing essential oils, vegetable oils, hydrolats, and plant actives into one connected approach to therapeutic formulation. Designed for practitioners who want to deepen their work with plant materials beyond a single tradition. Read more and join the waitlist.
Purodem was founded by Deana Kassim, who continues to lead the teaching across every programme.
Deana came to formulation through aromatherapy and therapeutic practice, and after more than twenty years working in the field she founded Purodem to build the kind of school she had wanted to find earlier in her own career: structured, rigorous about safety, and willing to teach the reasoning behind every formulation choice rather than just the recipes. Her teaching combines scientific understanding with the traditional and holistic perspectives that have shaped this field, and her approach to course design reflects that integrative outlook.
Deana is a graduate of the International Federation of Aromatherapists’ Professional Essential Oil Therapy (PEOT) programme, an active IFA member, and a PSA Accredited Register member alongside her wider work in skincare formulation and education. Her full credentials are set out on Our Standards page.
Purodem is structured to grow beyond any one teacher. We are developing a network of mentors drawn from our graduate community — experienced alumni who contribute to the student community, course content, and the wider learning environment as Purodem develops. This is a long-term direction: building a school whose standards, methodology, and teaching outlast any single person.
Our students come from all kinds of backgrounds. Complementary therapists looking to integrate essential oil therapy or formulation into their existing practice. Health professionals seeking structured training in botanical work. Skincare brand-builders and product developers who want to understand the choices behind every formulation. Independent learners drawn to the craft for its own sake.
What connects them is the same thing: a wish to work with plant materials thoughtfully, to understand the reasoning behind every choice, and to train with a school that takes the craft seriously.
We’re glad to teach beginners. The NSF Diploma in particular is designed to take students from first principles, and many of our most successful graduates began with no prior formulation experience at all.
Our courses are designed to be entered at the level that matches where you are now.
View the NSF Diploma — beginner-friendly, the route into cosmetic formulation.
View the PEOT Diploma — advanced, for practitioners taking essential oil work deeper.
Read about ITF — Coming September 2026, a new qualification in therapeutic formulation.
Read Our Standards — methodology, assessment, and credentials in detail.