Allantoin
What is it ?:
Allantoin is a naturally occurring compound that is soothing, anti-irritating. It is a fine white crystalline powder
Skin & Hair Benefits:
It helps boost healing by increasing skin cell turnover. It is moisturizing, soothing, anti-irritating, and stimulates healthy tissue production. Effective skin protectant and general good-skin-health promoting ingredient. We use it in many of our face creams.
Betaine (Anhydrous)
What is it ?:
Betaine is a naturally derived ingredient that is added to skin and hair care products to increase hydration, protect the skin’s natural barrier, improve hair strength and silkiness, and enhance the texture of formulations.
It is a natural substance that was originally derived from sugar beets, also found at high concentrations in several other sources, including wheat bran, wheat germ, spinach, beets, microorganisms, and aquatic invertebrates. The chemical structure of betaine resembles the amino acid glycine with three extra methyl groups this is why Betaine is also called trimethylglycine after its structure.
Skin & Hair Benefits:
It is great for hydration, anti-inflammation, anti-aging, and soothing the skin. Betaine naturally occurs in the body, it is a non-irritating, safe ingredient to help improve the condition of the skin. Doesn't have a downside, unless you are specifically allergic to it. Good hair conditioning abilities, and fantastic on most skins.
C12-C15 Alkyl Benzoate (Neoderm AB)
What is it ?:
C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate is a lightweight oil soluble ester with a beautiful dry skin feel. It is made from benzoic acid and C12–15 alcohols. It is considered to be non-irritating and safe for use.
Skin & Hair Benefits:
Excellent light-weight emollient that improves slip and reduces greasy feel and has anti-microbial properties.. We use it in all some of our Beard Oils & Anti Aging Face Serums. For hair, it provides a light conditioning and silky after touch to both your hair and scalp.
Cetyl Alcohol
What is it ?:
A vegetable-derived fatty alcohol typically used as a stabiliser and skin lubricant. Wonderful in creams, lotions, but we use it mainly in our soaps.
Skin & Hair Benefits:
It's great for dry skin and hair as it locks the moisture in and protects your skin and hair. We use it in all our shampoo bars & hand & body soap.
Climbazole
What is it ?:
Climbazole is 100% natural. Climbazole is a white Crystalline Powder used as a very effective anti-dandruff agent. Climbazole secifically tackles the fungus Malaseezia furfur, the primary cause of dandruff.
Skin & Hair Benefits:
Controls itchiness & white skin flakes use our: Itchy, Flaky Scalp Hair Conditioner - leave-on - 125ml
Cocamidopropyl Betaine (from Coconut Oil)
It is a very mild and versatile compound. As a surfactant, it gently washes skin and hair and creates a luxurious foam. It's also a good thickener and emulsifier, helping products to keep things together and is commonly considered a hair and skin conditioner too.
Derived from the fatty acids of coconut oil, fully biodegradable, it has very little scent and acts as a secondary thickener in personal care cleansing products such as and as it's derived from coconut oil, it exhibits mild moisturizing properties which help to keep your dry and brittle hair soft and more manageable. We're going to use it together with SLSa (see lower on page) in our shampoo bar soaps.
Coco-Caprylate/Caprate (Saboderm CVC)
What is it?
Is a skin-conditioning agent naturally derived from coconut oil to provide high hydration, superb spreadability, and elegant slip.
Skin & Hair Benefits:
We add it to some of our creams and lotions to reduce the heaviness and greasiness. It also improves the glide in many varieties of products during application and leaves a non-greasy, soft after touch. It is 100% renewable and biodegradeable and is approved by NaTrue, Ecocert and BDIH.
Cyclomethicone
What is it ?:
Its a synthetic silicone, a clear transparent oil, the chemical structure of cyclomethicone allows it to be easily sprea
d across the skin without entering the pores or sticking to skin cells. It is important of any skin care product that it has the ability to be spread evenly across the skin and to deliver the active healing ingredients to all targeted areas equally. Cyclomethicone was created to do that and to give skin care products a smoother texture that can be effortlessly applied on the skin.
Skin & Hair Benefits:
Works in a variety ways, namely as a conditioning agent, solvent, humectant, carrying agent and viscosity controlling agent. When applied to the skin and hair, it gives a silky & slippery feeling to the touch and acts a mild water repellent by forming a protective barrier on the skin. It can also fill in fine lines/wrinkles, giving the face a temporary “plump” look.
Ecosilk
What is it ?:
EcoSilk is totally natural. A perfect ready made natural replacement for Silicone in our product formulations.
Benefits:
Reduces the soaping effect/whitening of creams that can occur when high amounts of waxes or fatty alcohol are used. It also dramatically improves the spreadability of deodorants and emulsions with high amount of vegetable oils, butters or waxes.
What is it ?:
Vitamin B5, also called pantothenic acid, is one of the most important vitamins for human life.
Skin & Hair Benefits:
Acts as a skin moisturiser, helps keep skin soft, smooth and healthy. Also acts as an anti-inflammatory by stimulating your skin's healing processes. It is deeply hydrating and it even helps to keep skin moist by absorbing moisture from the air. In relation to hair it adds suppleness, boosts hair growth and prevents prematuring greyness. We use it in quite a few of our shampoo bars.
Haloxyl
What is it ?
An active that lessens dark circles in the under eye area.
Skin & Hair Benefits:
Works by dissolving the accumulated spent blood that leaks into the delicate tissues around the eye area. Haloxyl also helps reinforce the fragile under eye area to reduce the potential for dark circles occurring.
Honey
What is it ?:
A thick, golden liquid produced by industrious bees, honey is made using the nectar of flowering plants and is saved inside the beehive for eating during times of scarcity. We use locally produced unfiltered Hodge Clough honey.
Skin & Hair Benefits:
You could go on for ever about honey, used for thousands of years, It protects against damage, it's a natural antioxidant, protects skin from sun damage such as premature wrinkles, moisturises, cleans pores, is a gentle exfoliator, hydrates the skin and brightenss skin complexion. We use it on a few of our soaps.
Isopropyl Myristate
What is it?
It is thin, clear near odorless liquid. Is an ester of isopropyl alcohol (aka rubbing alcohol) and myristic acid (a fatty acid that naturally occurs in coconut and palm oils). It is a very lightweight emollient and can be used like a carrier oil in many applications.
Why do we use it?
We've only recently started using it, in some of our balms and salves. It is great lightweight emollient (moisturiser); It makes for a lighter, faster-absorbing product and dramatically reduces the greasy/oily feel in products with large ammounts of butters like Shea or Cocoa.
Skin Benefits:
Strengthen's the skin barrier: keeps the outermost layer of the skin strong and intact. If you think of the skin barrier as being made up of bricks and mortar: the cells are the bricks and all of the lipids (fats) are the mortar. Isopropyl myristate is that mortar, filling in cracks in between the skin cells so that moisture can't escape.
Softens the skin:
As an emollient, it also helps soften and smooth dry skin, which is why this is a choice ingredient for those with dry or flaky skin.
Enhances the penetration of other ingredients: it's thought that isopropyl myristate changes the structure of the stratum corneum, the most external layer of the skin, making it easier for active ingredients to absorb into skin.
Niacinamide - Vitamin B3
What is it?
In short, it's an anti-aging skin brightener. which prevents signs of aging and reduces acne.
Nicotinamide is an essential water-soluble vitamin, which is not synthesized in the body, meaning we have to eat it or apply it topically to the skin to receive its benefits. We will be expanding its use across our range.
Oat Silk
What is it?
Oat SILK (Avena sativa (Oat) Kernel Flour) is a very fine powdered oat extract that possesses a silky feel. The 7% Oat Lipid e found in Oat Silk, together with anitoxidants, avenanthramides and beta glucan assist skin health.
Skin & Hair Benefits:
Oat SILK absorbs natural skin oils providing an immediate mattifying effect on the skin. Oat SILK is easy to use with and its small particle size make it an ideal addition to creams and lotions where having a smooth and silky skin feel is importatnt.
Polyquaternium 7
What is it ?: Polyquaternium 7 is an anti-static agent and film former used in hair care products such as shampoos, conditioners, and hair sprays, but also in soaps and other cleansing products. It prevents the buildup of static electricity and forms a thin coating on the hair shaft that is absorbed by the hair, inhibiting the hair from absorbing moisture and creating frizz.
We use it in our solid hair conditioner.
Polyquaternium 11
What is it ?: A conditioning agent in shampoos and cream or clear rinse conditioners. Provides instant detangling whilst adding volume, shine, de-frizzing and body to the hair. It makes the hair easier to comb.
We use it in our solid hair conditioner.
Polysorbate 80
What is it ?: Polysorbate 80 is primarily used in cosmetics and beauty products as a surfactant and emulsifier because of its ability to help other ingredients dissolve in a solvent in which they normally would not be able to dissolve, specifically in the case of oil in water (CosmeticsInfo.org). It can also help to reduce surface tension of substances that need to be emulsified. It is seen in a variety of formulas, including skin fresheners, skin care products, skin cleansing products, makeup bases and foundations, shampoos, and fragrance powders, as well as food products. We use it in our Bath Oils.
Polysorbate 20
What is it ?:
It is an oil and water emulsifier. Polysorabte 20 can also be used as a wetting agent, viscosity modifier, anti-stat, stabilizer and dispersing agent.
It is also an ingredient necessary when combining fragrance oil with water-based products like baby shampoo because of very low eye irritation, body wash, toiletries, cosmetics and ointments. It is perfect for keeping the product clear and un-cloudy & prevents any separation of the oils or fragrance.
Propolis
What is it ?:
Propolis is a waxy substance formed by the combination of tree sap and beeswax that bees use to create their nests. It contains a very complex mixture of anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial compounds. It's used by bees for protecting a the nest from the elements. This function was co-opted by humans thousands of years ago for wound healing and for the treatment of skin and dental infections.
Skin Benefits: Heals wounds - The bioactive component of propolis may encourage quicker skin turnover and create a sealed and protected environment to allow for sterile skin repair. Treats acne aftermath - great for scarring, pigmentation, textural issues. Decreases inflammation - can help treating eczema and psoriasis by decreasing inflammation. Protects the skin - effective reverser of UV-induced skin damage, also good antioxidant properties able to fight sun-induced oxidative damage on the skin.
Propolis Tincture
Tinctures are liquid extracts made from herbs, in this case we use propolis, its a much more convenient method of adding the goodness to your product. The propolis is dissolved in alcohol over roughly a week week and we use a 10% propolis tincture from Hodge Clough Farm near Oldham. We use it in our Propolis Face Cream.
Sodium Lauryl Sulfoacetate (SLSa)
What is it ?:
Sodium Lauryl Sulfoacetate (SLSa) is a solid anionic surfactant (creates lather) of vegetable origin. It meets ECOCERT standards. It is not the same thing as Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS)—it is a much gentler surfactant.
Appearance & Texture?:
A very fine white powder.
Benefits?:
It offers fantastic, rich lather. Due to the small particle size it readily dissolves in water. We are going to use it in our shampoo bar soaps together with Cocamidopropyl Betaine (from Coconut Oil), look near top of page under C.
Silk Peptide
What is it ?:
Silk Peptides are a highly purified grade of natural silk power, processed in such a way as to retain the original physical structure and chemical composition of silk. We use 100% natural silk protein, in a fine powder form for ease of use. It also has the unusual quality of holding and releasing moisture depending on the temperature and humidity of the surroundings.
Skin & Hair Benefits:
It contains 18 different amino acids, all come from the cocoon of the silk worm, and all have a chemical composition that is very close to that of human skin and hair making them a wonderful source of skin and hair nourishment and maintenance. Its small particle size allows it to penetrate the skin and hair thus giving it more healing aspect to go along with appearance enhancements. The shine, elasticity, and smooth feel it provides to hair become apparent after it dries and turns into a protective crystalline film that is less sticky than collagen or keratin. Upon penetrating the skin, Silk Peptide helps to retain moisture while providing an attractive sheen
Tapioca Starch
What is it ?:
Starch extracted from Cassava (Tapioca). Gluten-free, aluminum-free. A natural thickener and texture enhancer. It consists primarily of amylose and amylopectin, both components of starch and what gives tapioca its thickening properties.
In cosmetics, tapioca starch can also serve to stabilize emulsions, create gel textures, and aid in the delivery of key ingredients to skin.
Skin & Hair Benefits:
It mitigates heavy unpleasant and greasy feel of oils & waxes.
Comments